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The President,
Federal Republic of Nigeria,
Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, at the
26th Combined Convocation and Passing
Out Parade of the Nigerian Defence Academy,
Kaduna |
The President and Commander-in-Chief
of the T-Armed Forces of the
Federal Republic of Nigeria,
President Muhammadu Buhari,
GCFR, has applauded the
renewed resolve of the Nigerian
Military to speedily tackle
insurgency that had ravaged the
North-East region, ahead of the
three-month time-frame. While
noting that insurgency remained
a threat to the peace and stability
of the nation, the president,
however, warned that military
personnel should resist the
temptation of behaving like
bullies in the course of carrying
out their constitutional duties of
safeguarding the territorial
integrity of the country, noting that
the fight against terrorism could
only be won with a credible and
effective military.
Speaking on Saturday, 12 September, 2015, during the 26 Combined
Convocation and Passing-out
Parade of 399 Officer Cadets of the 62 Regular Course, Short
Service Course 43 (Army) and
the Postgraduate Students of
the Nigerian Defence Academy
(NDA) in Kaduna,
President Muhammadu
Buhari, the Reviewing Officer
of the Parade, stressed that his
administration would not
compromise on the rule of law
and that the Armed Forces
must be focused and not
deviate from the laws of
armed conflicts by ensuring
that human rights were not
abused. He reiterated that his
Government was committed
to due process, merit and total
observance of the rule of law
which he referred to as the central
pillars of a prosperous and
democratic society.
The President expressed regret
that insurgency had caused the
nation needless loss of human and
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| President Buhari in a hand shake with some senior officers at the convocation |
material resources. He tasked the
graduating cadets to play their roles
as junior officers in tackling the
prevailing security challenges and
to realize that they needed the
guidance and supervision of their
superiors to discharge their duties
with diligence. He noted that the
Armed Forces had a reputation for
valor, resilience and loyal service
and, therefore, urged the military
top brass to know that on their
shoulders laid the mechanism to
drive the junior officers. He said it
was gratifying that all the three
Services recently took steps to
emphasize strict adherence to rules
in the areas of recruitment, promotions,
procurement, project executions
as well as better civil-military
relations.
Mr. President lauded the NDA
Management for recognizing that
the Institution had a professional
military education-background
and advised that they should devote
their energies to ensure that all its
academic endeavours related
essentially and served the professional
needs of the military,
especially those that sought
solutions to the current insurgency
and terrorism pervading the
society. He said that he was aware
that ongoing efforts to review all
academic courses of study towards
ensuring the professional education
capacity of the military would
soon be completed and affirmed
that the NDA must carve out a
niche for itself as a military
research University because of its
uniqueness, instead of competing
with civil universities.
To this end , P r e s i d e n t
Muhammadu Buhari urged the
NDA to refocus its entire training
system to make it more sensitive
and responsive to its mission of
developing men and women who,
in addition to conventional military
training, were also able to fight the
intellectual battle for self-confidence
and self-assertion. By
so doing, he said, the Academy
would not only be pursuing excellence
in teaching, for which the
military University was known, but
would also be fulfilling Nigeria's
overarching development goals by
using academic means and
research to meet the needs of the
Nigerian Armed Forces and the
society at large. He, particularly,
recognised and commended the
new Commandant for supporting
and carrying on the Centres of
Excellence projects, established
by his predecessor and assured
him that the Federal Government
would continue to work towards
the facilitation of NDA's permanent
site.
The President congratulated the
two eminent Nigerians, Alhaji
Yusuf Maitama Sule and Lt. Gen.
(rtd) Ipoola Alani Akinrinade on
the conferment of Honorary
Degrees of Doctor of Letters and
Management Science (Honoris
Causa)respectivelyon them,
describing the honour as well
deserving for having distinguished
themselves in their vocations. He
also extended the same felicitations
to the graduands for gallantly
enduring the tough physical,
mental and intellectual rigours of
the training in the Academy, which
some of the colleagues that began
with them could not endure.
President Buhari urged the instructors
to remain steadfast in their
uncommon task of producing
world-class officers who would
continue to bring laurels to the
Academy and the country at large.
He also charged them to do more to
inculcate discipline and professionalism
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The colour party of the 62nd Regular Course Cadets and the Short Service Course 43 (Army)
on the parade at the ceremony |
as critical parts of the
cadets' military training's and to
ensure that they remained loyal and
ready to defend the territorial
integrity of the nation, at all times.
He also tasked the NDAto be at the
forefront of promoting his Government's
fight against corruption and
abuse of office, remarking that
recent events that led to the investigation
of the weapon's purchase
within the military, were a product
of the decay in every facet of the
nation's life.
