#TrackNigeria Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai, says the Nigerian Army has redefined the conduct of Operation Lafiya Dole with a new scheme of manoeuvre known as super camp concept.
Buratai disclosed this at the opening of the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Combined 2nd and 3rd Quarters Conference on Tuesday in Abuja.
He said that the super camp concept involved the concentration of formidable fighting forces in strongholds that had the capability for swift mobility.
Buratai added that this required the forces to be proactive, dogged and taking bold offensives at all times to defeat the adversaries by denying them freedom of action within its Strong Response Areas (SRAs).
“A total of 20 super camps have so far been established in the North East and commanders are required to key into the already circulated laid down standing operating procedures and directives,“ he said.
The Army chief explained that the authorities had inducted more manpower and equipment into the theatre to support the super camp concept, adding that more would be deployed in the third quarter to achieve the desired goal.
Buratai said more platforms were being inducted through army`s research and development efforts in the production of equipment in line with the directive of President Muhammadu Buhari.
“I am thus delighted to inform you that in collaboration with an indigenous company PROFORCE, we have commissioned and inducted five newly manufactured MRAPs into the theatre.
“Similarly, the Nigerian Army Central Workshop has been re-organised and re-designated as the Command Engineering Depot (CED).
“The outfit is presently test-running three variants of infantry fighting vehicles in collaboration with Defence Industry Corporation of Nigeria (DICON) with a view to launching them into the theatre,” he said.
Buratai disclosed that the research efforts of the army into anti-Improvised Explosive Device (IED) equipment were advancing well, adding that it would drastically minimise the challenges of IEDs in operations when completed.
Earlier, Lt.-Gen. Lamidi Adeosun, Chief of Policy and Plans, said that much had been achieved by the Army in counter insurgency and counter terrorism operations as well as other operations across the country in recent time.
Adeosun said that the army headquarters was ready to welcome contributions and recommendations from participants from the conference deliberations and discussions.
He said that the purpose of the conference was to further appraise the performance of the army in the counter insurgency and counter terrorism operations with a view to surmounting them.
According to him, it will also help in appraising preparations in terms of security in the upcoming elections in Bayelsa and Kogi states.
The COAS conference is a quarterly programme that appraises the activities and directives rolled out by Army Headquarters on quarterly basis. (NAN)
