By: Kingsley Omonobi – Abuja

The Nigerian Army on Friday disclosed that it will conduct special training exercises across the country during the Yuletide season, beginning from October to December, aimed at checkmating the activities of kidnappers, bandits, and other criminal elements who may want to cash in on the festivities to attack citizens.

Director of Army Public Relations, Brigadier General Onyema Nwachukwu, who made this known at a media briefing in Abuja, said, “The exercises are codenamed ‘Golden Dawn III’ in the South East, ‘Enduring Peace III’ in the North Central, and ‘Still Waters III’ in the South-South and South-West”.

Nwachukwu said, “In line with the Nigerian Army Training Directive for the year 2023, troops of the Nigerian Army, in collaboration with Sister Services and other security agencies, will be conducting training exercises across the country from October to December 2023.

“These exercises are designed to improve individual and collective professional competence and would dovetail into real-time operations to tackle various peculiar security challenges in the geopolitical zones.

“Exercise Golden Dawn III, taking place in the South-East, is aimed at tackling security challenges such as armed robbery, kidnapping, cultism, communal clashes, and sundry crimes, which become more pronounced in the build-up to the yuletide when many citizens return home to celebrate.

“The exercise will focus on enhancing the capabilities of our troops in intelligence gathering and effective, proactive response to criminalities.

“With the exercise, we aim to improve security in the South-East and ensure the safety of the populace during the period that will culminate in the yuletide.

“Exercise Enduring Peace III, taking place in the North-Central, is primarily to address farmer-header conflicts, cattle rustling, banditry, kidnapping, ethno-religious conflicts, and terrorism, among others.

“The exercise will equip our troops with the necessary skills to combat banditry, including hostage rescue operations, intelligence-driven raids, and effective coordination with other sister services and security agencies.

“Exercise Still Waters III, taking place in the South-South and South-West, will target the menace of cultism, robbery, and kidnapping.

“It will equally seek to address the challenges of pipeline vandalism and other forms of economic sabotage.

“The exercise will also focus on securing critical infrastructure.

“Our troops would be trained on advanced surveillance techniques, rapid response tactics, and the use of technology to effectively counter pipeline vandalism.

“By conducting this exercise, we aim to curb economic sabotage, protect national assets, and ensure a stable environment for economic growth.

Continuing, he said, “The Nigerian Army recognizes the importance of collaboration and synergy among various security agencies in boldly confronting these security challenges.

“Accordingly, the NA have been working closely with sister services and other agencies, including the Nigeria Police, Department of State Services, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, and Nigeria Customs Service, among others, to ensure well-coordinated and effective responses to these threats.

“Joint training exercises and intelligence sharing will be key components of our approach.

Furthermore, Brig Gen. Nwachukwu “reiterated that the Nigerian Army is fully resolute and committed to surmounting emerging security challenges in troubled parts of the country.

“Through the upcoming training Exercise Still Waters III, Exercise Golden Dawn III, and Exercise Enduring Peace III, we project to enhance the capabilities of our troops, improve synergy with sister services and other security agencies, and ultimately ensure the safety and security of the populace”.

Asked what the new exercises will bring to the fight against insecurity in the country when other operations like Operation Udoka, Safe Haven, and Delta Safe are currently going on, Nwachukwu said the new exercises will complement existing operations.

“This Nigerian Army exercises are to build the competence of our troops in terms of intelligence and in terms of tactics. Then it will dovetail into all-time operations.

“During this period, people will travel. A lot of people will return from outside the country and travel to see their loved ones in their communities, and usually, criminal elements want to take advantage of these movements to perpetrate crimes like banditry, kidnapping, and robberies, among others. We want to bring about confidence and security in society.

As to other zones of the country that were not mentioned, he said already existing military operations like Operation Hadin Kai for the North East and Operation Hadarin Daji for the North West will key into the exercises.