The Federal Government is committed to the robust welfare of her Armed Forces to ensure their effectiveness and efficiency in delivering on their expected mandate of peace and security of the Nation and during peace support services operation in Africa.
The Minister of State for Defence, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, while commissioning a Specialized Defence Reference Laboratory, which was a collaborative partnership effort of Nigeria’s Ministry of Defence and the United States Department of Defence, in Abuja, said that this was indeed a true evidence of commitment of President Goodluck Jonathan to the total welfare of the Nigerian Armed Forces.
Obanikoro said that as part of President Jonathan’s health transformation agenda and the necessity to provide the right ambience that meets international standards, made the completion of the project speedy to underscore the commitment of the Federal Government of Nigeria to invest in specialized diagnostic services and research as a bedrock for advancement of medical care and control of infectious and emerging diseases naturally.
Earlier the Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh, said that the Defence Reference Laboratory could not have come at a better time than now when Nigeria was focused on combating the spread of HIV, Ebola and other infectious viral diseases.
Badeh said that the Defence Reference Laboratory ,which is being managed by Nigeria’s Ministry of Defence and the United States Department of Defence HIV Programme, is the apex medical laboratory of Nigerian Armed Forces with state-of-the art diagnostic and research facilities.
He further affirmed that this is a proof of the Federal Government‘s commitment to the welfare of troops in line with the President’s agenda to reposition the Armed Forces through a well-motivated, trained and equipped military.
Also, the Chairman Ministry of Defence Emergency Planning Implementation Committee, Major General T. O. Umar, said that the laboratory serves as the apex laboratory of Nigeria’s Ministry of Defence and the United States Department of Defence collaboration to combat HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and other infectious diseases in the Nigerian military.
Umar said this has been largely achieved in the 23 main medical military facilities sites spread nationwide in the Defence Headquarters, the Nigerian Army, the Nigerian Navy and the Nigerian Air Force.