Following the trial of Maj. Gen. U. M. Mohammed by court-martial, the Nigerian Army has prevented the journalist from covering the trial. Before his arrest and secret detention, he was in charge of the Nigerian Army Property Limited (NAPL). After his arrest in January 2022, Mohammed has confessed that Buratai asked him to pay $730,000 to obtain Saudi Arabia citizenship for him (Buratai) in order to evade justice for the atrocities committed by the army while he was the chief of staff.
According to SaharaReporters, Mohammed was being punished because of Buratai with whom he was involved in illegalities and shady dealings, carried out on the orders of the former Army chief while he was in office.
The Army headquarters in a statement made on Sunday, through Brigadier General Onyema Nwachukwu, Director of Army Public Relations, states;
” Court Martials, like all other criminal trials, are held in the open. The trial of Major General UM Mohammed is taking place at the Army Headquarters Command Officers’ Mess, Asokoro Abuja and is not shrouded in secrecy as being wrongly insinuated.”
“The trial has been open, and the Defence has presented adequate representation in court. The accused senior officer’s family members, friends, and associates attend and observe the Court proceedings to date without hindrance,”
Despite the claims made by the Army headquarters on Sunday through Brigadier General Onyema Nwachukwu, Director of Army Public Relations, that the trial is “held in the open” and “not shrouded in secrecy”, the Army on Monday, prevented the journalists from covering the proceedings.
Due to the public pressure, the journalists who turned up for coverage were told to go and get clearance from the Nigerian Army Directorate of Information which opposed the claims made earlier by the Army headquarters.
