The Defence headquarters yesterday debunked
online media publications that the family of the
Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex
Badeh was evacuated by Airforce helicopter from
his home town near Mubi.
A statement from Defence Headquaters website
reads, “Contrary to a misinformation that has
gone viral on cyberspace, Chief of Defence Staff,
Alex Badeh never sent any helicopter to his home
town in Adamawa State to evacuate members of
his family hours before the fall of the town to
Boko Haram terrorists.
“In that vein, mass media practitioners have been
urged to desist from lifting unsubstantiated items
from social media and bloggers who often do not
know the difference between beer parlour gossip
and news.
The statement referred to one such reckless
publication as asserting Badeh sent a military
helicopter to evacuate members of his family just
a few hours before the fall of his home town to
Boko Haram terrorists.
Titled “No Helicopter Evacuated the CDS Family
Members”, it said “The attention of the Defence
Headquarters (DHQ) has been drawn to an article
with the caption, “The Helicopters that evacuated
CDS Badeh’s family from Mubi: A lesson for All
Nigerians” written by a certain Elvis Iyorngurum
and posted in an on-line news outlet,
NewsRescue.com on the 6th of November, 2014.
“The said article which contained strings of
deliberate falsehood and spurious allegations
claimed that few hours before the attack on Mubi
by the terrorists, the Chief of Defence Staff, Air
Chief Marshal AS Badeh flew in helicopters and
evacuated his family from the town and
abandoned everyone else to their fate.
“While the DHQ remains at a loss as to the
motive for these unconscionable fabrications, it is
pertinent to quickly repudiate the false claim and
to state clearly that at no time did the CDS send
any helicopter to evacuate any of his family
members before, during or after the attack on his
home town.
“Contrary to the claims by the author, the
helicopter that flew to Mubi was on an
operational mission to reinforce the ground troops
in preparation of efforts to repel the attack. The
helicopter did not convey any civilian or relation
of the CDS as disdainfully insinuated in the
article.
“Considering the fact that the falsehood packaged
against Air Chief Marshal Badeh by Elvis has not
only been mischievously and widely circulated, it
has been further made viral on the social media,
it can no longer be dismissed as one of those
careless efforts in the campaign to tarnish the
name and integrity of this senior officer and the
Armed Forces who are doing their best to address
the security situation in the country.
“The damage done by the fabrications contained
in that article has not only personal, but national
security implications.
“Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh as the Chief of
Defence Staff has uppermost in his heart, the
interest of the entire citizens of Nigeria, whom he
swore to protect. Insinuating that the CDS is self-
centred and insensitive to the plight of his people
is wicked and damaging indeed.
“The DHQ wishes to reassure Nigerians that as a
patriot and one on whose shoulders the leadership
of Nigerian Armed Forces rests, he has honestly
reaffirmed severally that he considers every
Nigerian and every part of Nigeria as deserving of
equal protection especially at this challenging
times.
“Just like any other Nigerian, the CDS is pained at
the mindless carnage and bloody violence
perpetrated against innocent Nigerians by the
terrorist group. Contrary to the falsehood bandied
around by a number of professional critics and
detractors, the CDS believes that every town or
village under attack deserves protection whether
it is his home town or not.
“This false story on Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh
is one of the many fabrications being circulated
as information or articles by individuals who have
remained desperate in the efforts to dampen the
spirit and morale of military personnel in
particular and Nigerians in general as we strive to
stop the activities of terrorists on rampage
against our people.
“ It is therefore necessary to appeal to the
populace of concerned citizens to join hands with
the security forces in this effort by refraining
from the series of distractive criticisms and
comments.
“The mass media is again requested to beware of
lifting stories on the military from online media
that has become the main channel of
disseminating falsehood on happenings in the
system.”
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