Army Committed to Professionalism, Enhancing Civil-military Relations, Says COAS

Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja

The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt. Gen. Faruk Yahaya, has reiterated the commitment of the Nigerian Army to the professional conduct of its operations and enhancing civil-military relationships.

Yahaya made the remarks at the 2022 Chief of Army Staff Annual Conference at the weekend in Sokoto.

The conference with the theme: ‘Building a Professional Nigerian Army for the 21st Century Security Environment’, was declared open by President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday.

Yahaya said the series of activities offered opportunities for appraisals of the administrative affairs and operations of the Nigerian Army at different stages.

According to him, the conference leveraged the president’s sustained vigour for the transformation of the Nigerian Army as it was designed to elicit new ideas and proffer solutions for the enhancement of our activities.

 “I wish to state that the objectives of the conference have been achieved and this was evident from the sound contributions of the resource persons and participants.

“Practicable strategies have been proffered for improvement of our kinetic and non-kinetic actions, particularly the conduct of intelligence operations, protection of communities as well as winning the hearts and minds of the populace,” he said.

Yahaya added that the conference was used to assess Nigerian Army’s preparations to support the civil authority during the conduct of the 2023 general election.

“I am happy to state that the Nigerian Army formations and units have developed robust contingency plans to assist the civil authority in the provision of an enabling environment for the elections.

“Indeed, the reviewed Rules of Engagement and Code of Conduct recently issued to troops were extensively discussed and commanders are now better informed on their responsibilities as well as the obligations of their personnel. 

“The lessons learnt during our security support for the elections held in Anambra, Ekiti and Osun states were also deliberated upon with sound conclusions reached to enhance our security duties in the upcoming elections,” COAS said.

 He further assured that the personnel of the Nigerian Army were well positioned to discharge their constitutional duties of providing a peaceful atmosphere before, during and after the 2023 electioneering period. 

 Yahaya added that the welfare of Officers and men would continue to be accorded premium attention while also ensuring their professional conduct through effective supervision and monitoring. 

 He urged the personnel to sustain the tempo of operations and deal decisively with all criminals.

“In doing so, all formations and units must maximally utilise the equipment at their disposal and neutralise the criminals, particularly in their hideouts.

 “Commanders should monitor political developments and threats, conduct precursor operations and rehearse contingency plans to facilitate swift security intervention.

“The security measures in all barracks should also be continuously reviewed and reinforced. ” Yahaya said.

He further thanked Buhari for his support and encouragement to the Nigerian Army, Gov. Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto state and other sister organisations.

The event witnessed presentations, the inauguration of civil-military projects, the distribution of foodstuffs, and the empowerment and medical support by the Nigerian Army Officers’ Wives Association (NAOWA) in Sokoto State.