The Chief of Army Staff Lieutenant General Tukur Yusuf Buratai on Tuesday paid special tribute to the doggedness and ruggedness on the Nigerian military in the fight against terrorism and multi-faceted security challenges which has troubled the nation in recent times even as he described terrorism as a complex phenomenon that requires multiple efforts to contain, which should not be left to the armed forces alone.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of 1st quarter conference/combat arms training (CAT) week and 2nd infantry officers conference held at Ihejirika Auditorium, Jaji military cantonment, the COAS said the Nigerian Armed Forces had done its best and would continue to protect the territorial integrity of Nigeria.
He said the Nigerian Army, with the efforts of the Infantry Corps and support from other corps, has been able to deal decisively with Boko Haram insurgents in the North Eastern part of the country.
Buratai’s words, “Today, we have the full initiative and in collaboration with other sisters agencies, we are pushing hard to ensure that we finally sanitized the northern Borno and our borders axis with Niger, Chard and Cameroon.
“We know they have plans but we are also planning to counter them and we will deploy maximum intelligence to capture those that are still remaining in the interland.
“Terrorism is a complex warfare which need the involvement of every individual in the country which if we are able to do, will contain the criminals.
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“It should not be left for the security personnel or governments at all levels, or the traditional rulers, it is a joint responsibility and we are all stakeholders.
“These criminals are not coming from the blues. They live among us in the society. They go to the markets and buy food stuffs just like the rest of us.
“Some of them go to naming, marriage ceremonies and so on. It is our responsibility to make everybody aware, that we all have a role to play in bringing the activities of these criminal elements to an end’, he reiterated.
Commander, Infantry Corps, Major General Stevenson Olusegun Olabanji in his welcome address noted that despite the security challenges the country is faced with, the Nigerian Army under Lt Gen TY Buratai has received a boost in terms of infrastructural and human development in all its formations across the country which has made it possible to deal decisively with Boko Harram terrorists and other insurgents.
On the theme of the conference, “Leveraging land power for current and future warfare; the unity of the combat arms”, the Olabanji described the conference as very important in the operation calendar of the corps pointing out that the reunion would afford the senior officers the opportunity to interact, brainstorm and come up with additional practical steps to address the emerging security threats to Nigerian territorial integrity.
The Special Guest of Honour, Major Gen AA Mshelbwala (Rtd) delivered a Mentoring Talk to participants of the Infantry Conference Week 2019 hosted by Headquarters Infantry Corps Centre in Jaji, Kaduna State.
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