The new Commander of 34 Artillery Brigade of the Nigerian Army, Brig.-Gen. Ibrahim Abass has called on criminals operating in Imo State to surrender their arms or risk a hard time under his watch.
Brig.-Gen. Abass gave the warning during the formal handover ceremony by the immediate-past Commander, Brig.-Gen. Usman Lawal at the 34 Artillery Brigade Obinze in Owerri, the Imo State capital.
Abass, in a statement signed by Acting Assistant Director, Army Public Relations, Capt Joseph Akubo, warned that criminals within the state will have a hard time as he will lead the onslaught against them.
“He sternly warns all criminal elements operating in the state to come out of the bushes, lay down their arms and surrender.
Abass also charged “troops to maintain the same level of alertness and show of strength against all criminal elements, stating that a change in Command does not change the fight against criminals and the quest for peace”.
He assured that the welfare of the troops will be taken seriously and assured that he will consolidate on all facets of the Brigade’s administrative, operational and training successes.
The statement added that Gen Abass will double as the Brigade Commander and Land Component Commander, Joint Task Force OPERATION UDO KA.
For his part, Brig.-Gen. Lawal said kidnapping reduced drastically to the barest minimum in Imo State while he was the Commander of the Brigade.
Lawal stressed that the spate of kidnapping and other crimes had been reduced to the barest minimum even as he urged the troops to continue to stand firm and deny terrorists belonging to the outlawed Indigenous People Of Biafra (IPOB/ ESN) and other criminal elements the freedom of action.
Further, he said that the current state of security and peace in Imo State could not have been achieved without the efforts of the troops and other security agencies who fought and are still fighting to maintain peace.