Kidnapping: Army urges officers to maintain high state of alert

The Nigerian Army has urged its officers and men to maintain a high state of alertness in order to help to curb the menace of kidnapping, oil theft, cult activities, armed robbery and others.
Brigadier General Sani Mohammed, the Commander of 13 Brigade, Nigerian Army, Calabar, Cross River State, gave the charge on Monday during the opening of the five-day 82 Division Inter Brigade Corporal and Below Competition.
Sani, who decried the alarming rate of kidnapping at a time the military was totally eliminating the Boko Haram sect, also urged its men to be focused and alert at all times.
He said the objective of the competition was to sharpen soldiers’ skills, improve the spirit of espirit-de-corps, physical fitness, proficiency and professionalism in their assigned duties.
He said: “This exercise should keep you on alert, expand your combat readiness and physical fitness in curbing these ugly crimes.
“I want you to see this exercise as an opportunity to affirm the drive for realistic training and quest to transform our military to a professional army better able to meet the contemporary security challenges.”
The commander said the best formation would be chosen to represent 82 Division in the fourthcoming Nigerian Army Sports Festival scheduled to hold in the last quarter of the year in a centre yet to be fixed.
Sani, however, warned the soldiers not to take the law into their hands, hence, the need to improve on the existing civil-military relationship.
Also speaking at the occasion, Air Commodore Philip Olusegun, the Commander of 207 Special Mobility Group of the Nigerian Airforce, Calabar, urged the umpires to be as fair as possible in their judgment.
Olusegun, who was the Special Guest of Honour at the event, also urged the umpires to give all competitors equal opportunities in the competition.
He congratulated the soldiers on their selection for the competition and urged them to obey all the laid down rules.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the soldiers would be competing on weapon assembly, map reading, life firing, swimming, drill and obstacle reading and combat readiness, among others.
NAN also reports that the participating formations under the 82 Division are: 13 Brigade, Calabar; 34 Artillery Brigade, Imo; 14 Brigade, Abia; 82 Division, Enugu; and 2 Brigade, Port Harcourt.
NAN.