CAS ASSURES GOV EL-RUFAI OF NAF’s READINESS TO COMBAT BANDITRY, VISITS OPERATIONAL UNITS IN KADUNA STATE

Oru Leonard

The Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Oladayo Amao, has assured the Governor of Kaduna State in Nigeria, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, of the readiness of the Nigerian Air Force (NAF), to rid Kaduna State and the Nation of banditry and all other forms of criminality, working in synergy with sister security services and other relevant agencies.

Amao made this commitment when he paid a courtesy call on the Governor, today, 17 March 2021, at Sir Kashim Ibrahim House, Kaduna.

Speaking during the visit, Air Marshal Amao informed the Governor of President Mohammadu Buhari’s marching order to the Service Chiefs to rid the entire Nation of all criminal elements, a task which, he said, the Services have sworn to execute expeditiously. While thanking the Governor for his support to the NAF in Kaduna State, he commended Governor El-Rufai for his monumental developmental strides as well as his zeal towards solving the security challenges in the State.

In his remarks, Governor El-Rufai thanked the CAS for the visit and singled out NAF personnel in Kaduna for their professionalism, dedication and particularly for their integrity in all dealings with the Kaduna State Government. He went further to state that, for a long time, Nigerians have taken peace and security for granted until the current spate of insecurity afflicting the Nation. He called on all Nigerians to appreciate and support the efforts of the military as they continue to make efforts to keep the Nation safe. According to him, “the security situation could have been worse but for the efforts of our Armed Forces”.

The Governor also stated that he, along with Governors of the North West Zone, had agreed to assist the military, particularly in efforts at employing scientific measures towards containing insecurity.

On the payment of ransom to kidnappers, the Governor reiterated the resolve of his Government not to pay any ransom to bandits and kidnappers, saying, “we will not pay a penny to any bandit’. He went further to state that despite the threats of kidnapping, schools would continue to remain open. According to him, the decision to keep schools open was taken so as not to allow criminals to dictate the education of children in the State. He also noted that the ability of the military to swiftly respond to kidnapping further gives the State the confidence to keep schools open.

Earlier on, the CAS had toured units in NAF Base Kaduna, where he was briefed on ongoing operations within Kaduna and the North West Zone. The CAS also held an interactive session with officers, airmen and airwomen of the Air Training Command (ATC) and co-located units in Kaduna, where he reiterated the need for jointness and cooperation with sister Services and other security agencies. According to him, “No real success can be achieved if we do not work together. We must also note that there are no individual trophies in the fight against insecurity”. Personnel were also reminded to remain disciplined in the discharge of their duties while also assuring them of adequate measures to take care of all their welfare needs.

Present during the visit to Sir Kashim Ibrahim House were the State Commissioner for Internal Security, Mr Sam Aruwan, other senior government officials as well as Branch Heads from NAF headquarters and some Air Officers Commanding.