Social critic, Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan, has apologised to soldiers, policemen, customs and immigration personnel over comments he made about security agents at the recently held Nigerian Bar Association’s 66th Annual General Conference.
VeryDarkMan made the apology in a video shared on Friday after reflecting on his speech, during which he referred to military, police, immigration and customs personnel as “unknown gunmen” while discussing insecurity.
He said he realised that the comment was unfair to security personnel risking their lives to protect Nigerians, particularly soldiers fighting Boko Haram and other threats.
The social critic explained that his criticism was directed at alleged corruption, sabotage and information leaks by some individuals within the security agencies, rather than the personnel as a whole.
He, however, acknowledged that the manner in which he made the point amounted to a generalisation that could undermine the sacrifices of security personnel who had died in the line of duty.
VeryDarkMan said the speech was unfair, particularly to soldiers fighting Boko Haram in the bushes to protect the country, Nigerians and their families.
He also addressed the Chief of Defence Staff and other security authorities, asking that his apology be conveyed to personnel serving in difficult and dangerous conditions.
VeryDarkMan further apologised to the families of security personnel who had died while serving the country, acknowledging that they could have felt offended by his remarks.
He said he did not intend to discourage security personnel protecting the country and asked that his apology be extended to those serving in the bush.
