Nigerian Army Has No Desire To Disrupt Democracy — COAS

Army has no desire to truncate Nigeria's democracy says COAS

The Nigerian Army is committed to defending the country's democratic system of government, as reiterated by Lieutenant General Taoreed Lagbaja, the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), on Tuesday.

The COAS stated that the Army has no intentions to end the nation's democracy while speaking to attendees of a seminar on career planning and management hosted by Army headquarters.

He urged Nigerian Army officers to conduct themselves honorably when performing their official duties

“Permit me to seize this opportunity to reiterate that the Armed Forces of Nigeria, particularly the Nigerian Army has come to terms with the country's choice of democracy as the preferred system of governance,” he said during his address to officers.

“We are therefore agents of democracy and have no desire to truncate it. The Nigerian Army will continue to defend our constitution and not suspend it for whatever reason.

“It is the duty of our elected leaders to lead while the military does its job as enshrined in our constitution. Nigerian Army personnel must therefore remain professional and be above board as they discharge their constitutional duties.”

The COAS's commitment came after a string of putches in West and Central Africa, where there have been at least seven military coups in the previous four years.

The Economic Community of Western African States (ECOWAS) has seen the withdrawal of Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso, and most recently, the Niger Republic, during the past four years. In 2021, military coups also occurred in Sudan and Chad, two countries outside of West Africa.