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Tag: Nigeria Air Force

  • Collateral damage: NAF donates cash, boreholes to affected families, communities

    Collateral damage: NAF donates cash, boreholes to affected families, communities

    The Nigeria Air Force (NAF) has donated cash gifts and constructed boreholes to families and communities affected by its airstrikes in Zamfara State.

    The NAF reconstructed the damaged building and replaced two motorcycles destroyed during the incident.

    NAF’s spokesman, Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame, announced this in a statement on Wednesday.

    No fewer than 16 civilians were killed and property destroyed by NAF strikes, on January 11, while targeting fleeing terrorists at Dangebe village in Maradun Local Government Area of Zamfara State.

    After the incident, Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Hasan Bala Abubakar, sent a fact finding team to the community, and promised to the families, reconstruct the damaged building, and replacement of the two motorcycles destroyed.

    “It is heart-warming to announce that the Nigerian Air Force has kept every word of its commitment,” the statement said.

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    “The reconstruction of the damaged building has been completed, while 2 brand-new motorcycles have been handed over to their rightful owners. 

    “Additionally, the promised borehole has been successfully drilled and is now serving Kambarawa Village and surrounding settlements, providing clean, accessible water to hundreds of residents. Funds have also been fully disbursed to victims and their families to aid their recovery and rebuild their lives.”

    According to the statement, the gestures were reflective of NAF’s values of professionalism, responsibility, and respect for human dignity. 

    The NAF promised to minimise civilian harm, uphold human rights, and promote enduring civil-military relations as a strategic and moral imperative, during operations.

  • Apologies not enough

    Apologies not enough

    •Air Force men who raided Ikeja Electric must face the law

    It’s so reminiscent of the “mad dog” syndrome, that involved Ayodeji, the second son of the late Basorun MKO Abiola in 1988. Deji’s slight auto accident with Air Force corporal, M. Danjuma, had unruly Air troops invading the MKO home in Ikeja. It was during the best-forgotten era of military rule.

    Air Vice Marshall (AVM) Nura Imam (retd), then the Air Officer Commanding (AOC) their Ikeja base, and member of the military ruling council, claimed the brutes, in Nigeria Air Force (NAF) uniforms, were “mad dogs”!  We never knew how the force dealt with those

    “mad dogs”.  Were they punished?  Those that survived — did they give them anti-rabies jabs?

    It would appear such “mad dogs” still teem in the Air Force, despite a democratic clime of 25 years and counting.  That should explain the raid on the Ikeja Electric (I.E.) corporate headquarters in Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos.  They came from that same Sam Ethnan Airforce Base, Ikeja.  This is utterly execrable and must be condemned by all.

    To be clear: I.E., as other electricity distribution companies (DisCos), is not exactly a model corporate citizen. With its lousy service delivery, it has, almost universally, earned the scorn and contempt of all.

    As corporate traders, DisCos are even more reviled — and fairly and legitimately so.  They are widely believed to steal from their customers, via the brazen fraud called estimated billing. Their notorious disconnection gangs also bully households and businesses, for daring to resist paying thumping bills I.E. and Co. cook up for supplying darkness. 

    I.E. and other DisCos have transitioned into whatever they are today, after the so-called power reforms, largely in name. Either as the precursor Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN), or as the utterly ineffective DisCos, the ruinous spirit of the defunct National Electricity Power Authority (NEPA) was never defunct.  That spirit still rules the roost in DisCos!

    So, the anger against DisCos are understandable.

    Still, no one has the right to raid their space, injure their workers and destroy their assets.  That’s brazen outlawry.  It’s all the more condemnable because it was done, by some Nigeria Air Force (NAF) personnel on March 6, with legitimate arms.  No longer must we tolerate using legal arms to bully and maul law-abiding citizens and corporates.

    Not anymore too, must we tolerate the indulgent reference to outlaws in uniform as “mad dogs”.  We have had more than enough of that trash. It’s time

    to cull such brigands.  It’s clear they are unfit to wear the uniform they randomly abuse with their thuggery.

