For 28 years, Sunday Agbogun, a former Staff Sergeant (SSGT) of the Nigerian Army, Sunday, has continued to seek redress over his alleged wrongful dismissal from service, writes Alex Enumah. In a recent appeal to the president, Minister of Defence, Chief of Defence Staff, and the Chief of Army Staff, he prayed that they be gracious enough to pay him his dues for the years he spent serving his fatherland
Twenty eight years after, former Staff Sergeant (SSGT), Sunday Agbogun remains undaunted, displaying the never say die spirit of a courageous soldier facing severe, life threatening circumstances. Enlisted in the Nigerian Army in 1968 with enlistment number 63NA/159887, he was wrongfully dismissed from service in December 1988.
Despite several petitions, appeals, and interventions from various quarters, including the National Assembly, the army has reportedly refused to right the wrong. Yet, the ex soldier remains undeterred in his pursuit of justice.
Calls for Reinstatement or Compensation
Since his wrongful sack, Agbogun has written to successive Chiefs of Army Staff seeking his recall to the army. In recent times, however, he is praying the army to be gracious enough to pay him his dues for the years he spent serving his fatherland.
As a Senior Non Commissioned Officer (SNCO) of the Nigerian Army, Agbogun had acquired several military and civilian qualifications, including the Brigade Ordnance Warrant Officer (BOWO), the Nigerian Army Ordnance Corps (NAOC Stm B1), Provision Control and Act Specialist (P, C and A), CQMS, RQMS, and Army Certificates of Education 1st Class (ACE 1) as well as GCE O Level. He also fought on the side of the Nigerian Army during the civil war.
Latest Petition to the Authorities
In his latest petition to the Chief of Army Staff, copied to the Chief of Defence Staff, the Minister of Defence, and the President, the ex soldier, through his lawyer, E. O. Ejike of E. O. Amadi Chambers, “most humbly solicits that upon the reconsideration afore stated, our client be considered and graciously listed for gratuity and pension in the best interest of justice.”
The petition, dated May 25, 2025, was received at the army headquarters, Abuja, on July 4, 2025. It is titled: Re: Wrongful Dismissal from Nigerian Army of SSGT Sunday Agbogun: Need for Redress, dated 23 September 2022. Complaint of Wrongful Dismissal of 63NA/159887 SSGT Sunday Agbogun from the Nigerian Army: Clarion Call and Appeal for Reconsideration and the Justice of His Ordeal, dated January 10, 2024.
“On the strength of the foregoing, we most humbly write further on the instructions of our client, soliciting that the wrongful dismissal of our client, who fought in the Nigerian civil war and served the Nigerian Army for over 23 years before his ordeal as a Staff Sergeant, be revisited and considered in the best interest of justice,” the petition read in part.
The Beginning of the Ordeal
In the complaint of January 10, 2024, the ex soldier disclosed that his ordeal started in 1975 when he was transferred to the headquarters of the 2 Airmobile Brigade, Bori Camp, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, where he served in several capacities.
He recalled that in 1987, he, WOII Adewale Olashe, and Sergeant Rufus were arrested by intelligence personnel for allegedly impersonating and extorting ₦6,000 from an expatriate civilian named Mr. Chevrotin at Geo Services Ltd, Trans Amadi Road, Port Harcourt.
Identification Parade and Exoneration
The petitioner explained that the following day, after their arrest, an identification parade was conducted. Mr. Chevrotin identified WOII Adewale Olashe as the person who claimed to be an intelligence officer, while he exonerated Rufus and Agbogun.
“In fact, the expatriate further stated that he had never seen our client and Sergeant Rufus in his lifetime,” counsel said. Despite this exoneration, Agbogun was still detained for days and released with a directive to produce one Uche (a civilian) said to have been with Olashe during the extortion.
The Trial and Sentencing
Agbogun claimed that he found Uche, who admitted receiving an unspecified amount of money from the expatriate and promised to refund it. While Uche was subsequently released from detention, Agbogun was charged with impersonation and extortion before Lt. Col. Charles (then commander of the brigade) and the Garrison Adjutant.
