The Nigeria Navy has promised to deal decisively with any of its personnel caught abusing the rights of civilians.
The Flag Officer Commanding, Eastern Naval Command, Rear Adm. Atiku Abdulkadir, gave the warning in an address to officers and ratings of the command in Calabar on Saturday, the News Agency of Nigeria reported.
“We are men and women in uniform, it is expected that we don’t abuse the rights of civilians whom we have sworn to protect.
“We must also be sound and resolute in the performance of our duties, but we must respect the rights of the civilian populace.
“There is a lot of wrong perception about the military by members of the public; we must conduct ourselves properly and observe basic rules,” he noted.
While making a case for military-civilian relationship, he charged the naval personnel to ensure their conduct is above board at all times.
“If you follow the basic rules and do the correct things, the interpretation will be that we are living up to expectations.
“These are the ways we must conduct ourselves so that we can positively contribute to security in the water ways and the well-being of the nation.
“If you start conducting illegal activities across the boundary, other members of the security agencies can either pick you up or report you,” Abdulkadir said.