The Nigerian Army has appealed to young people in Abia State and across the South-East to take up military service and contribute to national development.
The appeal came on Thursday, the 5th of March, 2026, in Umuahia during an awareness campaign organised by the Department of Civil-Military Affairs of the Army.
The event brought together youths, traditional leaders and representatives of civil society to discuss career opportunities within the military.
Speaking at the programme, retired Major General Gold Chibuisi urged young people from the region to reconsider their stance toward military service.
Delivering a lecture at the gathering, he advised them not to shy away from joining the Army but to explore career paths available in areas such as medicine, law, engineering and other professional fields.
Chibuisi also dismissed claims that soldiers of Igbo origin face discrimination within the system.
He rejected the notion that junior personnel from certain regions are routinely sent to dangerous battlefields.
The retired officer assured the youths that their welfare and promotion would receive equal attention within the force.
He also called on parents to support their children who wish to enlist.
Another retired senior officer, Major General Chukwunedum Abraham, raised concern over the low level of participation from the South-East in recent recruitment exercises.
He noted that statistics from the last exercise showed that Imo State recorded 671 applicants, while Ebonyi State had 428 applicants.
According to him, the numbers remain small when compared with figures from other geopolitical zones.
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The Chief of Civil-Military Affairs of the Army, Major General Musa Awwal Etsu-Ndagi, explained that the campaign aimed to correct misconceptions and inform communities about opportunities in the military.
He said the outreach programme was designed to encourage young people and opinion leaders to gain a clearer understanding of the Army and its recruitment process.
In his remarks, the governor of Abia State, Alex Otti, also urged youths from the state to participate in Army recruitment exercises.
Otti said Abia should not continue to rank among states with the lowest enlistment figures in the military.
He expressed concern that recruitment forms distributed in the state in recent years attracted only a small number of applicants.
The governor said his administration would support the awareness campaign and work toward improving participation among young people in the state.
