FG refutes alleged mass abortion claims

The Federal Government has denied that the military was engaged in secret abortion service involving female officers and men.

The Minister of Information,  Lai Mohammed, refuted the news that was published by a London based news outfit,Reuters,at a news conference in Abuja. 

 The reports had said that no fewer than 10,000 female military operatives were subjected to forced abortions by the military.

Mohammed, who described the report as concocted, wondered how the news agency arrived at the figure after reportedly speaking with 33 persons and relying on “unidentified sources” only as the basis for the story.

The Minister said: “As you are all aware, an international news agency recently reported that the Nigerian military, in their fight against BokoHaram/ISWAP, has been running a secret, systematic and illegal abortion programme in the North East.

“Ostensibly, according to the news agency because ‘the children of insurgents are predestined, by the blood in their veins, to one day take up arms against the Nigerian government and society.’

“The story also claimed that 10,000 such abortions have been carried out from 2013 to date on women and girls.

“The news agency made this grave allegation without a scintilla of evidence, citing only anonymous sources and the reported review of phantom ‘documents’.

“The agency claimed that its investigation was based on interviews with 33 women and girls.

“The Federal Government, hereby, categorically states that there is no ‘secret, systematic and illegal abortion programme’ being run by our military in the North East or anywhere across the country.

“We also, hereby, reject the accusation of running an abortion programme levelled at our military.

“We state categorically that this story is a scary instance of fake news and disinformation combined. The writers deserve an award in fiction writing.

“The question is: what’s the motive of this news agency and the usual suspects, who have latched on to this story?,”he concluded.