Paul Obi in Abuja
The German government and the Nigerian Defence Headquarters (DHQ) have trained military personnel on armoured fighting skills against acts of terrorism in the North-east and other parts of the country.
The training yesterday graduated the first set of military personnel trained by the DHQ in conjunction with the German government to service and maintain military war vehicles including armoured vehicles being currently used against Boko Haram terrorists in the North-east.
The technicians, who cut across the Nigerian Army, Nigerian Air Force and the Nigerian Navy have been equipped to maintain current and future automobiles of the Armed Forces of Nigeria and its personnel, particularly, as it concerns terrorism and insurgency.
Speaking at the graduation ceremony of the 14 military personnel from the Armed Forces Electrical and Mechanical Engineering school, (AFEME) in Abuja, the Chief of Defence Staff, General Gabriel Olonisakin stated that “the Armed Forces of Nigeria and other security agencies were working assiduously in ensuring terrorism and other criminalities were checkmated.
“It was pertinent for the Armed Forces to have technicians with requisite skills to maintain weapons, armed fighting vehicles as well as soft-skinned vehicles in support of the ongoing operations.
“The successful training of 14 out of the 15 students who started the programme at AFEME Mechantronic School, located at the Mogadishu Cantonment, Abuja, was in fulfilment of the bilateral agreement between Nigeria and the German Ministries of Defence, leading to its establishment in 2015,” the CDS added.
Olonisakin, represented at the occasion by the Chief of Defence Logistics, Major General Austin Okoh, stressed that “the feat was an encouragement to the two countries to explore other avenues for collaborative partnership in the interest of development.”
He also said the need for enhancing the technical ability of military personnel cannot be over emphasised at this time when, according to him, “modern military have become more compact and highly mobile as well as tackling contemporary challenges the nation is experiencing.”
He said the training of the personnel on the repair and maintenance of the Armed Forces armoured vehicles and other automobiles would not have come at a better time to ensure that “our technicians provide effective equipment support to the Armed Forces.”
Olonisakin observed that given that the personnel have been awarded military certificate with civil accreditation from the National Board for Technical Education, “they must consider themselves privileged given that the certificates issued to them would be acceptable for employment after their services in the Nigerian Military.”
Speaking, the German Ambassador to Nigeria, Dr. Bernhard Schlagheck, harped on the imperative of a more robust bilateral relationship between Germany and Nigeria.
Schlagheck added the German government would continue to support Nigeria in critical areas of peace and security, mostly, within the West African sub-region.
Meanwhile, the school was commissioned in May 27, 2015 in furtherance of the bilateral agreement signed between the Nigerian and German Ministries of Defence.
The curriculum of the school is geared towards producing technicians from the Armed Forces of Nigeria that would be capable of tackling complex challenges as well as maintenance of current and future automobiles of the Armed Forces and its personnel.
The AFEME school involved the training of technicians from the Army, the Air Force and the Navy who go through intensive two-year training in line with the National Board for Technical Education curriculum and the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce Regulations.
The new set of personnel from the Armed Forces are expected to be enrolled in the programme in the coming months
