The new Director of Public Relations and Information Nigerian Air Force, NAF, Air Commodore Olusola Akinboyewa has taken over from his predecessor Air Vice Marshal Edward Gabkwet who was redeployed to the newly established NAF Civil-Military Relations Branch as Director of Coordination and Cooperation.
Air Commodore Akinboyewa made this known during the handing over ceremony of the outgoing Director to the incoming Director in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital.
According to him, the Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Hassan Abubakar for the confidence he reposes in him to entrust him with the very great responsibility of managing the image and reputation of a great service such as the Nigerian Air Force.
“It’s, as my predecessor noted, a daunting responsibility, and the importance of that is not lost on me at all but I trust that by the grace of God and with the guidance of the Chief of Air Staff and my senior colleagues, I will make the best of it”, he said.
He added that he must also extol the commendable work that has been done by the former Director of Public Relations, my mentor and friend.
He noted that his predecessor has done such an outstanding job of protecting the Nigerian Air Force and continuing to make sure that the public is kept aware of all the efforts that go into ensuring that Nigerians are safe to go about their lawful business.
He said that “it’s important to also mention that the successes that he has recorded would not have been possible if not for the support and the synergy that they enjoy from the partners, the media, and your good selves”.
“Without your support, without your cooperation, the successes would not have been possible. And so I want to use this opportunity to solicit that that same support, that same partnership, that same synergy should continue. I am very open to your input, to your advice”, he added.
The outgoing Director of Public Relations and Information, DOPRI, Nigerian Air Force, NAF Air Vice Marshal Edward Gabkwet who was redeployed to the newly established NAF Civil-Military Relations Branch as Director of Coordination and Cooperation said that “today is a day that we’re going to be witnessing a change in the Public Relations Department Nigerian Air Force adding that as we are all aware, the only thing that is constant in this life is change”.
According to him, it will be recalled, that last year he resumed office on the 3rd of July, he came back to the same office that he had occupied about six months before then to continue where he stopped as spokesperson and Director of Public Relations until now it deemed it fit to redeploy him to another office and bring in yet another officer that they believe will continue from where he stopped.
He presented the next Director of Public Relations and Information of the Nigerian Air Force, Air Commodore Olusola Akimboyewa.
He said that “he will be continuing from where he stopped and he strongly believes that the Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Hassan Abubakar couldn’t have picked a better senior officer to continue to project the image of Nigerian Air Force to the Nigerian public, to the taxpaying Nigerian public, so that they can appreciate and understand what it takes to be a key enabler and a key player in ensuring that this country remains safe, this country remains enabled, this country provides the enabling environment for them to thrive”.
He used the opportunity to solicit friendship, for a hand of fellowship to the new director, for the collaboration, for the advice, and for the guidance to enable him to settle down in his new style and continue to do what is very, very important to them.
“The role of a spokesperson and public relations officer of a sub-technical Air Force, to be honest, I’m very, very, very doubtful. Very doubtful especially in the situation that we find ourselves in, insurgency, oil theft and all sorts of criminality, kidnapping, we have an Air Force that is not just flying with very sophisticated weapons and platforms, but has boats on the ground through our regiments and Special Forces”, he said.
“So it is a very wide and very important office that he will be holding to ensure that he not only protects the Nigerian Air Force but enables Nigerians to appreciate the efforts that the service is making to keep them safe. So it is all the support that he can get from all of you, and I believe that he will get the support that he deserves from all of you. It’s important that we also realise that the Air Force belongs to Nigerians”, he added.
The Chairman, of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations, FCT Chapter, Mr. Stanley Ogadigo congratulated the outgoing DOPRI for the successes recorded during his tenure and urged the new director to follow in the footsteps of the predecessor amongst other people who congratulated him.
Meanwhile, Air Commodore Akinboyewa hails from Ondo West Local Government Area in Ondo State.
A member of the 43rd Regular Combatant Course of the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), he holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics from the NDA, a Postgraduate Diploma in Telecommunications and Electronics Engineering from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, and a Master’s Degree in Security and Strategic Studies from the NDA.
Dominica Nwabufo
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