    Yes, the present AOC Logistic Command, AVM Adeniran Ademuwagun, has apologised for his

    men’s loutish behaviour.  That’s welcome. But a mere apology is not enough. Those involved must be arrested and tried.  If found guilty, they must bear the full brunt of the law. 

    Had AVM Imam-commanded base back then punished those involved in the MKO case, it’s most unlikely another set of uniformed outlaws, again from there, would do what they just did at I.E.  Such rank indiscipline must never, ever again be tolerated. 

    Read Also: Only 3% of Nigerian workers access consumer credit – CREDICORP

    The Air Force must ensure their officers and men respect the civil populace, who in return should honour them.  Military service is rare sacrifice that should be honoured by all — but not when soldiers misbehave.

    The cause of the hoopla was even more annoying, and here you must pity I.E.  If that base indeed owes I.E. N4 billion, what satanic sense of entitlement drove the troops, so much so that they must levy mayhem on their creditors? 

    If the AOC claims electricity is no luxury, but an imperative, at the base — we agree — why doesn’t the base pay what it owes?  Does it think after its show of shame, it would cow I.E. into submission, and push its gun-enforced right to access electricity without payment?  It should snap out of such costly delusions!

    It is welcome that the Federal Government has pledged to defray the debt.  It should do that fast.  But if the armed services continually fail to pay for the electricity they use, perhaps the Ministry of Defence should come up with first line charges from their monthly releases.  That way, they pay as routine, without much ado.

    Meanwhile, I.E. should cost everything the Air Force personnel destroyed, and push the bill to the Air Force for payment.  It should also sue for monetary compensation for the trauma its staff faced from that aggression. 

    It’s a polity ruled by law, not by force of arms by fellows kitted to protect and defend the civil populace.   Anyone that breaches the law must pay.

  • Ex-Air chief got N6b from NAF funds, court told

    The Federal High Court in Lagos yesterday heard that former Nigeria Air Force (NAF) Chief of Accounts and Budgeting, Air Vice Marshal Jacob Adigun, admitted to have received N6billion from NAF for his personal benefit.

    The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arraigned him along with former Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal Adesola Amosu and a former Director of Finance and Budget, Air Commodore Olugbenga Gbadebo.

    EFCC said the three, on or about March 5, 2014 in Lagos, conspired to convert N21,467,634,707.43, property of NAF, which sum they reasonably ought to have known forms part of proceeds of unlawful activities to wit: criminal breach of trust.

    An EFCC investigator, Tosin Owobo, led in evidence by the prosecuting counsel Rotimi Oyedepo, told the court that Adigun made a statement at EFCC, which was tendered in court.

    Read also: Politics of principle or division?

    He said the second defendant disclosed in his statement that he incorporated Delfina Oil and Gas, Hebron Housing Limited, Mcallam Oil and Gas, Trapezites BDC Limited.

    Owobo added: “He said he is the sole signatory to the accounts of the companies.

    “He said the names of the directors are all pseudonyms and not names of any member of his family.

    “In his statement, he wrote that out of about N16.9billion inflow from the Nigeria Air Force related accounts into his companies, he only benefited about N6billion

    “He said the chief of Air Staff and others would account for theirs.

    “He also stated that the whole money was not shared, as some jobs were executed.

    “He further wrote in his statement that he would be willing to let go of properties worth the sums of money he benefited.”

    When asked to state how he came about Trapezites Bureau de Change Limited and his findings, the witness said upon analysis of Trapezites’ statement of accounts, it was discovered that about N3.6billion was received from various NAF accounts.

    They are  NAF Jet A1 Training account, NAF Air Men Subsidy account, NAF Special Emergency Operations account, HQ NAF Camp Operations account, UCA NAF 37 Operations account and 106 NAF Camp Training account.

    The defendants were alleged to have made several transfers amounting to N21billion to different companies charged with them.

    The companies are Delfina Oil and Gas Ltd, Mcallan Oil And Gas Ltd, Lebol Oil and Gas Ltd, Trapezites Bureau De Change, Hebron Housing and Properties Company Ltd, Deegee Oil and Gas Ltd and Timsegg Investment Ltd.

