The Nigerian Army has received 60 new VP-1 Type Tracked Armoured Personnel Carriers from China to aid in the fight against the Boko Haram insurgency and banditry in the North-East and North-West.
According to Channels Television, the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Faruk Yahaya, said during the commissioning of the new armoured tanks at the Nigerian Army School of Infantry in Jaji, Kaduna State, that the deployment of new platforms to the battlefield underscores the Federal Government’s commitment to restoring normalcy across the country.
The Army Chief, who was represented by Major General Victor Ezugwu, Commandant of the Infantry Corps, assured that the military is taking decisive actions to ensure that bandits and terrorists are neutralized and eradicated across the country.
“It is an effort which is in line with the Federal Government’s cardinal objectives of tackling the totality of the security challenges facing our dear country Nigeria,” the Army Chief said.
“These platforms we commission here today is in addition to other equipment brought in for the purpose and this underscores the strategic resolve to ensure that a state of normalcy is achieved across the length and breadth of Nigeria.”
The COAS expressed gratitude to President Muhammadu Buhari for his support for the armed forces, saying the vehicles will help in the fight against insurgency and banditry in the North-East and North-West.
He did, however, issue a warning to bandits and other non-state actors, telling them that if they did not relinquish their weaponry, they would be consigned to hell.
Lieutenant General Yahaya also reaffirmed the Nigeria Army’s commitment to safeguarding the country’s territorial integrity, saying that this would be done in partnership with relevant stakeholders, partners, and other authorities.
