By Linus Aleke, Abuja
The Nigerian Army on Friday, said that its troops in collaboration with Sister Services and other security agencies will be conducting training exercises across the country from October to December 2023.
These exercises, the Nigerian Army said, are designed to improve individual and collective professional competence and would dovetail into real-time operations to tackle various peculiar security challenges in the geo-political zones.
Addressing journalists on the planned exercise, the Director of Army Public Relations, Brigadier General Onyema Nwachukwu said, the exercises are codenamed ‘GOLDEN DAWN III’ in the Southeast, ‘ENDURING PEACE III’ in the North Central and ‘STILL WATERS III’ in the South-south and South-west.
General Nwachukwu said: “Exercise GOLDEN DAWN III, taking place in the Southeast is aimed at tackling security challenges such as armed robbery, kidnapping, cultism, communal clashes and sundry crimes which become more pronounced in the build-up to the yuletide when many citizens return home to celebrate. The exercise will focus on enhancing the capabilities of our troops in intelligence gathering and effective, proactive response to criminalities. With the exercise, we aim to improve the security in the southeast and ensure the safety of the populace during the period that will culminate in the yuletide. Exercise ENDURING PEACE III, taking place in the North-Central is primarily to address farmer-header conflicts, cattle rustling, banditry, kidnapping, ethno-religious conflicts and terrorism among others. The exercise will equip our troops with the necessary skills to combat banditry, including hostage rescue operations, intelligence-driven raids and effective coordination with other sister services and security agencies.
“Exercise STILL WATERS III, taking place in the South-South and South-West-West will target the menace of cultism, robbery and kidnapping. It will equally seek to address the challenges of pipeline vandalism and other forms of economic sabotage. The exercise will also focus on securing critical infrastructures. Our troops would be trained on advanced surveillance techniques, rapid response tactics and the use of technology to effectively counter pipeline vandalism”.
Read Àlso:Tinubu committed to national unity, cohesion – Defence Minister
The Army Spokesperson said that by conducting this exercise, the service aims to curb economic sabotage, protect national assets and ensure a stable environment for economic growth.
The Nigerian Army, General Nwachukwu said, recognizes the importance of collaboration and synergy among various security agencies in boldly confronting these security challenges.
“Accordingly, the NA has been working closely with sister services and other agencies, including the Nigeria Police, Department of State Services and Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Nigeria Customs Service among others, to ensure well-coordinated and effective responses to these threats. Joint training exercises and intelligence sharing will be key components of our approach,” he further said.
Gen. Nwachukwu also reiterated the Nigerian Army’s commitment to surmounting emerging security challenges in troubled parts of the country.
He noted that through the upcoming training Exercise STILL WATERS III, Exercise GOLDEN DAWN III and Exercise ENDURING PEACE III, the Nigerian Army project to enhance the capabilities of its troops, improve synergy with sister services and other security agencies and ultimately ensure the safety and security of the populace.
