The Nigerian Army has informed the public that the female officer who was abducted on Monday, 26th December 2022, Lieutenant PP Johnson, has not yet been rescued as search efforts are still ongoing.
The female officer was abducted while visiting her grandmother in Aku-Okigwe in Imo state, shortly after completion of her Cadet training and subsequent commissioning as a Lieutenant into the Nigerian Army.
A statement issued by the Director of Army Public Relations, Brigadier General Onyema Nwachukwu, said a video footage of her abduction had emerged in social media where her abductors claimed her abduction was in line with their fight for Biafra against the Nigerian State.
The statement further said “It is instructive that the officer’s circumstance as a woman and a Nigerian citizen of South Eastern extraction did not dissuade her abductors from dehumanizing her in their mindless attempt to commit atrocities under the guise of fighting for Biafra. This evidently is another pointer to the myriads of crimes being unleashed by IPOB/ ESN on Ndigbo, the very people they claim to be fighting for their emancipation”.
The Nigerian Army therefore made it clear to those who are still in doubt of the true status, that IPOB/ESN are terrorists, masquerading as freedom fighters and do not deserve the support of anyone, particularly the good people of South East Nigeria.
The Army stated that the information making the rounds is unsubstantiated as the officer is yet to be released or rescued from her abductors. It also said that the video footage being circulated and associated with the rescue claim is an old video of the arrest of a suspect earlier effected by troops.
The Army further clarified that the information on the rescue of the officer did not emanate from the NA as much as it appreciates the concern of the public over the status of the officer.
The Nigerian Army assured the public that it will leave no stone unturned in its effort to rescue the officer and bring the perpetrators to book while appealing to the general public to provide credible and reliable information that could lead to her safe rescue and arrest of the perpetrators.
