The federal government on Monday said that “weapons that were procured by the Jonathan administration for the military to prosecute the war against insurgency were substandard and could not have been responsible for the string of successes recorded by the military in recent times”.
In a statement issued in Abeokuta, capital of Ogun State, Lai Mohammed, minister of information and culture, described as “unfortunate and unsubstantiated the statement credited to former President Goodluck Jonathan attributing the recent successes in the war to the weapons allegedly bought by his administration that were delivered after he had left office”.
He said that the weapons procured by the last administration were not only substandard, the ammunition were expired, incompatible with weapons and grossly inadequate to the extent that they caused injuries and deaths to soldiers.
“The weapons, munitions and equipment which the former president said he bought were refurbished and lacked the basic components and spare parts. Additionally, the ammunition bought for both high-calibre and small weapons have mostly expired, incompatible with weapons and grossly inadequate,” he said.
“It is pertinent to state that the ammunition he was referring to were back-loaded because they explode within the barrel when fired, thus leading to deaths and injuries among soldiers.” The minister said that the troops also lacked the much-needed lift and operational vehicles and other equipment, which they needed for an effective prosecution of the war, until the present administration ameliorated the situation.
“The situation was so pathetic that soldiers were often transported in civilian JTF vehicles, civilian vehicles, trailers and water tankers when going to the theaters of operation. The revelations on the sorry state of things in the past, which have emanated from the investigative panel so far, point clearly to the kind of legacy bequeathed to this administration by the past government,” he said.
thecable
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