President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has charged the Nigerian military to safeguard the nation’s economic interests against the disruptive activities of terrorists
The President gave the charge on Saturday at the combined passing-out parade of cadets of the 72 Regular Course (Army, Navy and Air Force), Short Service Course, and Branch Commission Course of the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), Kaduna.
Represented by the President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, President Tinubu said the Armed Forces must confront insurgency to prevent economic collapse, revitalise military capacity, and eliminate threats to national security.
“I will seize this opportunity to draw your attention to the ills of insurgency and other security challenges to our nation. You must remember that the goal of the insurgents and terrorists is to counteract our developmental reforms by creating counter-states. Yours is to safeguard the economic and core values of the nation to prevent the collapse of the economy and revitalise the Armed Forces, despite the enemies’ indiscriminate violence and baseless propaganda to orchestrate their threats against the state.
“You must never at any time lose sight of the vision of the founding fathers of our dear nation, irrespective of the multiple complex security challenges facing our nation today,” he said.
The President commended the NDA for adopting technological approaches in training and research to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of operations.
He also praised the institution for its recent overhaul of curricula and training methodologies in line with the realities of modern warfare.
Congratulating the cadets, President Tinubu urged them to demonstrate courage and uphold the virtues on which the NDA was founded.
Over 472 cadets were commissioned into the different arms of the military: 218 in the Army, 135 in the Navy, and 119 in the Air Force, in addition to Short Service cadets.
Six cadets were honoured for outstanding performance in academics, military training, and extracurricular activities.
PIAK