By Kingsley Omonobi – Abuja
Defence Minister, Mohammed Badaru on Friday disclosed that the federal government has approved the sum of N134,749,953,243.69 for security debarment allowance for retired military personnel.
According to the minister, the approval of the allowance is a demonstration of government’s commitment to veterans’ welfare.
It would be recalled that during the tenure of the former administration of Muhammadu Buhari, retired military personnel embarked on several protest actions across the country over delays in the implementation of the debarment allowance
Badaru who was speaking at the ministerial briefing to kickstart activities for the 2024 Armed Forces Remembrance Day celebration, however, noted that there will be a phased implementation of the Security Debarment Allowance for the hitherto excluded veterans.
His words, “To demonstrate our commitment to veterans’ welfare, the FG has approved the sum of N134,749,953,243.69 for security debarment allowance.
“By this, all veterans who retired/discharged honourably from the services of the Armed Forces of Nigeria will reap this benefit.
“Our service personnel and veterans deserve the best, and the best they will get.”
While promising to train and equip Armed Forces personnel with combat capabilities and modern wares to reduce casualties during operations, the minister commended the armed forces for remaining focused and undaunted in their determination to defeat and overcome security threats confronting the country
“The successes recorded by our Armed Forces have only served as encouragement to persevere until victory is finally assured and all our displaced citizens return home.
“We, therefore, look forward to adopting a proactive approach to combating our security challenges by harnessing our intelligence resources and having strong partnerships with our West African neighbours
“The Federal Government will also continue to equip the Armed Forces with combat capabilities, training and equipment to reduce to the barest minimum, causalities due to operations.
“We are indeed hopeful that the pledge and focus of Mr. President to bring an end to all security challenges quickly will be realised.”
He acknowledged that the country has been battling serious internal security challenges for over a decade saying this has stretched the resources of the nation and the Armed Forces.
“The Armed Forces of Nigeria has risen to these challenges not counting the costs in terms of ultimate sacrifice being paid by our troops.
“For this reason, I can say the situation is gradually improving considering where we were before now,” he said.
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