    The defendants pleaded not guilty to the alleged offence which EFCC said contravened Section 18(a) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended) and punishable under Section 15(3).

    Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke adjourned until April 15 and 16 for continuation of trial.

     

  • My story, by 15-yr-old survivor of Independence Day rehearsal plane crash

    Elizabeth Elijah was in the farm when death came calling.Unlike the proverbial August visitor, it bore no gift of courtesy or the perfunctory knock. On Friday, September 28, it arrived in the guise of the Nigeria Air Force (NAF)’s F-7Ni aircraft, crashing like a winged tenant of the sky, few metres from where the 15-year-old tilled the land.

    Two fighter jets belonging to NAF crashed in Abuja during a rehearsal ahead of the country’s 58th Independence Anniversary.

    It was learnt that the pilots had successfully ejected from one of the ill-fated aircrafts only for a Squadron Leader, Bello Baba-Ari, to die, from injuries.

    According to Elijah, she arrived on the farm around 11a.m accompanied by her younger brother and a neighbour. “After working for some time,” her “brother complained of being thirsty,” so, they went to drink water at a nearby stream.

    But while they returned to work on the farm, they saw an aircraft charging towards them from afar.

    “We tried to run but the breeze of the plane pushed us and I fell. I noted that some fragments of the crashed plane has injured me in the leg. I could not stand to work and I started shouting for help. My brother and the girl had to come to my rescue; they struggled to remove the object that entered my leg,” she said, in an exclusive chat with The Nation.

    According to the 15-year-old, she was bleeding profusely and her sibling and neighbour’s child, who were younger, couldn’t lift her and take her home. But just before she yielded to despair,

    “a man came around who claimed he knew my father and offered to carry me home. Then my father took me a nearby hospital. They cleaned the wound and my father brought me back home but the pain was still much.

    “After few hours the owner of the hospital came to our house and told my father that the chairman of Bwari Area Council has given an instruction that I should be taken back to the hospital to get my leg stitched. So they took me back and stitched the wound and after a while, I was taken back home,” she said, adding that, adding that apart from her leg, she also feels great pain in her hand and at her back.

    Elijah’s travail would go unnoticed by the government but for a man who heard her mother, Victoria Elijah, narrate her ordeal to someone at the market, where she (Victoria) sold goods.

    The man, according to Elijah, offered to help.

    “Immediately, he called the Human Rights Radio and narrated everything to them, and the management of the radio station came to pick me at home around 11 pm alongside the management of the Maitama General Hospital,” said Elijah.

    However, it took the intervention of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) FCT Call Center and it’s head, Jummai Ahmadu, in bringing the incident of the 15-year-old to the attention of the FCT Administration, two days after it occurred. The FCT administration immediately rushed her to Maitama General Hospital, for proper medical care.

    Soon afterwards, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Muhammad Bello, awarded her a scholarship “to any level” and ordered that her medical bills be taken care of by the FCT administration.

    The victim, who hails from Kachia area of Kaduna State, but resides with her family in Chikoko village in Bwari Area Council of the FCT, was handed a scholarship form by directors cum representatives of the Universal Basic Education Board (UBEC), the FCT Scholarship Board and FCT Call Centre  for proper documentation, immediately after Bello’s declaration.

    “The FCT Administration has decided to take care of all expenses for her education. The scholarship will take care of all her schooling. As soon as she is discharged from the hospital, the scholarship will commence,” said Dr. Adamu Noma, Director, FCT Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC).

    According to the UBEC boss, the FCT Administration granted her scholarship to university level and that they will be ready to foot her bills for as long as she can go in her educational pursuit.

    He said the FCT Administration would be responsible for her tuition, books uniform, foot wears and any other things needed in school.

    Confirming this, Ahmad Rani, Director FCT Scholarship Board said they were ready to foot the bills and follow her up.

    The girl who could not hid her joy on the hospital bed said: “I am happy with the scholarship and how God has saved me from death. I want to study medicine. I appreciate the government.”

    Elizabeth’s mother, Victoria Elijah was full also of joy and gratitude to God and the government for sparing her daughter’s life.

