Lieutenant-General Faruk Yahaya, the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), has commenced a tour of the North-East Theatre of Operations to examine the situation and raise morale. The Army Chief arrived in Maiduguri on November 3, 2022, with the Chief of Operations (Army), Maj-Gen. Olufemi Akinjobi, and other Principal Staff Officers (PSOs). Upon arrival, the COAS was brief about the operation, administrative tasks as well as the security situation.
According to the statement released by the Army Spokesperson, Brigadier-General Onyema Nwachukwu, the COAS then moved to Baga, a town in the north-eastern state of Borno, where he was welcomed by the Force-Commander of the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJT), Maj. -Gen. Abdulkalifa Ibrahim, before speaking to the troops participating in Operation Lake Sanity in the Lake Chad Basin.
While addressing troops, the COAS praised them for their fortitude in battling terrorism and other security issues plaguing the nation, he, therefore, urged them to maintain their alertness and vigilance in order to maintain the operational successes so far made in the war against the criminals.
He observed that farmers and herders are now going back to their ancestral lands and livelihoods, which he described as a sign of the gradual restoration of peace.
President Muhammadu Buhari, the commander in chief of the Nigerian armed forces, was also commended by the COAS for his unwavering assistance in supplying combat enablers to carry out ongoing operations across the country.
He also extended gratitude to the public, other security agencies, and sister services for their unwavering support of the Nigerian Army’s constitutional mission.
The troops were instructed by COAS to draw on prior knowledge and strictly abide by the recently approved Nigerian Army (NA) Code of Conduct for personnel while assisting other security organizations during elections.
Gen. Yahaya made note of the impending elections and reiterated NA’s determination to continue conducting Exercises and Operations to checkmate insecurity and foster a peaceful environment in support of civil authority by citing the recent flag off of Exercises Golden Dawn, Still Waters, and Enduring Peace across all Army formations in the nation.
A Maternity and Child Care Center, a Doctor’s Lodge, and a home for the Regimental Sergeant Major of Theatre Command were among the finished projects in Maimalari Cantonment that were later given commissions by the COAS.