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Features
Soludo urges South-East youths to enlist in Nigerian armed forces, warns against self-marginalisation
Written By: Chisom Onyibe
17 Jan 2026 06:19 AM
Awka, Anambra – Anambra State Governor, Professor Chukwuma Charles Soludo, has passionately appealed to youths in Anambra State and across the South-East geopolitical zone to actively enlist in the Nigerian Armed Forces, including the Army, Navy, Air Force, and police, describing low participation as a form of self-marginalisation that must end.
Speaking during the 2026 Armed Forces Remembrance Day celebration at the Alex Ekwueme Square in Awka on Thursday, January 15, Governor Soludo emphasized that the Nigerian Civil War ended 56 years ago (on January 15, 1970) and urged the people of the region to stop "fighting a finished war" through disengagement from national institutions or involvement in violence.
The governor lamented that Anambra and the South-East recorded the lowest number of recruits in recent enlistment exercises into the Army and Police, despite available opportunities.
He warned that continued refusal to participate would lead future generations to complain about the absence of senior officers of Igbo or Anambra extraction in the nation's security architecture.
"Nobody is marginalising the Igbo people, we are marginalising ourselves," Soludo declared, noting, "We refused to enter the Police and the armed forces, then in a few decades to come we will turn around to complain that there are no officers of Anambra extraction or Igbo extraction. So we must participate equally as equal owners of project Nigeria."
He stressed that true ownership of the country requires active involvement, particularly in core national institutions like the military and security agencies.
Soludo encouraged youths to view themselves as co-owners of Nigeria and to consider careers in the armed forces, noting that low enlistment is counterproductive and perpetuates exclusion.
The appeal came amid the governor's commendation of President Bola Tinubu for renewed efforts in combating insecurity nationwide, as well as praise for security agencies in Anambra for reclaiming eight local government areas previously affected by crime and ensuring peaceful Christmas celebrations.
Soludo also extended an olive branch to armed groups, bandits, and youths claiming to fight for Biafra, urging them to lay down their arms, abandon forest hideouts, and embrace peace and reintegration.
"No human being lives in the forest but in houses," he remarked, calling on them to reintegrate into society.
The ceremony featured a wreath-laying at the cenotaph of the Unknown Soldier, a guard of honour inspection, moments of silence, intercessory prayers, a gun salute, and the symbolic release of white pigeons to represent peace and remembrance of fallen heroes.
This latest call aligns with ongoing efforts to address historical imbalances in representation within Nigeria's security forces and promote unity in the South-East amid lingering security challenges.
Stakeholders have welcomed the governor's message as a timely reminder of collective responsibility in nation-building.
Speaking during the 2026 Armed Forces Remembrance Day celebration at the Alex Ekwueme Square in Awka on Thursday, January 15, Governor Soludo emphasized that the Nigerian Civil War ended 56 years ago (on January 15, 1970) and urged the people of the region to stop "fighting a finished war" through disengagement from national institutions or involvement in violence.
The governor lamented that Anambra and the South-East recorded the lowest number of recruits in recent enlistment exercises into the Army and Police, despite available opportunities.
He warned that continued refusal to participate would lead future generations to complain about the absence of senior officers of Igbo or Anambra extraction in the nation's security architecture.
"Nobody is marginalising the Igbo people, we are marginalising ourselves," Soludo declared, noting, "We refused to enter the Police and the armed forces, then in a few decades to come we will turn around to complain that there are no officers of Anambra extraction or Igbo extraction. So we must participate equally as equal owners of project Nigeria."
He stressed that true ownership of the country requires active involvement, particularly in core national institutions like the military and security agencies.
Soludo encouraged youths to view themselves as co-owners of Nigeria and to consider careers in the armed forces, noting that low enlistment is counterproductive and perpetuates exclusion.
The appeal came amid the governor's commendation of President Bola Tinubu for renewed efforts in combating insecurity nationwide, as well as praise for security agencies in Anambra for reclaiming eight local government areas previously affected by crime and ensuring peaceful Christmas celebrations.
Soludo also extended an olive branch to armed groups, bandits, and youths claiming to fight for Biafra, urging them to lay down their arms, abandon forest hideouts, and embrace peace and reintegration.
"No human being lives in the forest but in houses," he remarked, calling on them to reintegrate into society.
The ceremony featured a wreath-laying at the cenotaph of the Unknown Soldier, a guard of honour inspection, moments of silence, intercessory prayers, a gun salute, and the symbolic release of white pigeons to represent peace and remembrance of fallen heroes.
This latest call aligns with ongoing efforts to address historical imbalances in representation within Nigeria's security forces and promote unity in the South-East amid lingering security challenges.
Stakeholders have welcomed the governor's message as a timely reminder of collective responsibility in nation-building.
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