    Further findings revealed that Elijah completed her primary education in Chikoko but she has been out of  school  for about five years due to her parents’ inability to fund her secondary education.

    Things got so bad that her father could not afford transport fare from the village to see her in Maitama Hospital five days ago.

    Few people would forget in a hurry, the episode that almost cost Elijah her life on Friday, September 28; while Elijah’s family were grateful that she survived devastation wrought by the NAF aircraft that crashed on their farm, the families of the deceased pilot and government rue the sad incident.

    According to Islamic rites, Baba-Ari was laid to rest that same night at the Military Cemetery, Airport Road Abuja.

    Among those who attended the burial were Chief of Staff to the President, Malam Abba Kyari, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, and Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Gabriel Olonishakin.

    Others were Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Siddique Abubakar, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, hundreds of officers and men of the Nigerian Army, as well as friends and relatives of the deceased.

    In the wake of the disaster, the Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadiq Abubakar, set up a board of inquiry, to investigate the accident, while President Muhammadu Buhari delegated the Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, and the Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, to visit the two surviving co-pilots of the crashed aircrafts, at the Defence Intelligence Agency Hospital, Abuja.

  • NEMA lauds military participation in disaster management

    The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), says it is very impressed with the quality of military involvement in disaster managements and support of victims.

    Its Director General, Alhaji Mustapha Maihaja, while assessing facilities at the Disaster Response Unit of the 119 Operation Base of the Nigeria Air force, Sokoto on Friday, promised that the agency would continue to support such efforts.

    Represented by Air Commodore Akigbe Iyamu, Director in charge of Disaster and Response, Maihaja said that NEMA would continue to partner with the military’s disaster response section to ease disaster management.

    He stressed the need for collaborative efforts on disaster management among all tiers of government, noting that
    NEMA, which was supposed to focus on disasters with high magnitude, had been compelled to look into lesser incidents.

    He said that the visit was to assess military formations’ readiness to respond to disasters with a view to look into ways to assist them.

    Read Also: Boko Haram kills NEMA worker in Borno

    The Chief of Defense Staff (CDS), Gen. Abayomi Olanisakin, in a remark, expressed the military’s readiness to partner with NEMA and other security agencies to maintain peace before, during and after the 2019 general elections.

    Olanisakin, who was represented by Gen. Habila Vintenaba, Director, Psychological Warfare, at the
    Defense Headquarters, said that the visit was to assess the readiness of the established disaster response
    point in the base.

    “We want to assess the unit’s readiness for prompt response to emergency situations,” he said.

    He said that military collaboration with NEMA would provide timely response to all forms of disasters and its management with desired professionalism in line with global practice.

    The CDS, however, advised politicians to desist from actions that would put national security in jeopardy, urging them to embrace dialogue toward resolving their differences.

    “Politicians must constantly educate their supporters on the need to ensure peace at all times,” he said.

    Earlier, Group Capt. Jibrin Usman, the Brigade Commander, had informed his guests that the base had recorded disasters such as flood, fire and thunderstorm in Sokoto and Kebbi States.

    He also said that his men had helped in evacuating some of the victims and provided security in places razed down by fire to avert looting by hoodlums.

    Usman identified major challenges to inadequate equipment and manpower training.

  • FAAN goes for modern scanners to boost security at airports

    The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has ordered for modern scanners to boost security at airports in the country.

    The General Manager, Customer Services, FAAN, Mrs Ebele Okoye, disclosed this at the Second Quarter Stakeholders Forum held at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos on Tuesday.

    The stakeholders present at the forum included the Nigeria Immigration Service, the Nigeria Customs Service, the Nigeria Police Force and the Directorate of State Services.

    Others are the Nigeria Air Force, the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, Nigerian airlines and airport cab operators amongst others.

    Okoye said the “NEED Scanner” was capable of doing specific jobs such as detection of hard drugs, ammunition and food.

    She said: “Arrangements have been made to bring these scanners to Nigeria. They are different from what we have presently because they can detect anything inside a baggage without manual checks.

