174 Fresh Soldiers Graduate From Nigeria Defence Academy

No fewer than 174 officers drawn from seven African countries, including Nigeria graduated from the Nigeria Defence Academy (NDA) in Jaji, Kaduna state today and were asked by President Muhammadu Buhari to be apolitical and neutral in performing their constitutional role.
The President also asked them to be ready for deployment to troubled zones, such as North East in the nation’s fight against Boko Haram.
The graduands are of the Senior Course 37 of the Command and Staff College.
The graduation ceremony was attended by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, representing President Buhari; the nation’s service chiefs, College officials and the Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai.
Professor Osinbajo also visited a center at the NDA where victims of  Boko Haram insurgence, recently rescued and escaped from Sambisa forests where being “de-radicalized.”
In the speech delivered on his behalf by Professor Osinbajo, President Buhari promised not to relent in equipping the Armed Forces to firmly address all forms of threats that may arise both in peace and war.
President Buhari reminded members of the Nigerian Armed Forces, that they have “a principal role to play in protecting the lives and property of our citizens from all forms of internal or external threat.
He noted that while the civil police continues to be primarily responsible for internal security, “the scale of the current security challenges facing our nation requires the military to play a more decisive role in support of civil power.”
The President said that the military has made good progress in the war against terror, even though faced with contemporary security challenges that were not envisaged some decades ago.
He warned members of the Armed Forces to be generally mindful of “today’s highly sensitive media environment,” the president observed that some of the new graduates of the College would be deployed in crisis prone areas inside or outside the country.
To them, he said “you must be conscious of your actions, given that we live in a common global environment.” But he added that there is no doubt that the quality of training “you have received has adequately prepared you to confront current threats to national and global security.”
Commenting on the international composition of graduates and participants in the course at the Command and Staff College, President Buhari said praised other African nations that nominated candidates for the College.
He said such action, “enhances the ideals of African governance integration for regional cooperation vital for collective security and development of the continent.
For instance, he restated that fact that under the auspices of the Multi National Joint Force of neighboring countries and Nigerian forces, “we are progressively winning the fight against Boko Haram.”
Describing the College as a “prestigious institution,” he also noted that the federal government “will also continue to ensure that this College gets the type of support that it deserves.” [myad]