Terrorism: COAS Advocates Synergy

Officers and men of the Nigerian Army, have been charged to
remain resolute and undaunted in their resolve to support the Federal
Government in defeating the emerging threat of terrorism in the country.

The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant-General Azubuike
Ihejirika, who gave the charge recently in his address on the occasion of the
commissioning of 103 Battalion projects, Awkunanaw Barracks, Enugu, also urged
his men to strengthen their cooperation with sister services and all other
security agencies in order to optimize the synergy of “our national fight
against terror”,

The commissioned projects, the COAS further explained, have
been undertaken as part of the ongoing transformation of the Nigerian Army to
meet contemporary challenges, advising officers and soldiers of the unit to
judiciously use and employ all the facilities already provided towards
enhancing the over all state of operational readiness of the battalion.

His words: “I will therefore urge all officers and men of
the Nigerian Army to ensure that these efforts are sustained through regular
and effective maintenance of all our fixed assets. We remain grateful to the
Federal Government for making resources available in our efforts to continue
transforming into a force better able to meet contemporary challenges”.

Recalling that he visited the 103 Battalion as part of his
familiarization tour of 82 Division, Enugu, shortly after his assumption of
office as the Chief of Army Staff on March 2, 2011, Lt.-Gen. Ihejirika noted
that derelict state of facilities and infrastructure he saw then informed the
decision to immediately initiate the projects “we are commissioning today”.

Fielding questions from reporters shortly after
commissioning of the projects, the COAS regretted that kidnappers that closed
down the commercial city of Aba, Abia State in 2010 seemed to have resurfaced
in Enugu, Abia and Imo states.

Lt.-Gen Ihejirika, who insisted that the army was making
tremendous progress in the fight against the activities of Boko Haram Islamic
sect, recalled that kidnapping was one of the biggest problems  the Army confronted in 2010 in Aba, Abia
State, and expressed regrets that after the Army had helped Aba to bounce back,
the kidnappers seemed to have relocated to Enugu, Anambra and Imo states.

The Army helmsman, therefore, stated that there was need to
put in place measure to nip the menace in the bud.

Ihejirika promised to provide additional patrol vehicles
that would help fight the menace even as he asked Enugu State Government and
other stakeholders to complement the efforts of the army towards nipping the
kidnapping menace in the bud.

On the efforts of the army to eradicate terrorism in the
country, Ihejirika said there was need to consider the fact that “ for every
bomb that goes off, several others have been stopped from going off, so I think
we are making tremendous progress”, he insisted.