ALL over the world, the military plays the vital role of protecting and preserving the territorial integrity of the nation against.
Performing this arduous task certainly deserves undiluted patriotic zeal, courage, discipline, loyalty and total commitment to the security of the nation against external aggression.
This total commitment to defenceof the nation’s territorial integrity more often than not leads to our gallant military men and women paying the supreme price as they lay down their lives in service to the nation. Others get maimed or demobilized on health grounds as a result of demands of duty.
Wisdom demands that any citizen who pays the supreme price of laying down his life in defence of his nation deserves celebration just as those still in active day deserves same honour.
In Nigeria, January 15, is a day set aside by the federal government for the annual celebration and remembrance of our gallant officers and men who laid down their lives not only for the defence and preservation of our territorial integrity against external aggression but by extension the political stability and unity of Nigeria.
Prior to this year’s edition, held recently, the annual event tagged Armed Forces Remembrance Day was renamed Armed Forces Celebration and Remembrance Day by the Bola Tinubu administration, thus making the event a comprehensive
celebration of the living heroes and commemoration of the supreme sacrifices of the departed heroes of the Nigerian Armed Forces.
We commend the Federal Government for this expansion of the frontiers of this national event for the Armed Forces as it will go a long way in not only honouring the fallen heroes but serve as a morale booster for the active and serving gallant men and women of our Armed Forces Thereby re-invigorating their commitment to duty and renewed patriotism.
It will also boost the confidence, sense of pride, honour, professional dignity and loyalty to the nation not only among the military community but all admirers of the military profession. This year’s celebration may have come and gone, we believe that beyond mere re-christening of nomenclature, there should be a concrete, visible and positive manifestation of the Federal Government’s firm and irrevocable commitment towards addressing the challenges facing our serving officers and men of the Military as well as the families left behind by the fallen heroes.
Some of these challenges are inadequate equipment/facilities for the job, poor accommodation facilities particularly in the barracks, delayed release of allowances, payment of terminal benefits to the next of kin of officers and men who died on active service to the nation.
More importantly, sabotage by fifth columnists in the military who disclose operational plans and strategies in tackling insecurity should be frontally addressed as this will go a long way in boosting the morale of the soldiers as well as making sense of a celebration and remembrance worth the time, energy and resource attached to it.
Indeed, we cannot be celebrating and remembering the contributions of our gallant serving men of the Armed Forces and their departed counterparts, respectively, whereas our troops more often than not are ambushed and slaughtered by bandits and terrorists not necessarily because the latter have better training or operational strategies but probably due to sabotage.
We are worried about the incessant killings of our gallant soldiers, including a General, Brig. General Uba that was murdered by ISWAP terrorists in November 2025. As the terrorists and bandits appear unrelenting in their murderous onslaught against the nation, we believe that more discrete management of operational tactics and plans free from fifth columnists will go a long way in checking the reign of terror by the terrorists and boosting the morale of our troops.
Furthermore, we advocate for adequate funding and more emphasis on intelligence gathering and networking through the use of modern technological devices rather than resort to kinetic approach that place our soldiers in position worthy of celebration and remembrance.
Certainly, celebration and remembrance will be meaningless if members of the families of maimed, demobilized and fallen heroes are subjected to being entangled in the vortex of forceful ejection from barracks, delayed payment of entitlements, lack of basic needs of life such as food, shelter and accommodation as a result of incapacitation or demise of their benefactors.
Indeed, the welfare of those left behind should be prioritized particularly in areas of accommodation and scholarship award to the children of the fallen heroes to make the annual ritual a worthwhile engagement.
