Insecurity: Deployment to Nigeria’s extreme border challenging — CNS Abbas

Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Idi Abbas, has said that the other deployment of personnel at the extreme flank of Nigeria’s North-Eastern border was challenging but necessary to secure the nation’s territorial integrity.

The CNS also explained that such deployment was imperative to control the waterways in the Lake Chad Basin.

This was contained in a statement made available to Defence Correspondents in Abuja on Friday by the Director of Navy Information, Commodore Aiwuyor Adams-Aliu.

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According to the statement, the CNS stated this while speaking, at a New Year luncheon he organised for the officers and men of the Naval Base Lake Chad (NBLC) and 196 Amphibious Battalion which were co-located in Baga, Borno State.

The CNS pointed out that the Nigerian Navy remained fully committed to denying the terrorists the use of the Lake Chad waterways through sustained and coordinated operations in synergy sister services and other security agencies.

It added that the Naval chief undertook a boat ride on the Lake Chad which had recently been cleared by the Base to restore navigation, and revive economic activities in the area.

The CNS was accompanied by the Chief of Operations, Rear Admiral M.B. Katagum and the Chief of Logistics, Rear Admiral S.H. Abdullahi.

Earlier, at the Headquarters of the Operation Hadin Kai (OPHK), the Theatre Commander, Maj.-Gen. Abdulsalam Abubakar, briefed the CNS on the recent gains made by the Joint Task Force (JTF), the current challenges and future plans.

Abubakar highlighted the contributions of the Land, Maritime and Air Components, explaining that seamless joint offensives had severely degraded the insurgents’ capabilities.

The CNS commended the TC and all the officers and men of OPHK, assuring them that the challenges would be addressed expeditiously.