|
Colonel sues Army
•Over forced retirement
•Seeks Yar’ Adua’s intervention
From: ISMAIL OMIPIDAN, Kaduna
Thursday, November 26, 2009
 |
|
•Jock
•Photo: Sun News Publishing |
|
A serving Army Colonel of Southern Kaduna origin, Silas Santoi
Jock of the Training and Doctrine Command, TRADOC, Minna, has dragged
President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua and the army authorities to
court seeking to uiger state redress what he termed an “unfair
treatment,” meted out on him as a serving officer of the Nigerian
Army.
In the suit, with reference number FHC/ABJ/CS/581/09, which is before
Justice Kolawole of Court 4, Jock, is among other things seeking
what he termed “a fair hearing” in one of his matters
before the Federal High Court.
Among the reliefs sought by the army officer, is an order, compelling
the President to set up a commission of inquiry to investigate his
case, with a view to unravel the circumstances surrounding his ordeal.
He is equally asking the court to compel the Justice Minister, Michael
Andoakaa, to investigate the circumstances surrounding the refusal
of the former Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice Abdullahi
Mustapha, to carry out the directives of the National Judicial Council,
NJC, to personally handle the case, even as he wants the court to
also compel the Defence Minister, to cause the army to promote him
to the rank of Brigadier-General, with a view to according him all
the benefits enjoyed by his contemporaries.
How it all Began
Daily Sun learnt that it all started in 1999, when Col. Jock, serving
at the 21 Armoured Brigade Camp, Giwa Barracks, Maiduguri, applied
for and got permission to further his studies. Once he got admission
to do a Post Graduate Diploma in Strategic Studies at the University
of Maiduguri, he wasted to no time in applying for release and sponsorship
in line with the army tradition.
In a memo, with reference number NA/COAS/20, dated August 9, 1999,
the Army Headquarters communicated Jock’s release and sponsorship
to him. The memo, a copy of which was obtained by Daily Sun and
signed by one Lt. Col. S A Adebayo, a total of 57 officers, including
Jock, were granted sponsorship for courses in “local civil
institutions for 1999/2000 academic session.”
Because he was overwhelmed by the gesture, he decided to write the
army authorities, to show gratitude and appreciation for allowing
him to make the list of beneficiaries for further studies. The letter
was dated December 8, 2000, and was said to have been sent to the
Chief of Army Staff, COAS, through one Colonel A A Ilogho, of the
Armoured Corps Centre School.
Sadly however, that letter of appreciation turned out to be his
greatest undoing as it marked the beginning of the attempt to force
him out of the army. Rather than get an acknowledgement of the receipt
of his appreciation to the army, what Jock got was a shocker, as
he was accused of violating the army directive by attending an unapproved
course.
According to the letter, dated January 31, 2001, a copy of which
was obtained by Daily Sun, the army authorities claimed that it
had earlier withdrawn the said sponsorship, as such ordered that
a disciplinary action be taken against him, following which his
promotion to the rank of full Colonel was withheld, while his salaries
and allowances were suspended.
Unsatisfied with the army’s position, . Jock protested to
the army authorities, insisting among other things that he never
got any purported letter withdrawing the sponsorship, as claimed
and submitted that his summary trial was a violation of the Armed
Forces Decree 105, section 117 of 1993, which states that “an
army officer reserves the right to choose to be tried by a court
martial.”
But he never got the court martial, a situation that forced him
to write to the then COAS for an interview. In conceding to his
request, the COAS requested the then Commandant of Nigerian
Army School of Artilary, NACAS, General CI Obiako to carry out the
interview on his behalf.
And in the end, Obiako established that Jock indeed had a case and
recommended that all his petitions be heard. The letter detailing
the recommendations was dated April 29, 2003.
But rather than implement the recommendations, the army allegedly
came up with a story that the embattled officer had a psychiatric
problem. And to do this, Jock, claimed, “an Ophthalmologist
falsified a medical report against me in 2004, saying I have a psychiatric
problem.
“And the report came just when a medical examination was carried
out on me at the National Eye Centre, Kaduna. The centre wrote a
letter to me (copy in Daily Sun’s possession) to inform me
about my eye problem. The letter dated April 15, 2004 and was signed
by a Consultant, Dr. Chaha K., who said I was suffering from complications
in my left eye, as a result of the previous operation I had earlier
gone through, and suggested that I go back to the London Hospital,
where the previous operation took place,” he said, adding
that the above submission was corroborated by the Chief Consultant,
also an Ophthalmologist, of 44, Nigerian Army Reference Hospital,
Kaduna, Col. J A
Kadiri who reassessed his condition.
Daily Sun gathered that. Jock had indeed sustained an eye injury,
sometimes in 1991, in far way Pakistan, while undergoing a course
there, as a result of which he had to undergo two separate surgeries
in London in 1991 and 1992, including two other lesser sessions
in Tel-Aviv in 1998, all of which had nothing to do with his mental
state.