    Read Also: Rage over states’ airport projects

    “Our goal is to reduce interface between passengers and officials of agencies at the airport in order to curb corrupt practices and also improve service delivery at our airports.”

    According to her, the forum is one of the obligations of FAAN as outlined in the reviewed FAAN Service Charter and it is aimed at improving relationship between FAAN and the stakeholders.

    The Managing Director of FAAN, Mr Saleh Dunoma, represented by FAAN’s Director of Operations, Capt. Rabiu Yadudu, said the cordial relationship between FAAN and the stakeholders must be sustained for efficient and effective service delivery.

    “I enjoin us to join hands together to uplift our airports so that we can achieve our mission statement of being among the best airport groups in the world.

    “This forum is to ensure that the cordial relationship that existed is strengthened so as to achieve excellence at all times.

    “This is an important road map for us in the aviation industry to ensure service improvement as feedback mechanism,” he said.

    On her part, Mrs Victoria Shin-Aba, General Manager, MMIA,  said FAAN was constantly seeking ways to improve customer service, especially with the  recent inauguration of a feedback application  at the airport.

    Shin-Aba noted that the app, an initiative of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), would give passengers and the general public opportunity to register their complaints or commend the quality of services being rendered by government agencies at the airports.

    “The application also gives assurance that such complaints will be attended to and resolved within 72hours, in line with the provisions of Executive Order 1 of the Federal Government of Nigeria,” she said.

    NAN

  • FRSC @30: Security agencies hail Corps for reducing road crashes

    FRSC @30: Security agencies hail Corps for reducing road crashes

    Some security agencies have lauded the contributions of the Federal Road Safety Corps, FRSC to nation building, saying its operations in the past 30 years were significant in reducing road crashes.

    They made the commendation in Yenagoa on the occasion of the FRSC Anniversary Evening with Stakeholders, tagged, “FRSC at 30: The Journey So far”.

    AVM Stephen Onuh, Air Officer Commanding (AOC), Bayelsa Mobility Command of the Nigeria Air Force (NAF), commended the roles of FRSC in the past 30 years and urged the Corps to `keep the flag flying’.

    Onuh, represented by Air Commodore Wale Ogunmedede, Command Logistics Officer, described the contributions of the FRSC as `giant strides’ in national growth.

    “Looking at the history of the FRSC, you will see that road traffic crashes have reduced drastically; in the 80’s, people drove without license but with the effectiveness of the Corps since inception, people became conscious of rules on the use of roads,” Onuh said.

    Brig.-Gen. Kelvin Aligbe, Commander 16 Brigade of the Nigerian Army in Bayelsa, said the FRSC contributions, especially in safeguarding lives and property on the roads, could not be over-emphasised.

    Aligbe, represented by Lieutenant- Col. Olusegun Olenigbogbe, described safety on the road as `Safety to Mankind’ and commended the FRSC on its achievements, so far.

    “The enforcement of safety rules and regulations for road users has been so significant to the society.

    “We as the Military, will continue to support the operations of the Corps so that the nation’s roads become completely safe for road users,” he said.

    Mr Don Awunah, the Police Commissioner in Bayelsa, pledged the support of the police to the activities of the FRSC in Bayelsa and Nigeria to enable it achieve more success.

    Awunah said the Police would continue to collaborate with the Corps in the enforcement of driving rules and regulations.

    Mr Godwin Nwachukwu, the Commandant of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Bayelsa, said that FRSC had been very crucial in maintaining peace, order and tranquility, especially safety on the roads.

    The FRSC’s Sector Commander in the state, Mr Ikechukwu Igwe, noted that the journey so far in the past 30 years, yielded momentous results in the reduction of road crashes.

    Igwe expressed gratitude over the achievements recorded and reiterated their commitment to ensuring safety of lives on the highways.

    “In the 60’s, we recorded high rate of crashes till 90’s and early 2000, but with the efficient operations of the Corps, road traffic crashes have reduced across the country,” he said.

