The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, yesterday, restated that the military would allow itself to be used by some interest groups to truncate democratic governance in the country.
Lagbaja stated this in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State while speaking during the opening ceremony of the COAS Combined 2nd and 3rd Quarters Conference yesterday.
While noting that such a call for a military takeover was coming from young Nigerians, who had never experienced the era of Nigeria’s extensive military rule, the COAS said the Nigerian Army was not ready to lose the “new prestige” it has painstakingly built in the past 25 years by truncating the nation’s democratic rule.
Describing the recent nationwide hunger protest or #EndBadgovernance InNigeria protest as an eye-opener, the COAS said a lesson to take away was that food insecurity and hunger in the country could snowball into a major crisis.
He said, “Another pertinent issue that came up during the recent protest is the call for undemocratic intervention in governance by the Armed Forces of Nigeria. Although one can say this was coming from young Nigerians who never experienced the era of Nigeria’s extensive military rule and the concerted struggle by heroes and heroines of our current democratic dispensation to get the Nation on its current path, as the Chief of Army Staff, my simple response to the call is, ‘Thanks, but no thanks!’
“The Nigerian Army will not allow itself to be used to undemocratically sail some interests to power. As the service that received the most image bashing as a fallout of previous military interventions in Nigeria, the Nigerian Army is not poised to lose the new prestige it has painstakingly built in the past 25 years, secure and united.”
Lagbaja said that following the lesson taken from the recent hunger protest, the Armed Forces would not only focus on physical security and the defence of the nation but would also pay attention to food and social security issues.
He said though the situation that led to the protest seemed to have settled, the Nigerian Army understood that the issue of food security was among the factors that led to the protest, pledging the Army’s resolve to wade in through the review of its agricultural policy.
He said the Nigerian Army troops currently provide security cover for farmers in critical farming communities in the North-East, North-West, and North Central zones so as to prevent the devastating consequences of stopping food production in those regions on the entire country’s food supply chain.
“The Nigerian Army will, in the coming days, review its agricultural policy to better position the Nigerian Army Farms and Ranches Limited to significantly boost crop production so that the Army can release grains into the market at a highly subsidised rate in support of government efforts.
“Furthermore, the Army Headquarters is reviewing some proposals for partnerships with ministries, departments, and agencies of government and reputable private organisations on how best to collaborate to resolve food crisis in the country,” the COAS stated.
Lagbaja noted that the Nigerian Army and its sister services had continued to receive support from the government at both the national and sub-national levels, as shown in the recent purchase of two BELL UH-1 Huey helicopters equipped with advanced sensors and enablers to conduct a range of missions, including reconnaissance, surveillance, logistics, and medical evacuation, among other functions for the Nigerian Army.
He disclosed that the Nigerian Army had acquired other combat enablers, such as Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicles, rifles, and ammunition, to strengthen their operations and security across the country, noting that the giant strides the Army had made so far were not unconnected with the cooperations of sister security agencies, national and sub-national governments.
The COAS stressed that the welfare of widows and family members of fallen heroes remained on course.
The Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Umo Eno, who declared the conference open, expressed happiness that the conference was held in Akwa Ibom and commended the COAS for the “purposeful direction he has given to Nigerian Army towards meeting its constitutional responsibility,” noting that the Army was constantly innovating, deepening its competence and professionalism.
Eno, therefore, pledged the state government’s readiness to lend all necessary support to enable the establishment of the proposed Army base in the state as well as other logistics.