Army explains arrest, detention of soldier caught in relationship with corps member

The Nigerian Army has revealed the reason behind the arrest and detention of a female personnel who was involved in a romantic relationship with a male corps member at the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) orientation camp in Yikpata, Kwara State.

Director of Army Public Relations, Brigadier General Onyema Nwachukwu in a statement issued on Sunday, explained that the soldier violated military laws which prohibits public display of amorous relationship with a paramilitary trainee – a corps member.

Ripples Nigeria had gathered that viral video clips on the internet depicted the male corp member proposing to a female soldier at the Kwara NYSC camp.

One of the video clips apparently recorded on the camp’s parade ground showed the yet-to-be-identified corps member holding a ring as he knelt to ask the female soldier to marry him, which she accepted to a warm embrace.

Nonetheless, Nwachukwu said the female soldier violated the Nigerian Army’s rules and regulations on the code of conduct of military personnel when deployed for duty.

Read also: NYSC DG urges Corps members to be security conscious

According to the Army spokesman, the female soldier’s action would have elicited a public outcry if it were a male soldier who proposed to a female corper during the NYSC parade.

The statement reads, “The female soldier in question violated the following rules of the NA:

“1. Fraternization while on official duty at the NYSC camp. That is, indulging in an amorous relationship with a trainee.

“2. A personnel must have served for three years before he/she can qualify for marriage.

“3. She disobeyed the Armed Forces of Nigeria standing guidelines and directives for the use of Social Media.

“4. Indulging in romance while in uniform.

5. Her conduct was prejudicial to good order and military discipline.

“All the above, if proven are in violation of extant laws with attendant disciplinary and penal implications.”

He also noted that “the Nigerian Military like all others, has its disciplinary codes, distinct from that of the general society. Every personnel has voluntarily undertaken to be bound by this code.”

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