The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, on Tuesday, bemoaned what he described as “rising cases of drug abuse” among soldiers deployed in the various theatres of operation.
The COAS raised the concern in Sokoto while declaring open a 1-day seminar on warrior ethos, with the theme “Optimising Warrior Ethos in the Nigerian Army: A Panacea for Operational Effectiveness,” organised by the Department of Army Transformation and Innovation.
Represented by the acting General Officer Commanding, 8 Division, Brig. Gen. Ibikunle Ajose, the COAS expressed the hope that the seminar would address the issue of drug abuse among soldiers, and other issues.
He assured troops of Operation Hadarin Daji in Sokoto State of continued support in the provision of needed logistics and guidance for the success of their operations. He said, “I can assure you of my continuous support to provide the much-needed logistics and guidance required for the execution of your tasks.
“The Nigerian Army has continued to review its tactics, techniques and procedures in order to come up with both kinetic and non-kinetic strategies to defeat these challenges. This seminar was, therefore, premised on the need to improve the capacity of the Nigerian Army personnel towards enhancing warrior ethos and the battle-winning mentality.
It will also highlight the threats of chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear terrorism in Nigeria. “In addition, the prevailing incidence of drug and substance abuse among troops deployed in theatres of operation has become quite worrisome and necessitates troops’ awareness in a bid to enhance combat effectiveness.”
Lagbaja urged commanders at all levels to continue to come up with innovative ideas to upscale their approaches towards improving man management and battle readiness, which, he said, was in line with his command philosophy for the Nigerian Army.
COAS commended the Department of Army Innovation and Transformation for organising the seminar, which he said would raise necessary operational and situational awareness of the troops.
“I implore you all to remain innovative and committed. By so doing, you will have helped to raise the standard that the Nigerian Army requires to deliver on its constitutional mandate. This event is, therefore, timely and will avail participants a better understanding of the key issues to improve on operational effectiveness,” Lagbaja said.
Earlier in his remarks, the Chief of Transformation and Innovation from the Army Headquarters, Maj. Gen. Zakari Abubakar, assured the COAS that the department would continue to direct, engage and not relent in efforts towards the realisation of pillars of the COAS command philosophy.
“The seminar is organised to optimise the leadership capacity of junior and middle-class officers as well as to intensify warrior ethos and check the menace of drug and substance abuse among the troops,” Abubakar said.
