DEFENCE
Nigerian Army Moves to Enhance Capacity of Officers in Military Diplomacy
The Nigerian Army on Wednesday commenced a three-day capacity building workshop on Protocol and Liaison Duties to enhance the capacity of officers in protocol and liaison functions as well as military diplomacy.
The workshop with the theme, “Enhancing the Nigerian Army Protocol and Liaison Capability for Efficient Service Delivery,” was organised by the Army Headquarters’ Department of Special Services and Programmes.
Speaking at the opening, the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt.-Gen. Faruk Yahaya, said the workshop was borne out of the need for more effective coordination of all Nigerian army liaison, special and ceremonial events as well as other organised programmes in line with best practices.
Yahaya said the establishment of the Directorate of Protocol in the Department of Special Services and Programmes had illustrated the desire to uphold international best practices and regulations in dealing with diplomatic protocol, precedence and etiquette.
According to him, the department so far has been able to take up laudable initiatives aimed at repositioning Nigerian Army’s protocol and liaison duties for optimal performance in support of operational goals.
“Its initiative to partner with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other accredited institutions to undertake specific courses for building personnel capacity on protocol and liaison duties in the Service is indeed a welcome idea.
“This initiative will help in developing the capacity for the newly established Directorate of Protocol to carry out its mandate professionally and efficiently during Nigerian Army international and domestic engagements.
“The increase in military-to-military bilateral contacts and engagements with friendly allies all over the world calls for better understanding of protocol functions in support of our strategic engagements,” he said.
The COAS said the current security environment was dynamic and characterised by uncertainty and complexity which required increased liaison with stakeholders at all levels.
This, according to him, calls for training and capacity development in protocol and liaison duties to facilitate various levels of engagements with internal and external partners.
He said the workshop was expected to develop the capacity of army personnel to conduct protocol duties in furtherance of army’s strategic and operational objectives.
Yahaya said the Nigerian Army would continue to act professionally in building all components of fighting power to demonstrate its readiness to fulfil its constitutional roles in the defence of Nigeria.
He acknowledged the competence exhibited by personnel during the Presidential and Gubernatorial Elections, pledging to continue to provide the right leadership and guidance for troops.
He also promised to sustain commitment towards the acquisition of more equipment and platforms to ensure that the war against insurgency, banditry and other violent crimes in the country was brought to an end.
He urged personal to continue to be professional in their conduct and portray the Nigerian Army as the pride of the nation.
The Chief of Special Services and Prigrammes (Army), Maj.-Gen. Emeka Onumajuru, said the army had increased interface with internal external interlocutors towards addressing national and sub-regional security challenges to fulfill its role.
Onumajuru said the purpose of the workshop was to build capacity of personnel across board on protocol and liaison duties to be able to carry out thier mandate professionally and efficiently.
He said it was envisaged that the workshop would provide a more appropriate avenue for relevant interaction among professionals in protocol and liaison.
“It is envisaged that this workshop will stimulate discussion on protocol and liaison issues in the army that will provide the basis for policy and procedural responses.
“Specifically, it would, among others, promote a deeper understanding of protocol and liaison issues, particularly as they support defence diplomacy, military geometric counters and bilateral army to army staff talk,” he said.
The keynote speaker and retired Nigerian Diplomat, Amb. Oluwole Coker, said military diplomacy was an important aspect of the diplomatic relations of any country, hence the need for capacity building of military officers in that regard.
Coker delivered a paper titled, “Building Strong Protocol Capacity for Enhanced Military Diplomacy and National Security: Strategic Option for the Nigerian Army.”
He said it was also necessary for officers responsible for internal activities of the army to be the best and knowledgeable in protocol and liaison responsibilities.
A discussant, Amb Akin Oyeteru, said protocol facilitates smooth interaction between officials, adding that the ultimate aim of pprotocol was the avoidance of unnecessary confrontation.
Oyeteru said protocol officers required knowledge to become valuable, adding that punctuality, politeness, trustworthiness and patience were core attributes of a protocol officer.
According to him, military diplomacy is a subset of defense diplomacy which has to do mainly with military attaches and the functions. (NAN)
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) says it is working to set up a counter terrorism force to tackle security threats within the sub-region.
The Commissioner Political Affairs, Peace and Security of ECOWAS, Amb. Abdel-Fatau Musah, stated this at the opening of a three-day consultative meeting of Commandants of the three designated ECOWAS Training Centres of Excellence.
The three centres of excellence are the National Defence College, Nigeria, Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre, Ghana, and Ecole de Maintien de la Paix Alioune Blondin Beye, Mali.
The consultative engagement is a bi-annual event coordinated by the Directorate of Peacekeeping and Regional Security of ECOWAS.
