By Stanley Nwanosike
The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt.-Gen. Faruk Yahaya, has appealed to army veterans to defend the image of the Army and its operations toward ending
insecurity in the country.
Yahaya made the appeal on Monday when he declared open the Army Headquarters Veterans Affairs Directorate first quarter seminar/workshop 2022 held in Enugu.
The theme of the week-long event is “Promoting Nigerian Army Veterans Health and Productivity for Improved Support of Military Operations”.
The COAS, represented by Maj.-Gen. Usman Muhammed, Chief of Army Administration, said the seminar would provide the Nigerian Army a means to assess veterans’ health and wellbeing and ensure they are living under an optimal health condition and productivity.
According to him, the veterans have critical roles to play in the current vision of the Nigerian Army by assisting with their enormous wealth of experience.
“What we need from the veterans is moral support, advisory and even learning from their vast experiences.
“We also need them to project the Nigerian Army’s image and explain issues better to the lay public, who might not understand some certain issues.
“They can better interact with members of the public and educate them better on issues concerning the Nigerian Army and why certain actions need to be taken for the overriding public interest and security.
“The veterans also can draw the attention of the army authorities to certain issues affecting us or the security of our great nation,” Yahaya said.
He said the Nigerian Army wants to put all the veterans in the same platform, find how to support their activities and ensure they follow national programmes of the army.
The army boss also urged veterans to shun unhealthy lifestyles that affect their health.
He urged them to imbibe healthy lifestyles that would promote their health and make them more productive, even in retirement.
Yahaya also commended President Muhammadu Buhari for his unflinching support to the operations and programmes of the army.
“We pledge our utmost loyalty and commitment to carry out all assigned tasks,” he said.
Earlier, Maj.-Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, the General Officer Commanding (GOC), 82 Division, Enugu, described veterans as a critical component of every country’s security architecture.
Lagbaja said the potential of veterans when properly harnessed would help to combat the security challenges in some parts of the country and bridge the gap between the Army and public.
The GOC said: “I urge you participants (veterans) to this seminar to contribute meaningfully to the sessions and interactions so that we can have robust outcomes.
“We appreciate COAS for finding the division worthy to organise another national event after the First Commanding Officers Workshop held last week.” (NAN)
