Aloy Ejimakor, legal counsel to jailed leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has attributed the low enlistment of South-East youths into the Nigerian Army to a deep-seated distrust of the military rather than a lack of willingness to serve.

Ejimakor made the remarks in a post on X on Thursday while reacting to comments by the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, who expressed concern over the low turnout of recruits from the South-East during a passing-out parade at the Nigerian Army Recruits Training Depot in Amasiri-Edda, Ebonyi State.

According to Ejimakor, many young people in the region believe they have been marginalised within what he described as an ethnically imbalanced security leadership structure. He also alleged that the military has repeatedly been deployed against Igbo communities during periods of unrest, contributing to the widespread mistrust.

He cited the killings of Igbos in Northern Nigeria in 1967 as a lingering grievance and referenced more srecent incidents in Nkpor, the Aba prayer ground, Obigbo and Port Harcourt involving individuals allegedly linked to IPOB, arguing that such events have reinforced negative perceptions of the armed forces.

Ejimakor further contended that the military’s reintegration of former Boko Haram fighters through its deradicalisation programme has heightened concerns among some South-East youths, who, he said, are unwilling to serve under a command they distrust alongside rehabilitated ex-insurgents.

He maintained that the region’s low enlistment figures should be viewed as a form of silent protest rather than a reflection of cowardice or lack of patriotism.

The Army Chief’s remarks are among several appeals by military authorities urging greater participation from South-East youths in recruitment exercises. The Nigerian Army has consistently stated that recruitment is merit-based and transparent, while attributing the low application numbers from the region partly to misinformation. It has also noted that recruitment slots left unfilled by South-East states are routinely reallocated to other parts of the country.