It is to support training, capacity building, research and development of the ECOWAS Standby Force, and the general peace and security within the sub-region.
Reports says that Mali which is housing one of the training centres of excellence was absent at the meeting.
This may not be unconnected with the recent move by the country alongside Niger and Burkina Faso to exit the ECOWAS community.
Musah said that terrorism was cascading across the region and there was need to have counter terrorism forces to contain its spread.
“This is the decision, and in the coming weeks, ECOWAS has already with the Chief of Defence Staffs, developed operational modalities, the concept of operations and everything for us to aggregate.
“It will be something like an advance rapid reaction force of a battalion that will be able to confront terrorists’ bases.”
He explained that as part of the resolution of the authority of Heads of States, 2.4 billion dollars would be raised to fund the ECOWAS standby force to tackle the security challenges headlong.
“The Heads of States have decided that on the first year, we must raise about 2.4 billion dollars to support the operation of this force in order to face the terrorist.”
Musah said out of the amount, the Heads of States have directed member states contribute one billion dollars to commence the operation of the stand-by force.
He also explained that Ministers of Defence and Finance from the sub-region would be meeting to fashion out funding modalities for the force.
“This brings me to why this exercise is so critical today.
“If you look at our region, it is being ravage by terrorists. Today Burkina faso has overtaken Afghanistan as the most terrorised state on earth, and Africa has become home to terrorists organisations.
“Elsewhere in the world there are opportunistic terrorists attacks like we saw in some countries not too long ago.
“We are faced with the nightmare of having one of our member states being completely occupied by terrorist groups.
“If they set up a front base in one country then no country is safe, and we have already seen the impact of that on some of the coastal countries – Benin, Togo, Ghana and Cote d’voir – over the past few years.”
The ECOWAS commissioner, however, said Nigeria has been able to degrade the Boko Haram terrorists.
“In Nigeria, thanks to the efforts of the Nigerian Government, Boko haram have been degraded to the extent that they do not post a sustainable threat to the peace and security of Nigeria.”
Earlier, the Commandant National Defence College, Rear Admiral Olumuyiwa Olotu while welcoming participants to the meeting, said West Africa was the only region that assigned training centres with special mandate.
He, therefore, urged the participants to take advantage of the opportunity to exchange useful ideas to enhance operations against terrorist groups in the region. (NAN)
The Police Command in Katsina State, says within the month of April, it arrested about 22 suspected armed robbers, and 36 persons in connection to rape and sodomy cases in the state.
The Command’s spokesman, ASP Abubakar Sadiq-Aliyu, confirmed this while briefing newsmen on the command’s achievements within the month under review.
Sadiq-Aliyu said that 10 murder suspects were also arrested during the period.
He disclosed that 81 cases of major crimes, such as armed robbery, kidnapping, culpable homicides, cattle rustling among others were reported.
“Within the period, 69 cases were charged to court, as a total number of 145 suspects were arrested in connection with these suspected cases.
“A total number of 58 suspects were arrested for various offences such as criminal force, intimidation, inciting disturbance, theft, and belonging to gang of brigands, among others.
“Also, the command has succeeded in neutralising 12 suspected bandits, rescued over 30 kidnapped victims, and recovered 492 rustled animals,” Sadiq-Aliyu said.
He further revealed that on May 5, the command successfully foiled a bandit attack on two commercial motor-vehicles at Unguwar Boka village, along Funtua-Gusau road, and rescued 52 passengers.
According to him, a luxurious bus conveying passengers from Onitsha en route Gusau, Zamfara State, and a Volkswagen Golf-3 en route Zaria from Gusau, were attacked by suspected bandits, forcing the driver to veer off the road into the nearby bushes.
“Upon receipt of the report, promptly, the DPO mobilised operatives and responded to the scene, where they engaged the assailants in a fierce gun duel, successfully thwarted the kidnapping attempt, and rescued all the passengers unhurt.
“Efforts have been intensified to ensure the arrest of the fleeing suspects. The investigation is still ongoing,” the police spokesman said. (NAN)
The Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), says it will conduct Range Classification Exercise for Cadets of 72 Regular Course , advising residents to avoid trespassing.
The academy’s Public Relations Officer, Maj. Mohammed Maidawa, made the announcement in a statement in Kaduna on Tuesday.
Maidawa said: “NDA wishes to inform the general public, especially inhabitants of Mando,Tsamiya, Kauya and Afaka general area that it will be conducting a Range Classification Exercise for cadets of 72 Regular Course .
”He said the exercise has been scheduled to be held from Wednesday to Thursday at NDA Open Range Afaka.
He said, “The NDA assures the general public that all necessary safety measures have been put in place for successful conduct of the exercise.
“However, the general public is advised to avoid trespassing in the general area throughout the period of the exercise.”(NAN)
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