During a “Regimented Dinner” held for the 2021 set of retired officers from 3 Division, Rukuba, near Jos, Lt. Gen. Faruk Yahaya, the Nigerian Army’s Chief of Army Staff (COAS), declared that the military would use the services of its retired people to combat instability in the country.
General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the division and Commander of Operation Safe Haven (OPSH), Maj.-Gen. Ibrahim Ali, was present to express appreciation to the COAS on behalf of the retired military members.
He said that the military’s efforts to combat insurgents in Nigeria will always benefit from the knowledge of former military officers.
“These retired experts have accumulated a plethora of knowledge and expertise through time, and they are being sought out for their expertise.”
To combat all types of national insecurity, these skills are essential, according to him.
He noted that the meal was organized to recognize the distinguished service of retired servicemen and their wives.
The COAS vowed to put the wellbeing of those still serving at the top of his priority list and asked them to do their utmost to protect the nation’s territorial integrity.
The Nigerian military announced the retirement of 329 of its most senior officers earlier this year.
Reports in May said that the Nigerian Army planned to re-engage the services of certain skilled disengaged people to combat insecurity as the nation tackles banditry, terrorists, and separatist agitation that threaten Nigeria’s corporate survival.
The COAS made the announcement in Enugu State during a farewell feast held in honor of the 2021 troops who had departed from duty in the 82nd Division Area of Responsibility.
Yahaya, on the other hand, urged the freshly disengaged troops to fulfill their oath of loyalty to Nigeria’s territorial integrity.
The Nigerian army’s chief of staff, Maj Gen Taoreed Lagbaja, spoke at the event and emphasized that his government was dedicated to improving the welfare of discharged people to the extent that his office was able to do so.
For both active and former troops, he assured them of the availability of army health facilities and other welfare institutions around the country.