The house of representatives has given a tap at the back for the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Chris Musa, for being proactive in the fight against banditry and insurgency across the country.
The green chamber also lauded the commandant of Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), John Ochayi, for being professional and transparent in handling the affairs of the academy since his resumption June this year.
Deputy Spokesperson of the House of Representatives, Philip Agbese, made the commendations when the duo appeared before the house committee on defence for the scrutiny of the 2024 proposals for the Military (Defence).
According to Agbese, the Armed Forces has made appreciable progress in taming the scourge of insecurity in Nigeria, saying the Lawmakers are proud of them.
“We must acknowledge the laudable achievements in fighting terrorism, insurgency and banditry in Nigeria. Since you resumed as head of the Armed Forces under the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, you have proven to be a round peg in a round hole,” he said.
“You and your men have tackled insecurity head-on and we as Lawmakers are proud of you, Nigerians are proud of you and I’m sure the President would be happy he didn’t make mistakes appointing you and others. We are equally proud of the NDA Commandant for the progress made so far at the academy. He is a professional, courageous and visionary officer.”
He, however, urged the Armed Forces to continue to improve on its operations and intelligence gathering, to be able to win the war against insecurity, continually.
All members of the house committee on defence, took their turn to appreciate the military, saying the Armed Forces needed more support and boost in their quest to keep defending the territorial integrity of Nigeria.
On his part, the chairman, house committee on defence, Babajimi Benson, assured that the legislative committee would do all it could to ensure the fight against insecurity was won through legislative interventions.
He said, “We understand that you live in a very challenging situation. We understand that you need money for barracks, weapons, and aircraft, and funds are limited. On behalf of my committee, we say well done”.
Benson acknowledged the fact that the defence sector was being underfunded and promised to liaise with the leadership of the House to see what more could be done to improve the funding.
In his remarks, the CDS, thanked the lawmakers for acknowledging the efforts of the military, while pledging to thoroughly investigate the bombing incident in Kaduna recently, saying, “It was a mistake, not deliberate, but we are taking steps to ensure that we address it and prevent it from reoccurring.
“Security is everybody’s responsibility, not only ours. We are happy that you know our challenges and are ready and willing to assist, and we assure you that we will not take that for granted.
“Whatever support we can get to enhance our capability and capacity, we assure you, including all Nigerians, that we are ready to go forward, whatever it takes for us to ensure that there is peace in Nigeria because it is not only for us; it is for our children and our children’s children.”
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