     

  • Kidnapping: Army launches operation ‘Karamin Goro’ in Kaduna, Niger

    Kidnapping: Army launches operation ‘Karamin Goro’ in Kaduna, Niger

    The 1 Division, Nigerian Army, Kaduna has launched a special operation in parts of Kaduna and Niger States to tackle rising cases of kidnapping, armed robbery and cattle rustling.

    The operation, code named ‘Karamin Goro’, will cover Minna-Birnin Gwari-Pandogari and Minna-Sarkin Pawa general area, a statement by the Deputy Director, Army Public Relations, Col. Muhammad Dole said on Thursday.

    Dole said in Kaduna that the special operation involved the Nigeria Air Force, Police, DSS operatives and Nigeria Civil Defence Corps.

    He said emerging cases of armed robberies, cattle rustling and kidnappings in the affected areas have continued to pose serious security threats to Nigerians.

    “These criminals use the thick forests as hideouts and major highways as staging areas to perpetuate their nefarious activities along highways,   major roads, adjoining towns and villages.

    “As a result of their dastardly acts, some remote villages were completely deserted, causing the residents to abandon their ancestral domains to unknown destinations for their safety.

    “In  response  to  these  re-emerging  security concerns,  the Division launched Operation Karamin Goro to clear the remnants of the criminals from their bases and ensure the safety of lives, properties and  safe movement of the people within these general areas.’’

    Dole said arrangements and measures had been put in place to ensure safe passage of persons, motorists and their properties along the areas of operation.

    He solicited the understanding, cooperation and support of the general public to ensure hitch free and successful operation.

    Dole also urged the general public to provide credible information to the security agencies that would lead to speedy execution of the exercise.

    He said that those with useful information should call 193 from any network provider for prompt response by security agencies.

  • EXCLUSIVE: How Nigeria Air Force’s Failings Prolonged the War against Boko Haram

    A recent directive by Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar for Sambisa Forest, where Boko Haram terrorists are holed up, to be cleared drew ire from different quarters of the country and for good reason. Nigerians are disappointed in the Air Force and blame it for the continued existence of the Boko Haram terror group.

    Investigations revealed that the anger against the third service of the Armed Forces is not unconnected with its inability to make meaningful contribution to the counter-terrorism war against Boko Haram, which citizens expected would have been the case since the Air Force first failed to locate a convoy of dozens of Hilux Pickups that ferried away school girls that were abducted in Chibok over three years ago.
    The terror group continue to shuttle between Nigeria and neighboring Niger, Chad and Cameroon often using convoys that are visible from the sky. The practice for the Air Forces of countries with similar security challenge is to carpet bomb such convoys while troops hunt down the terrorists that are usually left in disarray after such operations.
    This method worked in decimating Islamic State terrorists, who become easy targets for Syrian and Iraqi troops in the aftermath of airstrikes from Russian and American aircrafts. Airstrikes launched by the Nigerian Airforce has not yielded such benefits. Claims that it has hit terrorist targets are called into question within short time as they are able to advance until ground troops ambush them.
    Revelations by locals who spoke exclusively to our correspondent is that the service may be wasting pricey ammunitions as some of the airstrikes usually target abandoned and disused structures in Sambisa Forest. One of them who volunteered only his first name, Adamu, for fear of being identified, noted that it is not unusual for aircrafts to repeatedly pound the same location even when there is no sign of life.
    Adamu noted that “We see empty shacks, abandoned places, and the next thing aircrafts will come and drop bomb. We will count, one day, two days, three days and there would be not the faintest trace of the smell of death. Even small animals in the bush will stench up the place it died but this people will drop bomb and nothing will rot. You look up in the skies later and don’t even see the (carrion) birds that follow death. We then tell ourselves that these airplanes do not want the war to end.”
    The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) is however not accepting the damning verdict of citizens. A source at NAF Headquarters, who is a close confidant of Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, revealed that the recent escalation of media presence by the CAS was part of recommended public relations effort to repair the battered image of the service.
    “We are aware of how Nigerians feel about NAF (Nigerian Air Force) but we also think it is important that people are made aware of the peculiar challenges that we face as a military organization,” the source who preferred anonymity because he is not the official spokesperson explained.
    But Air Marshal Abubakar had publicly shrugged off the possibility of the Air Force facing any challenges when he ordered on September 1 that Sambisa Forest should be completely cleared. “We must redouble our efforts to make sure that we cleanse the forest before they even come out to do harm,” he declared.
    His reference to Boko Haram coming out of Sambisa Forest to do harm addressed incidents in the past when terrorists easily overran Air Force Bases in attacks that were blamed on poor leadership. The Chief of Air Staff had in turn passed on the blame. He once told a retreat through a subordinate that “Recent evaluations of the (Air Force) bases revealed that many commanders and bases were yet to imbibe and adopt the tenets of the new base defence concept.”
    But another source in the Armed Forces warned that the decreased capacity of the Air Force under the leadership of Air Marshal Abubakar is mostly responsible for Boko Haram’s ability to continue carrying out attacks. The source queried how it was possible for the Air Force to have resources to “clear Sambisa Forest” when it had not deployed these same resources for aerial surveillance and relay the information gathered from such exercises to ground troop that are in a better position to neutralize the terrorists.
    “If the air support were what it should be the kind of Boko Haram ambush that killed several persons on the UNIMAID, NNPC oil exploration team in July this year would not have been possible. The other terrorists’ ambushes would have rather led to their destruction since aircraft would simply pound them from the air before they have the chance to do any crazy thing.
    “You’ll agree that the counter-terrorism war would have had a better result if the recent talks emanating from NAF had been converted into action the terrorists would have become history by now. Instead, all we hear is talk and more talk. We are not seeing aircrafts delivering the needed advantage from the skies,” the source lamented.

