The Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Sadique Baba Abubakar, has expressed appreciations to troops serving in the North East for their sacrifice and commitment to the nation. Air Marshal Abubakar expressed the appreciation while speaking in Maiduguri and Yola during the Easter celebrations with troops in the frontline.
Addressing officers and men of the Nigerian Air Force participating in the counter insurgency operation against the Boko Haram Terrorists (BHTs), the CAS said “those who deserve standing ovation, and our sincere appreciation as a nation, are those living in trenches at this time of Easter, those who have sacrificed their comfort that we may have peace and stability in the North East.”
Air Marshal Abubakar stated that “the entire nation is grateful to the men and women of our Armed Forces for their selfless sacrifices and commitment to the course of the nation.”
While urging the NAF personnel not to rest on their oars in their spirited service to the nation, the CAS expressed the belief that the ongoing operations against the BHTs is at its tail end hence he charged them not to be complacent but to continue to put in their best in the execution of assigned tasks.
Speaking on efforts to address welfare of the personnel, Air Marshal Abubakar stated that the NAF is cognisant of the fact that its human resource is its most valuable asset hence its willingness to do everything within its reach to make the personnel comfortable in order to operate optimally.
As a result, he assured the personnel in Maiduguri that their welfare needs would be addressed even as he noted the current shortage of living quarters in the Units. In Yola, the CAS used the opportunity of his visit to commission a new block of officers’ accommodation and eye clinic on NAF Base, Yola.
Meanwhile, Air Marshal Abubakar has further availed himself the opportunity of his visit to the North East to pay homage to the political and traditional leadership in Borno and Adamawa States. The CAS visited the Shehu of Borno, His Royal Highness, Alhaji Abubakar Ibn Umar Garbai El-Kanemi, in his palace to express gratitude to the Shehu and people of Borno State for their continued support to the Nigerian Air Force.
Air Marshal Abubakar used the occasion to provide insight into the plan by the NAF to expand its current manpower disposition and facilities in Borno State. Similarly, in Yola, the Chief paid homage to the His Excellency the Governor of Adawama State, Senator Bindo Umaru Jubrilla; and the Lamido of Adamawa, His Royal Highness, Alhaji Muhammadu Barkindo Aliyu Musdafa, where he expressed similar appreciation for their support to the NAF in the state.
It would be recalled that the CAS had embarked on similar trips to the North East in December 2015 when he spent the Christmas and New Year with NAF troops in the frontline. The objective, the CAS noted, is to cater for the emotional and psychological needs of the personnel, and to boost their morale.
