President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday inaugurated the 2017 Armed Forces Remembrance Day Emblem and Appeal Fund with the donation of N10 million to the Nigerian Legion.
The amount is in support of the legion’s humanitarian activities.
Buhari was represented at the event, which held in the Council Chamber of the State House, by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.
The President praised the sacrifice and commitment of the veterans, fallen heroes and their families and promised to do everything possible to address their challenges and uplift their living standards.
Buhari said: “The Federal government will continue to commit itself to addressing the challenges facing our veterans.
“To this end we have recently implemented the recommendation to increase their pensions.
“We are also happy to note that the military pension scheme is running efficiently even as verification exercises for ex-service men and women were successfully conducted recently.
“The Ministry of Defence has been charged to come up with programmes that would enhance the living standards of the veterans.
“We appreciate the efforts of the state governors who are patrons of the Legion in their respective states for promoting the Legion and urge them to continue to lend their support and give concessions to the veterans and families of the departed.”
Buhari acknowledged the gallantry and sacrifices of the veterans in the first and second World Wars, peace keeping operations and internal security operations, particularly the ongoing campaign against terror.
He said it was fitting, worthwhile and noble to honour the veterans as some of them paid the highest price while many others devoted significant parts of their lives through service to the country and the world at large.
He noted that since independence 56 years ago, the country had witnessed a number of internal strife and survived a civil war but had remained united and people had consistently showed a commitment to remaining as one people.
Accordingly, Buhari said that commitment in itself honours the sacrifices of the heroes, heroines and veterans who rose up and continue to rise up to confront the security challenges of the day.
Buhari described as apt, the theme of the year’s celebration, which is: “Appreciating the resilience of the Nigerian Armed Forces.”
According to him, the theme demonstrates the perseverance and dedication of servicing and departed men in uniform.
He said: “Those great attributes are particularly on display in these trying times in our national lives and many of our men and women of the armed forces made variant efforts to bring down the insurgents.
“Let it be said over and over again that as an administration, we will continue to honour our military forces in their arduous on-going fight against terrorists.
“And we will do all we can to remember their sacrifices and appreciate their families, who bear the brunt at different levels of pain and loss.
“As a nation, we are grateful to you our loyal and gallant troops for ensuring that terrorism and hate do not prevail in our land and doing so with such commitment and fervour.
“To their families, we owe an even greater debt of gratitude and a permanent duty not to forget what their husbands and wives did, but also to ensure that we remember them materially.”
The President also noted with satisfaction the courage and sacrifices of the armed forces in grappling with militancy, oil theft and piracy in parts of the country.
Buhari said they had deployed unalloyed loyalty and commitment to Nigeria.
He, therefore, urged Nigerians to consider the situation and conditions under which the heroes died or suffered physical incapacitation and contribute meaningfully to the welfare of the families and dependents.
He said: “Those of us, who are beneficiaries of their sacrifices, carry a compelling moral duty to do our best to contribute towards the welfare and sustenance of their families and dependents.”
Buhari commended the Nigerian Legion for introducing empowerment programmes for its members.
According to him, the empowerment will enable them to continue to contribute to the growth and development of the country.
He hailed the legionnaires for their steadfastness, perseverance and exemplary conduct.
He also appealed to all relevant bodies in the public and private sectors to do all they could to support the organisation’s creative initiatives including its humanitarian programmes.
The President further appealed to Nigerians to purchase and wear the remembrance emblem with pride to identify with the sacrifices of the veterans.
He expressed the hope that such support would be replicated in all other tiers of government.
The Minister of Defence, Brigadier General Dan Ali, said at the event that the nation is proud of the officers and men, who paid the supreme sacrifice for national unity and security.
Ali said the armed forces had played a very significant role in maintaining peace, particularly in the sub-region and especially in the fight against insurgency.
Ali said: “The campaign against terrorism and other security challenges in our country has tasked the resourcefulness of our armed forces.
“In the course of these campaigns, many lives were lost and many degrees of injury were sustained by officers and men.
“Those, who lost their lives, were responsible members of the society, who had dreams, families and loved ones.
“They gave their tomorrow for our yesterday, today and even tomorrow.”
Accordingly, Ali said the country owed them love and support.
He expressed appreciation to the President for encouraging the legion in various ways.
The minister also called on Nigerians to wear the remembrance emblem with pride.
The National Chairman, Nigerian Legion, Colonel Micah Gayya (retd), thanked Nigerians, clergymen and members of the diplomatic corps for their solidarity with the veterans and urged them not to relent in playing their role for Nigeria’s future.
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