After Public Outcry, Army Reportedly Releases Detained Romantic Female Officer

After hues and Cries from some concerned Nigerians, the Nigerian Army has reportedly released one of its female officer, Sofiah Akinlabi involved in a romantic affair while on her duty post with a member of the National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, simply identified as Remi at the scheme orientation camp in Yikpata, Kwara State.

Reports have it that, Sofiat was released on Saturday.

Spokesperson for the Nigerian Army, Brigadier General Onyema Nwachukwu, confirmed the development to PRNigeria.

He said, “I can confirm to you that an order has been made for the soldier to be freed and enjoy the Christmas with her family and friends with a serious warning for her not to repeat such act again.”

SaharaReporters had reported that the female soldier was ordered to be detained by Captain MM Abdulahi, Kwara State NYSC Camp Commandant, at a military detention facility in Ilorin, the state capital, pending further investigations.

A military source had said she was detained for not being “due for marriage, romancing on uniform publicly, absent on parade, indiscriminate behaviour, doing other things aside from her purpose in NYSC camp, disobedience to standing order of social media rule and disobedience to ethics and tradition of the Nigerian Army”.

Akinlabi’s arrest and detention was widely condemned by civil society groups and Nigerians in general, who described it as gender discrimination by the Nigerian Army.