The Nigerian Army has made history by appointing a female officer, Appolonia Anaele, a Lieutenant Colonel, as the first Acting Director of Army Public Relations. The appointment takes effect from April 22nd, 2025. The acting director will take over from the outgoing Director of Army Public Relations, Major General Onyema Nwachukwu, next week after the Easter break.
General Nwachukwu has served three Chief of Army Staffs back-to-back, starting with Lt. Gen. Faruk Yahaya (rtd), Late Lt. Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, and the incumbent COAS, Lt. Gen. Olufemi Oluyede.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Army yesterday discredited a viral video on lack of ammunition, explaining that the trending video footage is recycled with the obnoxious and malicious intent of denigrating the Nigerian Army.
A statement by the outgoing spokesperson of the Nigerian Army, Major General Nwachukwu, said: “The attention of the Nigerian Army (NA) has been drawn to an old video posted on various social media platforms by unscrupulous elements showing troops chanting, ‘Enough Is Enough: They’re Playing Politics With People’s Lives, Without Ammunition.”
To this end, the NA clarified that the said video is an old audio-visual being recycled with the obnoxious and malicious intent of denigrating the NA, particularly at a time when the institution is doing everything to reinvigorate its efforts in containing security challenges bedeviling the country.
Nwachukwu said that while it is needless to join issues with such unpatriotic elements, the service further clarified that it is not lacking in the requisite logistics to carry out its constitutional mandates. This, he said, is evident in the series of successes recorded in various theatres of operations.
“As the NA continues to count on the support of well-meaning Nigerians through the provision of credible information that could enhance the surmounting of the security challenges bedeviling the nation, the general public is once again enjoined to refrain from circulating such mischievous content, as it not only constitutes a distraction to ongoing operations but also serves to dampen the morale of the troops.”
“The despicable act of recycling an old video just to gain traction on social media is, therefore, undignifying and a complete distraction to the noble course of defending the territorial integrity of Nigeria,” the statement said.
He enjoined the public to always fact-check their information before sharing the content in order to prevent the spread of fake and misleading narratives.