The President further said that the
Federal Government, under his
leadership, would not renege on the
promises made to Nigerians during
his electioneering campaigns. He
stated that he had the conviction
that Nigeria would be better with
the collective resolve of the citizens,
particularly the labour force,
to unite and align with him, to fight
the evils of corruption and impunity
of the recent past. He reiterated
that the Federal Government
would assist the NDA, as a premier
military University, to achieve its
lofty objectives of producing
officers with broad-based training
in both military and academic
subjects.
In his welcome Address, the NDA
Commandant, Major-General
Mohammed Tasiu Ibrahim,
thanked President Muhammadu
personnel that had done well to
bring honour and laurels to the
nation, both in peacekeeping and
other national and international
assignments.
Major-General Ibrahim disclosed
that a total of 185 Cadets were
graduating in the Regular Course,
comprising 71 Officers of the
Nigerian Army, 53 in the Nigerian
Navy and 61 in the Nigerian Air
Force, with two from Togo. He
added that in the SSC 43 (Army)
Cadets, 214 passed out; postgraduate
diploma graduated 260, while
masters produced a combined
with postgraduate diploma also
producing 260 graduands. The
postgraduate Professional Masters
had 710 while 21bagged Ph.D
degrees.
The Academy was upgraded to a
Buhari for honouring the Academy
with his presence. He also thanked
other distinguished personalities
from all walks of life, including the
honorary award recipients. He told
the gathering that the NDA was in
moments of celebration as the
Institution just had its Golden
Jubilee last year, saying that the
NDA had recorded so many
milestones in the past years that
would be difficult to recount.
The Commandant recalled that the
NDA was conceived, as part of a
grand design to secure the territory
of Nigeria, by way of giving a
robust training to military officers,
both in academic and military
warfare. He, particularly, noted
that over the past 30 years, the
Academy had been producing
highly mobile and effectively
deployable Cadets and SSC personnel that had done well to
bring honour and laurels to the
nation, both in peacekeeping and
other national and international
assignments.
Major-General Ibrahim disclosed
that a total of 185 Cadets were
graduating in the Regular Course,
comprising 71 Officers of the
Nigerian Army, 53 in the Nigerian
Navy and 61 in the Nigerian Air
Force, with two from Togo. He
added that in the SSC 43 (Army)
Cadets, 214 passed out; postgraduate
diploma graduated 260, while
masters produced a combined
with postgraduate diploma also
producing 260 graduands. The
postgraduate Professional Masters
had 710 while 21bagged Ph.D
degrees.
The Academy was upgraded to a
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The Postgraduate graduands taking the oath
at the ceremony. |
degree awarding institution in
1985 and prior to that year, Regular
that Nigeria was better than what it
was now. He decried the current
lack of unity in the country and the
brazen corrupt practices of today's
crop of Nigerian leaders, saying
that the founding fathers like
Nnamdi Azikiwe, Obafemi
Awolowo and Ahmadu Bello, were
men interested in what they would
do for the nation and not what the
nation would do for them.
He described the Nigerian scene as
reminiscent of Chinua Achebe's
novel, Things Fall Apart, bemoaning
that things had really fallen
apart in a country where he grew up
to see the citizens united and living
together as one. He blamed the
situation today on failed leadership
and prayed that Nigeria would see,
in President Muhammadu Buhari,
one who could rescue the nation
from its poor state, with his track
record of discipline, integrity and
zero tolerance for corruption.
Alhaji Miatama Sule charged the
President to live up to his past
records and ensure that he pursued
his vision with fairness, justice and
equity, noting that with people like
him,it was possible for Nigeria to
be great again, politically and
economically.
At the graduation ceremony, Cadet
Officer Kehinde T Alao, of the
Nigerian Air Force, with NDANo.
8625, emerged the overall best,
both in the Regular Cadet Course
and as the graduating students in
Academic performance.
Present at the event were the
Governor of Kaduna State, Mal.
Nasir El-Rufai; the Deputy
Governor, Arc. Barnabas Bala;
Permanent Secretary of Defence,
Alhaji Aliyu Isma'ila; top Military
Chiefs; Acting Permanent Secretary
of Education, Hajia Hindatu
Abdullahi; some Vice-Chancellors
and Registrars of Nigerian universities;
traditional rulers; parents;
friends and well-wishers of the
graduands.
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| President Buhari Honoring the best graduating cadet, Kehinde T. Alao |
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L-R: The Deputy Commandant, NDA, Air Vice Marshal ABC Nweze;
Kaduna State Governor, Mal. Nasir Ahmed El- Rufa'i;
President, Federal Republic of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari; Commandant NDA,
Maj-General Mohammed Tasiu Ibrahim; Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Defence, Alhaji Aliyu Isma'ila
And one of the honorary award recipients, Gen(rtd) Ipoola Alani Akinrinade at the ceremony
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| The Ph.D graduands at the ceremony |