“After the charge was read to our client, Lt. Col. Edemaneha asked our client the whereabouts of the said Mr. Uche, and our client informed him that he did not know. He thereafter found our client guilty of the offence as charged.
“That consequently, our client was sentenced to six months’ imprisonment and was also summarily dismissed from the Nigerian Army without an opportunity of fair trial according to the universal rule of natural justice,” the lawyer claimed.
Alleged Denial of Fair Hearing
According to him, throughout the investigation and trial, Agbogun was never allowed to make any statement, whether oral or written, or to call any witness before being pronounced guilty and sentenced.
Dissatisfied, the ex soldier wrote a petition on 18 January 1988, highlighting the errors in Col. Edemaneha’s trial and calling for a review of the ordeal that led to his conviction and dismissal from the Nigerian Army. He also sought reinstatement. “Nothing has been done to that effect to this date,” he lamented.
Appeals from Senior Officers
He further recalled that after serving the six month imprisonment term, Captain A. Y. Abass (as he then was), who initially investigated the matter, wrote on 15 July 1988 to the Nigerian Army’s Legal Department urging them to review the case. The said letter was addressed to one Captain Ahmadu (as he then was) and copied to Col. Ayinla (as he then was).
Based on the said letter, the Adjutant General also ordered that Agbogun’s case be reconsidered. Captain Abass, in pleading on behalf of the ex soldier, pointed out that it would be in the interest of justice to reconsider the case because the prime suspect, WOII Ademale Alashe, was acquitted of the charges.
“That in furtherance to the above, the Commanding Officer of the 2 Airmobile Brigade, Port Harcourt, made passionate appeals to the headquarters of the 82 Division of the Nigerian Army, vide letters dated 2 May 1989 and 15 May 1989, urging that our client be reinstated as it is evident that our client was never given a fair trial.
“Yet all these efforts yielded no result,” he said. Rather than heeding the appeals, “Col. J. I. Ayinla (as he then was), on behalf of the General Officer Commanding, 82 Division of the Nigerian Army, wrote a letter to the Adjutant General urging him to consider our client’s case closed and also attached documents allegedly implicating our client in yet other offences, inter alia, cocaine trafficking, a very serious allegation which our client till then knew nothing about.”
Police Investigation and Exoneration
Based on the fresh allegation, the Army Chief wrote to the Nigerian Police Force directing that the Police investigate the matter. The Police completely exonerated Agbogun, describing the allegation as a deliberate falsehood.
Others who also fought for Agbogun’s reinstatement to no avail included Major A. Y. Abbas (the then Captain Abass), who was the Brigade Intelligence Officer, and WOII Adolphus Sederum, both now deceased.
A Final Plea for Justice
“It is our client’s passionate appeal that the Nigerian Army reconsider his case, which indeed is pathetic in nature, especially considering the scheme of events leading to his unjustifiable dismissal and those thereafter, and see to it that our client is paid his pension and gratuity for serving the Nigerian Army meritoriously for over twenty years, fighting the Nigeria Civil War for the Nigerian Government in the then 1 Division under the Ordnance Corps in Abakalki/Afikpo 2 Brigade.
“Recourse may also be had, for purposes of reference and clarification, to the report of the Board set up by Col. Ismaila Yoube which exonerated our client of all the allegations. Col. Ismaila Yoube is the immediate past Deputy Governor of Kebbi State, who may be a point of reference for convenience, as these are fresh facts in support of our client’s case or appeal.
“We most humbly appeal that justice be done to our client and his service to our fatherland appreciated,” the petition added.
The Call for Presidential Intervention
There is no doubt that there is more than the ordinary eyes can see in the case of SSGT Sunday Agbogun, who has been punished for a crime committed by another. However, the Nigerian Army, under the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Bola Tinubu, can right the wrong, put a smile on the face of the ex soldier in the interest of justice, rather than the interest of the army or a few persons in the army.
And there is no better way to serve justice than directing for the enlisting of SSGT Sunday Agbogun with number 63NA/159887, for gratuity and pension.
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