The Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar has solicited the continued support of the civil populace in the war against insurgency, which he said has defied conventional battle.
He said that the anti-terror war cannot be fought in isolation of the civil populace, “hence the need to integrate and win the hearts and minds of the civilian populace towards gaining intelligence to further our missions and operations.”
According to him, “it is also pertinent to remind ourselves of the contemporary asymmetric nature of warfare, which has defied the conventional battle. We must recognise that this war cannot be fought in isolation of the civil populace, hence the need to integrate, and win the hearts and minds of the civilian populace towards gaining intelligence to further our missions and operations”.
Highlighting the importance of the retreat, Sadique noted that, “Commanders’ Retreat is an event organised to enhance the capacity of commanders and potential commanders in the NAF.
“As you are all already aware, the Vision of this administration was hinged on human capacity development. This is why we made consistent efforts over the past four and half years to conduct training of officers and airmen/airwomen both locally and abroad across various NAF specialties/trades towards ensuring an effective and efficient employment of airpower in response to National security imperatives.
Let me use this forum to remind us of our responsibilities to our dear nation as a fighting force. We are all obliged to protect the sovereignty and sanctity of our dear country, Nigeria.
The unity, as well as the protection of lives and properties of the inhabitants. These can only be achieved through a sound mind, renewed orientation and re-evaluation of our actions and inactions as leaders. It is also pertinent to remind ourselves of the contemporary asymmetric nature of warfare, which has defied the conventional battle,”he said.
The Air Chief advised his officers and men to be prudent in their spending and avoid misappropriation. “I must also reiterate that in the midst of economic challenges, resources at our disposal, as commanders, must be utilized prudently towards the attainment of set objectives. Needful to say that this present dispensation has zero tolerance for financial misappropriation, hence the need for Commanders to keep abreast of the financial regulations as regards discharge of public funds.
Let me assure you that Headquarters Nigerian Air Force is working assiduously to ensure that the mandate assigned to the NAF is achieved. As such commanders should remain assured of our support towards the successful conduct of missions and operations”.
The 2020 Retreat is to avail commanders and prospective commanders with on the job experiences from retired senior officers who held command appointments while in the Service. It will also provide room for sharing of opinions and experiences of various commanders on various command responsibilities, issues and challenges.
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