The Chief of Personnel Management (CPM) Army, Major General Umar Musa, has stressed the need to address overlapped functions in the Nigerian Army (NA) personnel administration.
The CPM revealed this while giving the Welcome Address at the Army Headquarters Department of Personnel Management (AHQ DPM) maiden Conference with staff officers from corps headquarters and commanding officers of Field Records offices held at Land Forces Simulation Centre Nigeria Giri-Abuja.
The CPM (Army) said the Conference was organised to acquaint participants with the newly established AHQ DPM and appraise the problems associated with records keeping in the NA adding that the Conference would also afford participants the opportunity to understand their roles in view of the newly established Department as well as to assess records keeping and manpower planning challenges with a view to finding realistic solutions.
Major General Musa reiterated that Headquarters Command Army Records (HQ CAR) was hitherto responsible for the career planning of soldiers in conjunction with Army Headquarters Department of Army Administration (AHQ DOOA), observing that there were overlaps in the activities of AHQ DOOA, HQ CAR and various corps of the NA which has led to gaps in the management of soldiers’ career.
He therefore maintained that it became necessary to address these gaps in order to improve operational and administrative activities of the NA hence, the authorization of the establishment of AHQ DPM by the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) in line with his vision “A Professional Nigerian Army Ready to Accomplish Assigned Missions within a Joint Environment in Defence of Nigeria”.
The CPM (Army) therefore said that AHQ DPM is now fully responsible for ensuring appropriate career management and planning for NA soldiers, stating that the Conference would equip participants with requisite knowledge and understanding to function efficiently with links to the Department in career planning and management.
The Conference has been organized to include packages that will expose participants to contemporary approaches to military human resource management with a view to improving career planning at corps level. He urged all participants to be open minded and participate actively in the Conference.
Major General Musa therefore used the occasion to thank the COAS for the strategic direction and financial support provided without which the Conference would not have been possible.
