Barely four days after President Muhammadu Buhari told Service Chiefs that their best was not good enough, Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen. Tukur Buratai, on Monday directed General Officers Commanding (GOCs) and Field Commanders to relocate to the hotbeds of insurgency and banditry.
” The sufferings and killings of our fellow citizens must stop immediately,” he declared.
Gen. Buratai, who met with Principal Staff Officers, the GOCs and FCs at the Army headquarters in Abuja, said the meeting was intended to serve as a wakeup call for the Army to change the insurgency and banditry narrative especially in the North
“The President has renewed his call and desire to end the insecurity in our country. We must heed the call and get it right as quickly as possible,” he told his commanders, adding, “Field Commanders must be on ground to direct and ensure full application of principles of war.
“We must redouble our efforts, re-strategise and bring to bear all our resources, willpower, energy and capabilities.
“Personnel of the Nigerian Army must put in some more in order to mitigate these threats once and for all. Asymmetric warfare is complex as such requires that we focus our training, improve our equipment holding and capabilities as well as enhance our overall intelligence operations. These we are already doing but we must do more.
” Over the past five years, we have procured huge quantities of all categories of equipment and platforms. While these efforts have helped close some gaps, we are still far from achieving our equipment holding requirements.
“As senior officers and commanders, we all know the tedious bureaucracy and international politics surrounding the procurement of these platforms and equipment from foreign countries. Despite that the Federal Government of Nigeria is not deterred as it went ahead to commence the processes of acquiring this equipment. Happily, some have started arriving.
”So far we have taken custody of the weapons and platforms newly procured by the government through the Ministry of Defence. These include quantity 10 of VT4 tanks and 15Xsti light tanks. Others are 10X122MM SP guns as well as their ammunition, necessary spare parts and maintenance equipment.”
Gen. Burutai, who said the Army was expecting more equipment in the coming weeks, said “we are not just expecting and doing nothing.”
He added: As you are all aware already, we have continued to ramp up our domestic efforts at producing some key platforms and equipment for our operations. Presently, an additional 47 Ezugwu MRAPs are being produced by DICON.
“Equally, DICON is producing two million rounds of 7.62mm ammunition and 10,000 each of fragmental jackets and ballistic helmets for the Nigerian Army. These are critical items which must be made available to troops for immediate use.
”We have already commenced major reorganisation of our operations. The charge given to us by the President is to redouble our efforts. And that must be fully implemented. We must end this madness going on in some parts of the country. These criminals and their collaborators and sponsors, both known and unknown, must be exposed, flushed out and destroyed.
“All hands must be on deck, all commanders must be out in the field and on the ground to lead their men from the front.” – The Nation.
