.

By: Kingsley Omonobi – Abuja.

Chief of Defence Staff, Gen Lucky Irabor on Tuesday disclosed that the office of the Gender Adviser at the Defence headquarters has been upgraded to a directorate as part of the effort towards ensuring the Centrality of women.

Speaking when the Minister of Women Affairs Dame PaulineTallen paid a courtesy visit to his office, the CDS said, “I believe Women should not only be given pride of place, they should be given more opportunity to showcase themselves. They should be more visible and at the forefront.

“Towards ensuring that we attain one of the focus of our policies towards women, we have given approval to the Women Security Conference coming up soon. We are also working to institutionalize the Centrality of women in peace and security.

“This development, I believe is what led the United Nations to come up with Resolution 1325. There is no doubt that women remain mothers of the nation and Humanity. No living being was not brought through the instrumentality of the woman. So the Centrality of a woman in our lives is very profound.

Meanwhile, the President, Organisation of Military Sport in Africa (OSMA), Brig.-Gen. Maikano Abdullahi has conferred on the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Gen. Lucky Irabor, the grand patron of the organisation.

Abdullahi, who is also the Vice President of, International Military Sports Council (CISM), performed the investiture when he led a delegation on a courtesy call on the CDS, on Tuesday in Abuja.

He also announced the appointment of the CDS as the Chief of Host of the Sahel Solidarity Games for Peace coming up in October in Abuja.

The OSMA president said the conferment was in recognition of the continuous support of the Nigerian armed forces to the organization noting that the Sahel games were designed as a peace game to bring the armed forces of the Sahel countries together to compete.

Disclosing that the games are an initiative of the CDS, he said, “We want the world to see the armed forces of the Sahel region and Africa playing together, seeking peace, solidarity and stability in our region.

“The countries involved are Mali, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Niger, Libya, Chad, Cameroon and the Benin Republic and the championship will take off on Oct. 9 to Oct. 19.

“It is a championship that involves football, golf and full marathon race to take place here in Abuja,” he said.

Responding, the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen Irabor, commended the initiative of the OSMA President to hold the tournament in Nigeria saying sports play a critical role in the unification, peace and stability globally.

He said that the sporting festival would contribute significantly in assisting the Armed Forces in the realization of the political mandate of maintaining peace and harmony in order to allow social economic activities to strive in Africa. 

Also, the OSMA President at the Army headquarters during a courtesy visit to the Chief of Army Staff solicited the support of the Nigerian Army for the Sahel Solidarity Games for Peace coming up in October in Abuja.

Brig-Gen Abdullahi said 15 countries were represented on his entourage to conduct a facility tour in preparation for the game.

He added that the visit was to also seek the support of the Nigerian army to help him achieve his desire to bring militaries in Africa together through sports adding that the Sahel games are designed to see how to foster togetherness among the armed forces of the region which is bedevilled by security challenges.

“Our presence today is to see the facilities available for this game in preparation for a successful hosting of the game in the country. We have seen the Chief of Defence Staff and we have shown our appreciation and he has pledged to give us all the needed support to host the game.

“We are here also to receive your support, cooperation and understanding in hosting this game because we know that the bulk of the participants of the game will come from the Nigerian army,” he said.

Responding, the Chief of Army Staff, represented by the Chief of Policy and Plans (Army), Maj.-Gen. Anthony Omozoje commended the OSMA president for his commitment to promoting cooperation and unity among the armed forces in Africa through sports.

Vanguard News Nigeria