  • Air Force graduates 1,928 recruits

    Air Force graduates 1,928 recruits

    The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) on Friday graduated 1,928 recruits who completed their basic training at the NAF Military Training Centre, Kaduna

    A statement from the Director of Public Relations and Information of the NAF, Air Commodore Olatokunbo Adesanya said it was the first time the institution graduated such a large number of recruits.

    He said it was made possible due to the expansion of facilities at the training centre with the capacity to train about 2,500 at a time.

    The statement reads: “The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) today, 21 July 2017, graduated 1,928 recruits, who have just successfully completed the Basic Military Training Course (BMTC) at the NAF’s Military Training Centre, Kaduna.

    “The Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, who was the Reviewing Officer and Guest of Honour during the colourful Passing Out Parade (POP) ceremony, stated that it was the first time in the history of the NAF that such a huge number of recruits would be graduating at the same time. 

    “According to him, the feat was made possible by the recent expansion of the training facilities at the MTC to train up to 2,500 recruits at a time as against the initial capacity of 500 recruits. As a result, the NAF had successfully trained, in all, 4,163 recruits for the Nigerian Air Force, between    July 2015 and today, thereby reducing unemployment in the country.

    “He, therefore, expressed profound gratitude to Mr President who, in spite of harsh economic realities, continues to support the NAF to enable it meet its operational requirements and the welfare of its personnel. 

    “Air Marshal Abubakar charged the graduands to take advantage of the knowledge and skill acquired, from the newly introduced Internal Security Module, to safeguard lives and properties wherever and whenever they were deployed for Internal Security duties. In addition, the CAS reminded the new recruits of their civic responsibility.

    “You are subject to both military and civil law. Hence, you must submit to civil authority and protect our democracy. I urge you to treat all our people with respect and dignity,” he added.

    The CAS also presented awards to the best 3 graduands in order of merit namely Recruits Anyim Emmanuel, Awokoya Adeshola and Nwamiri Chiomaobi respectively. Air Marshal Abubakar seized the opportunity to commission a new project and also inspected other ongoing ones.

    The POP ceremony was attended by many senior military officers, serving and retired, as well as dignitaries, including the representatives of His Excellency, the Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai and the Emir of Zazzau, Dr Shehu Idris (CFR).

    Many of the new recruits from the BMTC 37/2017, who have received special training, would be deployed to the North East to enhance airfield protection and also support fighting land troops. It is recalled that the NAF recently released the list of another set of over 3,000 successful recruits, who would soon commence the BMTC.