Insecurity: We’re focused on eliminating threats — COAS

The Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant-General Taoreed Lagbaja, has reiterated that the Nigerian Army is committed to total elimination of all forms of insecurity bedevilling the country.

General Lagbaja disclosed this on Saturday during the grand finale of this year’s Nigerian Army Day celebration at the 3 Division of the Nigerian Army, Rukuba Barracks, Jos, Plateau State.

He said they had structured their training activities to ensure effectiveness, which he added had resulted in reducing farmers-herders crisis in the North-Central.

He said, “The Nigerian Army remains committed to its mission statement, which is ‘To Win all Land Battles in Defence of the Territorial Integrity of Nigeria, Protect Her National Interests and Accomplish other Tasks in Aid of Civil Authority.’ The fulfillment of this responsibility sometimes demands that we make the ultimate sacrifice. We are continuously engaged in preparing ourselves for this onerous duty by honing our skills and competencies for this task. The Nigerian Army under my watch is committed to improving our operational effectiveness to meet the ever-changing violent and complex threats to the nation.

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“We are not oblivious to how badly our people require and demand security of their lives and properties across the nation, and we are focused on the ultimate goal of achieving the total elimination of all threats to our dear nation and its people within the shortest practicable time.”

Lagbaja further said troops were currently deployed in all states of the federation to contain different violent armed groups threatening the peace of law-abiding Nigerians, explaining that their operations are being conducted within the civil space, giving rise to more frequent interactions with civilians.

“To this end, we have ramped up the sensitisation of troops on the proper conduct of the Nigerian soldier within the larger society and adherence to a high level of professionalism in the conduct of operations amongst the people. We continue to appeal for the understanding of Nigerians living in proximity to areas of active combat operations to understand that our deployments are designed to protect and defend law-abiding Nigerians against misguided persons and groups, who have resorted to armed violence against the state,” he added.