PMB Commissions 700 Made In Nigeria  Troops Carrier  Vehicles 

The President and Commander- in- Chief of the Armed Forces of Nigeria ( AFN), Muhammadu Buhari on Friday, 3 March, 2023 commissioned  700 Ashok LeyLand Troops Carrying Vehicles to complement military operations across the country.

The President while commissioning the vehicles  said that  the procurement of the  vehicles is a testimony  of the commitment as well as  importance the Federal Government attaches  to the welfare of the AFN and other security agencies.

President Buhari who addressed the audience at the occasion held at the  Nigerian Navy Holdings Limited in Abuja,  via virtual medium added that, his government has over the years, intensified the training and equipment acquisition for the Armed Forces.

He  therefore charged the AFN to consolidate on the gains of peace and stability already recorded in the country and gave an assurance of his administration’s  continuous  respect and improvement on the welfare of  members of the Armed Forces.

The Honourable Minister of Defence, Major General Bashir Magashi (retired) while speaking at the occasion stated that the procurement of the vehicles is a significant milestone of many initiatives of  President Muhammadu Buhari, particularly his quest  towards  tackling security challenges in the country. He added that the country is faced with mirage of daunting challenges.

In his words,  “The challenges are however, being confronted head-on by the President’s  resilience”. He noted that the process of transforming the AFN is not easy,  given the multi- dimension of the challenges. The Minister also seized the opportunity to pay tributes to  members of the AFN who  payed the  supreme prize   in the course of  defending the territorial integrity of  the nation.

Also speaking at the occasion, the permanent Secretary, Ministry of Defence, Dr Ibrahim Abubakar   pointed out that  the vehicles were produced in Nigeria by Nigerians. He emphasized that  with the advent of various faces of insurgency being experienced in the  country, it is imperative for the country  to look inwards and provide local preventive mechanism to fortify her critical assets, formations, borders and various camps across the nation.

Dr Abubakar  explained  that the engagement of Stallion Motors Nigeria limited by the Ministry of Defence, was based on the Honourable Minister of Defence  convictions on  upholding  the President’s desires to promote the utilisation of indigenous technology as enshrined in the Executive Order 5  signed by Mr President.

It could be recalled  that the procurement of these vehicles was initiated since 2014 by the office of the  National Security Adviser to facilitate the operational activities of the Armed Forces.

The Secretary to the Federal Government, Chief of Staff to the President, Ministers of Finance, Police Affairs and Interiors were among the  dignitaries that  graced the occasion.

By Kachi Victor