The Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Kenneth Minimah, on Tuesday said the Army would continue to encourage its officers and men to write books to promote reading culture among them.
Minimah said this in Abuja at the launch of two books written by Captain Gbola Tijan of the Directorate of Army Legal Services.
The books are entitled: “I will Marry You When My Father Dies,” and “Ejima (The Twins).”
Represented by Major General Sunday Adebayo, the Commander Corp of Education, Minimah said that the army was encouraging its officers and men to write books both in literature, sciences and other areas of human endeavour.
He said: “We are highly impressed by what the officer has done – writing two books at the same time.
“This is part of the encouragement that the Chief of Army Staff is giving to officers and soldiers so that reading culture should be brought back into the service.
“And this was one of the things we did during the book fair in Lagos.
“I encourage officers and even the soldiers to write books and we will continue to encourage them when they have such ideas to put them on paper.”
One of the book reviewers, Major General Bolaji Koleoso, the Director of Administration at the Defence Headquarters, who reviewed the book titled: I will Marry You When My Father Dies.” commended the author for a job well done.
Kolesho called on people doubting the traditions, etiquette, values and life time of military men to carefully read Act 4 in the 259-page book with six Acts in 35 scenes.
He said that in presenting the army to the readers, the author went for the best, correcting wrong perceptions and laying facts bare on how military traditions actually ran.
Kolesho said that the book also preached the lessons of patience and love for the country.
He said: “I wish, therefore, to recommend the book for the reading pleasure of the public.
“The book has been well written in simple English.
“It will serve the needs of literature students, especially those in the senior secondary schools, because it is very rich in moral lessons.
“It promotes culture, tradition and value systems, which today’s youths require.”
Earlier, Tijan said that one of the books: “I will Marry You When My Father Dies,” was a legal book in a dramatic form to prove a point that people could fight for their rights.
He said: “Any nation that is starved of books will suffer intellectual malnutrition.
“So I am contributing my quota to ensure that my nation does not suffer from intellectual malnutrition.”
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