Hyacinth Chinweuba
The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Yusuf Buratai, has sought stronger commitment on the part of soldiers in the ongoing fight against insurgency.
He observed that mere lack of needed commitment by officers and men of the Nigerian Army has led to some setback.
Speaking at a “Transformational Leadership Workshop” held at the Army Resource Centre, Buratai said that such insufficient commitment has reversed the gains of the Army in the fight against the insurgents.
He said, “It is unfortunate, but the truth is that almost every setback the NA has had in our operations in recent times can be traced to insufficient willingness to perform assigned tasks: or simply insufficient commitment to a common national/military course by those at the frontlines.
“Many of those on whom the responsibility for physical actions against the adversary squarely falls are yet to fully take ownership of our common national or service cause.”
However, he said the Army had succeeded in the past in producing military leaders who did well at international assignments, but expressed regret that things have changed.
On his part, Buratai said he has tried to ensure promotion of personnel was based on professional considerations.
“But we all know that professional capacity is not a sufficient condition to succeed in a task; willingness to perform the task is equally necessary.” He said.
The country has been hit by insecurity in the North-east where so many people have lost their lives as a result of the activities of Boko Haram as well as armed bandits in the North west.