Chief of Army Staff Ibrahim Attahiru has pledged to fix fighting equipment few days after soldiers’ protest in Borno State.
Attahiru said this on Monday during his address at the Chief of Army Staff First Quarter Conference and Nigerian Army Operations Retreat held at the Army Headquarters Command Officers’ Mess, Abuja.
The COAS said he was determined to rebuild fighting skills and capacity of the Nigerian Army across theatres of operation in the country.
“I will ensure that through functional training, officers and soldiers of the Nigerian Army are equipped with the right competences and skills to effectively undertake missions in addition to developing special operations forces.
“This would be closely followed by procurement that ensures appropriate kitting and provision of protective gear, weapons, equipment and platforms,” Attahiru noted.
On Saturday, some soldiers of the Operation Lafiya Dole protested lack of adequate equipment and poor welfare in Borno State.
The soldiers, who shot sporadically into the air, said some of their officers who went to the battleground were killed due to lack of proper arms and ammunition and superior firepower of their targets.
Recently, national security adviser Babangana Monguno said $1 billion meant for the purchase of arms and ammunition was missing under the immediate past service chiefs.
Monguno, who later recanted his words, had said the funds and the weapons were not there.
The ICIR had also reported that Nigerian soldiers fighting insurgency in the northern part of the country had, on several occasions, lamented poor equipment and welfarism.
Some of the soldiers that have come out to speak openly about lack of weapon have either been arrested, demoted or disciplined by the Army authorities.
A major general and former commander of the operation Lafiya Dole Olusegun Adeniyi was demoted after spraking about inadequate weapon for his team at the battle front.
Lukman Abolade is an Investigative reporter with The ICIR. Reach out to him via labolade@icirnigeria.org, on twitter @AboladeLAA and FB @Correction94