Rose Ejembi, Makurdi

Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Baba Abubakar has harped on the need for the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) to evolve ways to strengthen the capacity of its officers to be effective in the discharge of their constitutional mandate.

Abubakar who stated this during the graduation ceremony of the Air Force Course 3 of the NAF War College in Makurdi on Friday explained that as a result of the ever changing global security environment, there was need to interrogate processes and procedures to determine gaps with a view to improving efficiency and effectiveness. 

“We must have an in-depth understanding of those issues that define contemporary conflicts which include; conflict over resources, ethnicity, national and regional dominance. 

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“We must also remember that in conventional warfare, national governments and leaderships declare war but unconventional warfare is usually declared by people living within our population, the overwhelming majority of whom are not in support of those initiating such wars.

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We therefore have a constitutional and moral responsibility to ensure that no physical harm comes their way. 

“This calls for precision in targeting and coordinating with surface forces while understanding the limitations of air power in counterinsurgency and counter terrorism operations.  

I am convinced that this great institution has taken time and resources to adequately equip you with the knowledge required to navigate this delicate landscape.

The Air Chief challenged the graduands to bring the skills and lessons they acquired during the course to bear in their future deployments with utmost patriotism assuring that the Service on its own part will continue to support the activities of the College within available resources to provide realistic and result oriented training.

Earlier in his welcome address, Commandant of the NAF War College, AVM John Baba said the College was graduating the third set of participants comprising 16 wing commanders of NAF as well as one lieutenant colonel from the Nigerian Army and two commanders from the Nigerian Navy.

While noting that although, the course is geared towards equipping participants with general knowledge on warfare with emphasis on air power, Baba posited that the College still exposed participants to an appreciable level of training and research in security and defense studies.