Military Retirees Offer To Support CDS In Fighting Terrorism

Retired military officers of the Nigerian
Armed Forces have offered to lend their
support to the fight against terrorism
and other similar threats to national
security.
This was conveyed by a delegation of
retired senior military officers led by Air
Commodore Michael Ekwere (Rtd)
during a courtesy visit to the Chief of
Defence Staff (CDS), Air Chief Marshal
Alex Badeh in his office.
The retired officers used the opportunity
to congratulate the CDS on his
appointment and subsequent elevation
to the rank of a 4 Star General in the
Nigerian Armed Forces and also gave a
pat on the back to the security forces
for the successes recorded in the fight
against terror.
Briefing the CDS on the objectives of the
group, Commodore Ekwere said that
they came together for the purpose of
giving back to the system that has
invested so much in them while in active
service. He said that they came together
to provide support in the on-going
efforts to rationalize and transform the
Armed Forces. He noted that assistance
programmes would allow the Force to
concentrate on their core functions.
Speaking further, the retired officer said
that the concept of national power
demands that countries harness
resources to confront threats to national
cohesion. According to him, the group
was offering to act as a force multiplier
for the Armed Forces in the fight against
insurgency in the country.
Air Commodore Ekwere emphasised that
Nigeria had a rich repository of human
resources waiting to be tapped. He
likened his group to PAE America, a
private outfit of mostly retired military
personnel who are appointed to head
logistics and administration
departments while the military was
allowed to concentrate on its core
functions of fire and manoeuvre.
In his response, the Chief of Defence
Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh,
thanked the organization for the visit,
promising to look into the issues raised,
especially on their readiness to join
actively in the fight against insecurity in
the country.
The CDS applauded the initiatives of the
group, stating that he was particular
about the prospects that these initiatives
portend for engaging retirees and
making post-service life a little more
rewarding. He assured the group of the
support of the DHQ and the services to
help the group realise its objectives.
In a related development, the
management of Elizade (Toyota) Nigeria
Limited, led by the Executive Director,
Kunle Ade-Ojo and also the CEO of
NICON Insurance Company, Emmanuel
Jegede, visited the Chief of Defence
Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh.
Their visits were to felicitate with the
CDS on his recent promotion and
appointment as Chief of Defence Staff
and to strengthen the existing
partnership between them and also
identify with the success story in the
fight against terrorism in the North East.