By Daniel Oluwatobiloba Popoola
The Nigerian Army has denied reports alleging that a Gombe State indigene, Ibrahim Nazifi, died during military training at the Depot Nigerian Army (NA), Zaria, dismissing the claim as false, misleading and unsupported by official records.
The Army’s position was conveyed in a statement issued on Saturday, 24 January, 2026 by the Acting Assistant Director, Army Public Relations, Depot NA Zaria, Captain Chikadibia Viola Anele, and subsequently posted on the Defence Headquarters’ official X handle.
According to the statement, although Nazifi was among candidates shortlisted for the 2025 recruitment exercise, he never reported to the Depot for training and was therefore never admitted into the programme.
The Army explained that available records confirmed that “Ibrahim Nazifi successfully passed the State Recruitment Screening Exercise conducted in December 2025 and was subsequently shortlisted for training in Depot Zaria.”
However, it stressed that “he never reported to the Depot for commencement of his training and at no point was he admitted into the training programme.”
Consequently, the statement noted that the Depot had “no record of his presence, participation, injury or death during training,” insisting that no such incident occurred within the facility.
Against this backdrop, the Army urged the Gombe State Government and other relevant authorities to investigate the reported death independently in order to determine “where, when and under what circumstances the purported deceased died,” since the alleged incident did not take place at Depot NA Zaria.
While addressing public concerns, the Army acknowledged that military training is inherently rigorous but cautioned against misinterpreting its demanding nature as negligence.
“Military training is deliberately designed to build endurance, resilience and combat readiness,” the statement said.
It added that although casualties may occur in rare instances, “robust safety measures, medical coverage and risk-mitigation procedures are firmly in place to ensure maximum protection of trainees.”
The Army therefore called on members of the public to disregard the circulating reports and refrain from spreading unverified information capable of misleading the public and undermining the image of the Nigerian Army.
It reaffirmed its commitment to transparency, professionalism and the welfare of all recruits undergoing training across its formations.
