The Chief of Army Staff Lieutenant General Kenneth Minimah while declaring open the three day conference in Abuja said never again will the Nigeria army face humiliation.
He said that security for the general election was a top agenda for the military top hierarchy to consider at the meeting.
According to Minimah, in the next three days, the army will discuss general administration of troops, future development plans of the army, as well preparations for the upcoming general elections.
The army chief also noted that the conference is to discuss how the military is to sustain its recent achievement in the fight against terrorism, adding that: “Never again shall we go through this process; never again shall Nigerian army be humiliated.”
“This achievement would not have been possible without the sacrifice, commitment and devotion of our gallant troops, some of whom who paid the supreme sacrifice in the process,” he said.
“Their efforts and sacrifice shall not be in vain, this conference therefore offers us the opportunity to restrategise in order to speedily return the affected areas to normalcy,” Minimah stated.
He noted that during the last three months the army has countered earlier setbacks in the counter insurgency campaign: “during the period, we have continued to induct new equipment into the army inventory and intensified training of our officers and soldiers on these equipments both within the country and overseas.
Minimah said: “We also took steps to improve on the welfare services of our personnel particularly those in the operational theatre.”
“These measures have added impetus to our operational posture and contributed immensely to our current exploits in the ongoing military operations against Boko Haram terrorists in the North-Eastern part of the country. Especially Adamawa, Borno, Yobe, Bauchi and Gombe states,”he said
Minimah commended the support shown by Nigerians towards the military, noting that: “They are understandably frustrated when we fail to perform to expectation but are always quick to show their support and appreciation for our successes.”
“It is from them that we continued to draw inspirations and invite them to our battle cry of ‘never again.’
Earlier, the Chief of Policy and Planning, Major General Ugo Buzugbe said the conference has been made elaborate to cater for relevant outstanding and current operational and administrative issues.
