We’re Committed to Military Armaments Upgrade, Troops’ Capacity, Declares COAS
•Pensioners barricade finance ministry over unpaid entitlements
•GOC assures soldiers of welfare, inaugurates projects in Elele barracks
Linus Aleke in Abuja and Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt
The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Olufemi Oluyede, has restated his commitment to vigorously pursue realistic training, adequate troops’ sustenance, and pragmatic equipment procurement and maintenance.
He stressed that these were critical requirements for combat readiness and operational success in the Nigerian Army.
But retired military personnel, yesterday, barricaded the entrance to the Ministry of Finance in Abuja to protest non-payment of their entitlements.
The retirees were allegedly owed 20 to 28 per cent salary increment covering January to November of 2024.
At the same time, the General Officer Commanding 6 Division Nigerian Army, Major General Jamal Abdussalam, has stated that the wellbeing of soldiers and their families remained the priority of the Army authority.
A statement by Director Army Public Relations, Major General Onyema Nwachukwu, stated that the COAS reaffirmed this commitment, while declaring open the Doctrine and Training Conference for the year 2025 in Minna yesterday.
The Army Chief observed that Nigeria’s current security and defence environments were characterised by both transnational and domestic challenges, including terrorism, insurgency and banditry.
He said included in this were farmers-herders conflicts, economic crimes related to oil and gas pipeline vandalism, and secessionist agitations among others.
He pointed out that in dealing with these challenges, the Nigerian Army had in the past continued to prioritise equipment upgrade and manpower boost.
The COAS expressed optimism that the conference would assess Nigeria’s current security and defence environments, critically evaluate the NA’s training curriculum, and propose new ideas on how the Nigerian Army trains and fights.
Oluyede clarified that the conference offered a veritable platform for in-depth deliberations on the implementation of doctrine and training directives in the Nigerian Army (NA) for year 2025 and beyond.
In his welcome address, the Commander, TRADOC, Major General Kevin Aligbe, pointed out that the conference set the tone for training activities in all Nigerian Army Training Schools and institutions by drawing inspiration from the extant Nigerian Army’s Proactive Responsive Doctrine to guide the training on how troops fight.
Military Pensioners Barricade Finance Ministry Over Unpaid Entitlements
Retired military personnel, yesterday, barricaded the entrance to the Ministry of Finance in Abuja to protest non-payment of their entitlements.
The retirees are owed 20 to 28 per cent salary increment covering January to November 2024.
The protest by the senior citizens followed a similar action in December, during which they shut down the ministry over the government’s failure to settle their claims.
This was as the chairman, Military Pensions Board (MPB), Air Vice Marshal Paul Irumheson, confirmed the receipt of the 50 per cent balance of the pension arrears of the military retirees from the federal government.
For months, the retirees were told there were no funds to clear their entitlements, despite an official approval for payment.
The retirees also demanded payments for other outstanding benefits, including palliatives for the period between October 2023 and November 2024, an additional N32,000 added to their pensions, a bulk payment of the Security Debarment Allowance and a refund of pension deductions from the salaries of medically boarded soldiers.
In response to their December protests, the federal government paid 50% of the owed entitlements and promised to settle the balance.
However, the retirees claimed the government has failed to fulfill its promise, prompting the resumption of their protests.
GOC Assures Welfare of Soldiers, Inaugurate Projects in Elele Barracks
The General Officer Commanding 6 Division Nigerian Army, Major General Jamal Abdussalam, has stated that the wellbeing of soldiers and their families remained priority of the Army authority.
The GOC also stated that ensuring the good wellbeing of the soldiers was in tandem with the command philosophy of the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Olufemi Oluyede.
Abdussalam, maintained that the 6 Division would continue to see to the welfare of officers to ensure they were well-motivated to carry out their functions.
The GOC stated this yesterday, shortly after inaugurating several projects embarked upon by the Commanding Officer, 343 Artillery Regiment, Lt. Col. E. A. Kaan at the Elele barracks, Ikwerre Local Government Area of Rivers State.
The inaugurated projects were a 200-meter concrete road, a corporal below quarters, an indoor sports complex, a tennis court and a refurbished squash court, among others.
