By Deyemi Saka

For someone who is passionate about the protection of the sanctity of our sovereignty and the morale of the rank and file of our Armed Forces, I must say I am impressed by the efforts of the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in equipping the military and getting arms deal sealed.

I also like the fact that there is a working synergy as procurement is done by the Ministry of Defense(MoD) as the Minister of State of Defence, HE Bello Matawalle was in Turkey for the purpose of procurement of attack helicopters. It is a total departure from old practice where the scope paper is filled with armament just for the sake of enriching few persons and not filled with what we really need to prosecute wars on many fronts and win.

Any Military Contractor or in the business of Arms Procurement who is good at what he/she does will tell you that you should shop from two countries for your military hardwares; Turkey and Brazil. These two countries offer you the same value but at a lesser cost, and the Russia-Ukraine War has brought about a spike in military hardware from traditional manufacturers like US, Russia, China, France and the United Kingdom.

With this Turkish trip, I am expecting us to take delivery of the Turkish The T929(newly manufactured) which is just one of the several high-end products that Turkey’s defense industry has lately started to produce.
As someone who has always called for a need to reduce the combative and non-combative collateral damages(loss of soldiers and civilians), and who also believe in the competence and knowledge of the delegation to Turkey, I am optimistic we shall also be taking delivery of the Turkish version of stealth drone which is called “Kizilelma stealth drone”.

Kizilelma is envisioned to perform air-to-ground and air-to-air missions in heavily-defended airspace.

It is also noteworthy that the Tinubu-led administration has acquired new Security surveillance ship for the Nigerian Navy while Dicon(The Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria), a critical partner in our quest for sustenance of peace, stability and public safety is fast coming back to optimal functionality after years of neglect by successive administrations before now.

It was widely reported thar three teams of Defence industry experts will be arriving the country soon for the sole aim of knowledge and technology transfer in the manufacturing of Military helicopters and other light weapons.

While it is expedient to procure arms from countries who have demonstrated the willingness to be our partner in our commitment and determination to rid our country of the plague of insurgency, the Honourable Minister of State of Defence pushed for a long term plan for the country as he was in the Senate to pursue the passage of the bill, for funding of Dicon.

I must confess that since 2010 which insurgency grew into a hydra-headed monster, and a battle bigger than us as a nation, and also an independent analyst which interest in National Security, Public Safety and Counter Terrorism, this is one administration who has demonstrated the resolve and requisite knowledge to take on the ubiquitous insecurity in the country and kill it.

Lastly, I must emphasise the coordination of the three branches of the military by both the Honourable Minister of Defence and Minister of State of Defence, the harmonious synergy is surely rubbing off positively on the activities of our troops as they are gaining more grounds and victories against enemies of the state.

As a Patriot, Imam duty bound to pray all these efforts comes to fruition and we can have Nigeria of our dreams where peace shall reign.

Deyemi Saka, a Public affairs analyst, writes from Abuja.