JUST IN: Army Chief Flags Off Welfare Flight For Nigerian Troops

The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Faruk Yahaya, has flagged off a welfare flight to cater to the wellbeing of troops as they move across different theatres of operation in the country. 

The information was disclosed in a statement signed by the army’s spokesperson, Brig-Gen Onyema Nwachukwu, on Tuesday. 

The COAS, while performing the ceremony on Monday at the Nigerian Air Force Base Maiduguri, Borno State, said the provision of a welfare flight would help to boost morale of the troops. 

Reiterating welfare as one of his cardinal focuses for the Nigerian Army, Yahaya noted that the initiative was initiated to ease the movement of troops of the Joint Task Force Operation Hadin Kai (OPHK). 

According to the statement, it would also help to address “problems such as distance and other associated challenges while proceeding on a pass to see their families and loved ones.”

The statement noted that the ongoing joint operations in the theatre have further strengthened the synergy between the services and other security agencies, making it possible to provide the Nigerian Air Force Charlie-130 aircraft to lift troops of the Armed Forces of Nigeria and other personnel of other security agencies. 

The aircraft, according to the COAS, would move twice a month to meet the 2 weeks duration of leave passes in the theatre, adding that personnel leaving on pass will be granted two weeks. 

The COAS directed that all security measures be strictly adhered to, as troops would be thoroughly searched,  cleared and documented before boarding the flight. 

He urged all troops to utilize the opportunity to promote synergy amongst all the services and security agencies in the theatre, to achieve success in ongoing and future operations. 

Yahaya further pledged his unalloyed loyalty and commitment to defending the constitution of the country. 

Speaking earlier on the schedules of flight, the Chief of Operations (Army), Maj. Gen. Olufemi Akinjobi, said the welfare flight had been scheduled to cover 3 main hubs, namely Lagos, Abuja and Maiduguri. 

Troops from Lagos would be housed and managed at Ikeja Cantonment, while those in Abuja would be at the Nigerian Army Forward Operational Base and those in Maiduguri would be at the Theatre Command’s headquarters.