Gift Samuel, The Sight News
The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has successfully organized the first Inter-Command Drill Competition in its history as part of efforts to further boost regimentation.
The Drill Competition, which was conducted on the parade ground of the Military Training Centre Kaduna, was brought to a close yesterday, 19 December 2017 and the competition was aimed at enhancing regimentation, military bearing as well as fostering cohesion and teamwork among NAF personnel.
According to a statement by the Director of Public Relations and Information, AVM, Olatokunbo Adesanya, seven teams, representing the Headquarters Nigerian Air Force and each of the 6 commands namely Tactical Air Command, Special Operations Command, Mobility Command, Air Training Command, Ground Training Command and Logistics Command, participated in the Competition.
He stated that, “the appearance, rifle cleanliness and the extent of safety precautions adopted by the various teams formed part of the assessment criteria. In addition, participating teams were assessed in three types of drill exercises, known as legs, each commanded by 3 different members of each team. The first leg was the Quick March while the second leg was the Slow March and the third leg was the Arms Drill. All participating teams exhibited high standards of drill, indicative of the high level of professionalism and discipline in the NAF, and the audience was thrilled by their performance”.
The Guest of Honour during the occasion, the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, expressed his delight to be at the maiden Inter-Command Drill Competition in the NAF.
According to him, the drill competition is one of the ways of actualizing his vision for the NAF, one of the Vision’s key drivers being to improve regimentation, esprit de corps as well as to enhance inter-Service cooperation.
The CAS restated his belief that the actualization of that particular key driver would impact positively on NAF operations with a view to confronting the nation’s security challenges.
He further stated that the importance of drill in a military force cannot be over emphasized, being the bedrock of military discipline upon which all other tenets are built and urged personnel to be security conscious and to remain vigilant at all times, especially as Year 2017 gradually ends.
The CAS therefore directed all personnel to be proactive and to rededicate themselves to their personal security, security of bases as well as to the protection of critical assets and key national infrastructure. In addition, he reiterated that the NAF, and indeed the Armed Forces of Nigeria (AFN), must at all times remain apolitical in the discharge of its constitutional duties.
He therefore urged personnel to promote the existing cordial relationship between members of the AFN and the civil populace and thanked President Muhammadu Buhari for his unflinching support to the NAF through the timely provision of resources, thereby enabling the Service to meet its operational objectives.
The climax of the event was the the presentation of gold, silver and bronze trophies to the first, second and third teams respectively in order of merit. The first prize was won by the Air Training Command while the second position went to the Ground Training Command. The Tactical Air Command came third in the Drill Competition. Prize was also given to Pilot Officer PC Njoku, who was adjudged as the best parade commander during the Competition. Judges for the Competition were drawn from the Nigerian Army, the Nigerian Navy and the NAF.
Meanwhile, the CAS seized the opportunity to commission a new block of lecture rooms at the Air Force Institute of Technology Kaduna, after chairing a meeting of the Governing Council of the Institute. The newly commissioned building is expected to cater for at least 220 students.
