The Senate Committee on Army has called for more cooperation of the Nigerian Army in terms of performing their constitutional role and their legislative duties as it affects legislative reforms and enhances the repositioning of the Nigerian Army NA, as well as the welfare of the troops and development of the Nigerian Army NA in general.
Chairman, of the Senate Committee on Army, Abdulaziz Musa-Yar-Adua said this when he led members of the Senate Committee on Army on a maiden familiarization visit to the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Lt Gen Taoreed Lagbaja, today, Wednesday 25 October 2023 at the Army Headquarters.
Senator Musa-Yar-Adua noted that the committee needed the cooperation of the Nigerian Army to synergies and ensure that whatever is required by the Army to operate to ensure the safety of lives was provided.
He assured the COAS that for all the Challenges that have been highlighted in this interactive session, we as a committee on the army will make sure they did their best. We will give you total support for the challenges to be surmounted.
"We all know what the Army has been doing in terms of ensuring the safety of lives and also performing the statutory function as mandated by the constitution," he noted
He further reassured members of the committee of the professionalism of the current 23rd Chief of Army Staff COAS, Lt General Taoreed Lagbaja, having trained together at the NDA some years back. 'Nigerians are safe'.
He expressed appreciation on behalf of members of the committee for the warm reception received at the Army headquarters.
He also seized the opportunity to present a Legislative Agenda for the Nigerian Army NA for the 10th Assemble of the Senate Committee on Army.
He noted that the draft has the input of other distinguished Senators and members of the committees, less requested the COAS to read and go through the draft and add his impute so that together the Army and the committee can have a document to prioritize those areas to work on, to set a timeline to be able to achieve the legislative Agenda.
The Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Lt Gen Taoreed Lagbaja in his remarks stressed that the Nigerian Army NA recognized the critical role of the legislators in the effective functioning of the military and the committee is critical to the performance of NA constitutional responsibility as an army.
He noted that the army also recognized that the senate committee has legislative oversight which helps to keep the Nigerian Army NA in check in the performance of the constitutional responsibility.
"Being the representative of the people of various constituencies spread across the country, we cherish the feedback that we receive from you formally and informally and that has helped in the refining of our operations and other task that we conduct in the field," he added
He thanked the committee members for taking time out of their busy schedule to visit the Army Headquarters and he appreciated sincerely for warm support that the Nigerian Army NA has received so far since the inauguration of the current National Assembly.
He pledged the readiness of the Nigerian Army NA to continue to work harmoniously with the senate committees on the army and the larger legislative body towards ensuring that the NA perform constitutional responsibility as an army effectively and in meeting the need of the generalities of Nigeria.
"Nigerian Army will continue to conduct operations in the field to combat the myriad of security challenges that comfort us across the country and we would bring the military instrument of national power to bear in other areas where NA can provide intervention and relief to Nigerians.
SpyeTV News reports that a draft of the Legislative agenda was handed over to the Chief of Army Staff COAS by the Chairman Senate Committee on Army on behalf of the committee.
A presentation was made on how the Nigerian Army NA is organized, the activities especially the operations conducted in the field and through the presentation, they highlighted some challenges the Nigerian army is confronting, 'the conduct of these operations and other activities.
