According to Lt. Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, Chief of Army Staff, the protection of civilians and their fundamental rights demand special attention because it consumes a lot of the time of field commanders.
In order to make sure the issues are adequately understood and put into reality, he pointed out that the service involves interacting with human rights advocacy groups in all theaters of operations.
In Abuja on Wednesday, Lagbaja gave a speech at a military-sponsored event with the theme “National Security and the Complexities of Human Rights.”
Maj. Gen. Jimmy Akpor, who was acting as Lagbaja’s representative, pointed out that the Army is prepared to carry out operations in accordance with legal and sanctioned rules of engagement.
The Nigerian Army Human Rights Seminar, according to Lagbaja, “was conceptualized to engage organizations, security agencies, media, and other stakeholders involved in human rights advocacy and the protection of civilians in crisis regions on the concerns relating to human rights during conflicts. Given that it consumes a lot of the time of field commanders, the protection of people and their fundamental rights calls for special consideration.
“While conducting operations to address racial and occupational-based problems in the country’s North Central region, our troops are also stationed there to stymie the separatist IPOB’s actions in the Southeast. Along with a variety of well-armed criminals, the South-South and South West are also experiencing issues related to militancy, cultism, and oil theft.
These deployments entail both kinetic and non-kinetic methods, necessitating cooperation between security services and all well-intentioned people and organizations. Because the operations are carried out in civilian-populated areas, I would want to stress that, within the parameters of the current security environment, safeguarding a nation entails mobilizing the efforts of citizens in a “whole of the nation approach.”
Utilizing other actors’ potentials within the complex operating environment is necessary for this component of warfare and conflict management. Therefore, the goal of the formulation of my command philosophy is to make the Nigerian Army into a highly motivated, well-equipped, and trained force that fulfills our constitutional obligations in a collaborative setting.