However, another consultant, also a military officer, and an ophthalmologist,
working then with the Military Hospital, Lagos, Lt. Col. P A Falola,
came up with another report that suggested that the embattled officer
was suffering from a psychiatric problem, it went further to recommend
that a medical board, including a psychiatric assessment be constituted
to further examine. Jock. Since then, the army and the embattled
officer shifted their battle to the conventional law court.
. Jock fired
A statement from the army headquarters, signed by the Director,
Army Public Relations, Brigadier Chris Olukolade, described Jock’s
suit as an attempt to rubbish the army.
“In relation to the law suit, the Legal Department of the
ministry of Defence is handling the matter on behalf of the defendants.
So we are ready to meet Lt. Jock in court. Thus, our advice to Lt.
Jock and only response to his petitions and publications is meet
us in court!
“First, there is no record anywhere that Lt. Col. Jock was
tried by a Court Martial. Additionally, our records show that Lt.
Col. Jock has been lawfully retired from the Nigerian Army in accordance
with the extant Terms and Conditions of Service, TACOS, applicable
to the Nigerian Army.”
Jock fires back
Responding,. Jock insisted that every action he had taken since
2001, to date, was guided and in compliance with the Armed Forces
Act of 1993, section 178, He insisted that his request to be tried
by a court martial was denied him in flagrant violation of the section
117 of the Armed Forces Act of 1993.
On the issue of retirement, the embattled army officer said “I
have not been lawfully retired from the Nigerian Army, and the Federal
High Court of Nigeria can bear witness to this, because I went to
court in 2004, as a serving military officer with my complaint to
seek a redress, which is yet to be determined by the court.
“I have consistently being present in court for my matter
and always properly dressed in my army uniform because I consider
going to court as an official duty. And even my last appearance
in court on October 29, 2009, I was visibly present in my army uniform.
“Please note that the Terms and Conditions of Service are
very clear on this. ‘The provision for security of service
of the commissioned officer clearly states that ‘no commission
officer, holding a commission of the rank of lieutenant and above
shall be called upon to retire, relinquish or resign his commission
or transfer to the reserve, or shall pressure be exerted on him
to do so except by the authority of the Army Council,’ note
that ever since I made my complaint seeking for a redress in 2001,before
it was transferred to the court, there has never been any communication
between the Army Council and myself in respect of retirement.
“Let me also add that, in the same document I quoted above,
there is another provision that says, any officer forced to retire
after 15 years for reasons not traceable to indiscipline shall have
his full pension and benefits on his last salary based on the number
of years he had served as at the date of retirement.’ But
ever since the Army illegally stopped my salary and benefits in
2005, while this complaint to seek a redress was still pending in
court, no kobo has been given to me to date by the Army authority.
So who is fooling who?” he asked rhetorically.
Blames Northern leaders for his woes
According to Jock, who though sees Yar’Adua as one prepared
to provide good leadership, especially with his stance on the rule
of law, he was quick to add that the President’s efforts are
being frustrated daily by some northern leaders:
“May I draw some examples to buttress my assertion on this
issue. Firstly, is the Arewa Consultative Forum, ACF, which I suppose
is saddled with the responsibility of protecting the interest of
northerners. However, my experience shows that the ACF appears not
to be helping matters as it concerns Yar’Adua’s effort
to achieve his cardinal policy of rule of law
“I had reported a matter of abuse of rule of law to the forum
sometimes in 2007, under the leadership of late Chief Sunday Awoniyi.
They took interest in my case and made efforts to introduce me to
one of the elders who is a legal practitioner to take up the matter.
But the present leadership under Maj. Gen. IBM Haruna (rtd) overturned
it to cover up the matter.
“Another one is the action of the of the former Chief judge
of the Federal High Court, Justice Abdullahi Mustapha, also a northern
elder, who allowed his office to be abused to cover up the truth
in my matter. This was done against the directive from the NJC to
him to personally handle the matter.
“I have also in the past reported this matter to some of my
fellow prominent northern leaders, such as the Kaduna State governor,
retired and serving Generals, legal practitioners, including SANs
among others, but all was in vain simply because they want my matter
covered up.
“However, once our Southern brothers got to know about my
matter, they have practically intervened by writing petitions on
my behalf to NJC and even to President Yar’Adua and have given
me the assurance to follow it up till justice was finally done.
“I therefore call on President Yar’Adua to be vigilant
of those who parade themselves around him but who are only experts
in concealing important national issues from him because of his
tight schedule. Please sir, learn from former President Shehu Shagari,
because in the end you will be the one to account for everything
that transpired under your administration,” Col. Jock advised
Make N3 million
by referring a bullet-proof car buyer
How
to Get Any Woman You Want. Click Here!
Make
N450,000 Online Monthly. Click Here |
