Nigerian Army, Maj. Gen.
John Irefin, presenting an award to the Lagos State Deputy Governor Dr Obafemi
Hamzat at the 81 Division Nigeria Army flag off of Exercise Crocodile Smile IV
at Takwa Bay Lagos.
The Nigerian Army has been
assured of continued support from the administration of Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu
of Lagos State as it engaged in intensive security duties in the state.
Sanwo-Olu made this known
on Tuesday during the flag-off of Exercise Crocodile Smile IV by 81 Division of
the Nigerian Army held at Takwa Bay, Lagos.
Represented by his deputy,
Dr Obafemi Hamzat, Sanwo-Olu commended the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur
Buratai, for his thoughtfulness and strategic foresight in conducting Exercise
Crocodile Smile IV ahead of the Yuletide.
He said that the idea was
geared towards ensuring peace and security within the South-West and
South-South region during the festive period.
“From antecedents, the
security issues prevalent within the Yuletide are not lost on any of us as
criminal elements move to amass wealth through underhanded means during the
period,” he said.
He said that Exercise
Crocodile Smile IV was a welcome development that promised to ensure that
criminal elements had no safe haven within the period.
“I commend the army for
their resilience and determination towards providing security in Lagos and
other states across the country including the Federal Capital Territory,”
Sanwo-Olu said.
While seeking support for
security operatives, the governor alluded to the need for citizens to be
security conscious.
“They should notice what is
going on in their environment and adopt the popular saying of ‘see something
and say something’.
“If you see something wrong
make sure you act.
“The police and other
security personnel are not magicians, they do not look at oracle, they listen
to information.
“It is for all of us to
conduct ourselves and just be our neighbour’s keeper,” he said.
Commenting on the clean-up
of the beaches as part of efforts to boost tourism, the governor urged citizens
to own the beaches and treat them as their homestead by properly disposing
their plastics and wastes.
Earlier in his remarks,
Buratai, represented by Major-General John Irefin, GOC 81 Division, Nigerian
Army, said that Exercise Crocodile Smile IV was part of the Army’s continuous
commitment to combating security challenges in the country.
He added that the exercise
would reduce to the barest minimum the prevailing security threat in the
riverine environment such as illegal oil bunkering, militancy, kidnapping,
pipeline vandalism, cultism and other common sundry crimes.
Buratai said that the
exercise, aimed at sharpening the professional skills of security personnel,
would be intelligence-driven and portray real-time operation.
“This will be in line with
the military’s constitutional role of conducting internal security operation to
aid civil authority,” the COAS said.
He said that it would also
provide a good opportunity for collaboration with other services and relevant
security agencies in order to strengthen greater inter-agency cooperation in
combating crime and criminality in the country.
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