Chiemelie Ezeobi writes that for the 46 cadets of the Special Duties Pre-Commissioning Training as well as the 1,170 trainees of the ratings’ cadre, their recent commissioning and graduation respectively, was a call to serve the nation in protecting its territorial integrity
Any military is as good as its manpower. For the Nigerian Navy (NN), this same holds true because in order to properly secure the maritime domain and the nation’s territorial integrity, it requires an enormous capacity upgrade not just for fleet recapitalisation but also manpower boost in quality and quantity.
That is essentially why the NN trains professionally competent personnel in line with international best practices. Recently, it was a double whammy celebration at the passing out parade of cadets of the Special Duties Pre-Commissioning Training (SDPCT) 2020 of the Nigerian Naval College as well as the Batch 30 Trainees of the Nigerian Navy Basic Training School (NNBTS) in Onne, Rivers State.
The death of Chad’s President Idriss Dèby has inevitably alarmed foreign and national security policymakers in Nigeria, the West African region and as far as France.
A transitional military council headed by Dèby’s son, Mahamat Dèby, has since taken over the reins of power.
Dèby had been in power since 1990 and had recently declared victory in elections that gave him his sixth term in office. The official result said he had garnered nearly 80% of the vote. The poll was boycotted by the opposition, and fell short of qualifying as a free and fair election.
Nigeria fears arms influx over Idriss Deby’s death The Punch
The Minister of Defence, Major General Bashir Magashi (retd.), on Thursday said the Federal Government knew that the killing of Chad’s President, Idriss Deby, was capable of causing security problems for Nigeria and other neighbouring countries.
The minister, who spoke at the Presidential Villa, Abuja during the weekly briefing organised by the presidential communication team, said government feared that insecurity in Chad could lead to proliferation of illegal arms in Nigeria.
Magashi stated these as gunmen kidnapped no fewer than seven people in Oyo and Kaduna states between Wednesday and Thursday.
The minister said quite a number of political, ethnic and religious leaders were exploiting the social division for their personal gains.
General Magashi had told reporters yesterday that Nigeria lacked a national consensus, common comprehensive understanding and the interpretation of what national security is because of such divisiveness.
But some pundits and regional groups have cautioned the federal government to stop beating about the bush and call all those behind the insecurity in Nigeria by their names.
Blame game our major problem
According to the defence minister, “Make no mistakes that our nation is bleeding now. It is bleeding because of the self-interest and other primordial considerations underlying decisions, which quite a number of our elite; political, ethnic and religious, make it so. Such elite are quick to attribute blames to groups other than theirs.
Nigeria fears arms influx over Idriss Deby s death msn.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from msn.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.