How we will win war against terrorism – service chiefs

Nigeria could be heading to victory in the war against terrorism and general insecurity with the agenda of the new service chiefs focusing on building motivated and professional armed forces capable of defeating adversaries.

One of the major cogs in the wheel of Nigeria’s war against terrorism and insecurity has been lack of motivation on the part of the fighting troops as evident in the rising number of officers and men absconding from the battlefield with some of them narrating their ordeals through viral videos.

However, the new service chiefs on Wednesday pledged their commitment to troops’ welfare and reorientation.

The service chiefs, comprising the Chief of Defence Staff, Lucky Irabor; Chief of Army Staff, Ibrahim Attahiru; Chief of the Naval Staff, Auwal Gambo; and Chief of Air Staff, Ishiaka Amao, made this pledge while unveiling their agenda for the armed forces when they appeared before the House of Representatives’ Ad-hoc Committee for screening, in Abuja.

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Opening the floor, Irabor, who is the chief of defence staff, said if confirmed by the legislature, he would ensure effective collaboration of the Nigerian Armed Forces that are capable of fulfilling their constitutional mandate of protecting Nigeria’s territorial integrity and enhancing internal security.

“By so doing, I intend to have some pillars that are allied to this broad focus of leadership. This may not come out as a vision because I believe that visions are meant for institutions and not individuals,” Irabor said.

“As a military commander, I intend to have leadership focus in outlining the broad areas, to this, I intend to build professional armed forces that are effective, agile, result-oriented and, of course, one that is loyal to constituted authority,” he said.

On his part, Attahiru, chief of army staff, said he would ensure that the Nigerian Army was re-positioned to professionally defeat adversaries through an integrated approach that will involve every Nigerian in providing adequate security for the country.

“Emphasis would be particularly on the role of government and role of society approach, where each and every Nigerian would be part of the security architecture to bring an end to our current problems.

“The vision is embedded in the command philosophy, built on specific pillars such as readiness, the duty to country, dependability and continuous leadership development. For particular emphasis, mission readiness, training, functional manning and equipment, loyalty and sacrifice to the fatherland and continuous leadership development. We will build an army that will be innovative in the 21st century,” Attahiru said.

Also speaking, Gambo, chief of naval staff, emphasised the need for loyalty, cooperation, commitment, knowledge and skills of all officers, ratings and civilian staff of the Nigerian Navy, which would be optimally harnessed for the task of securing the country.

“If confirmed, I intend to leverage on all factors of national location, technology, training, teamwork and synergy to re-energise the Nigerian Navy and enhance her as a well-motivated and ready to discharge her constitutional mandate and other tasks in fulfilment of the national security objectives,” he said.

Amao, chief of air staff, pledged to focus on enhancing and sustaining the critical air component support needed in the task of national security through fostering a disciplined workforce that is combat-ready.

The air chief said he would focus on doctrinal development and joint military operations, pursue purposeful training and human capacity development, as well as ensure that weapons and equipment serviceability are sustained through elevating maintenance methods and logistic support system.