By Chidiebere Ugwu
The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Taoreed Lagbaja on Thursday 2 May 2024 commissioned COAS Special Intervention Civil- Military Cooperation (CIMIC) Projects at Jen community in Karim Lamido Local Government Area of Taraba State.
According to a statement by Major General, Onyema Nwachukwu, Director Army Public Relations, the two projects, sponsored by the office of the COAS, are a Sports and Cultural Center, as well as a Multi-Purpose Center.
The Sports and Cultural Centre named after Major General Boniface Robert Sinjen has standard Basketball and Volleyball courts, a Football pitch, with two pavilions of 500 seating capacity, as well as a Museum and a Conference hall with offices, while the Multipurpose Centre was christened after Major General Henry Tafida Wesley.
Commissioning the projects, Gen Lagbaja lauded the remarkable contributions and dedication of Major Generals Boniface Sinjen and Henry Wesley, two sons of the Jen community, who executed the projects as a way of giving back to their community. He described the duo as industrious senior officers, who have earned both local and international admirations in recognition of their unblemished service to the NA and the nation in general. The senior officers are currently the Chief of Operations (Army) and Chief of Special Services and Programmes (Army) respectively.
The COAS further clarified that the projects were initiated in an effort to provide support to communities of Nigerian Army Senior Officers’ who, through dedication to duty and service to the nation, have risen to the privileged rank of Major General, adding that the NA sees Nigerians as critical partners, hence the need to sustain the initiative and compliment the states in providing top-notch basic amenities and infrastructure for Nigerian communities.
The Army Chief emphasized that the intervention projects are means of appreciating the benefiting communities from which the senior officers hail, for giving the nation their very best to serve in the NA, as well as to encourage them to continue to support the service in its endeavour to mitigate security challenges.
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The Army Chief thanked the Commander-in- Chief of the Armed Forces, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his continuous strategic guidance and invaluable support to the NA. Gen Lagbaja also expressed gratitude to the Taraba State Governor, Dr Agbu Kefas and the good people of the state for their cooperation with the NA and urged them not to relent, especially in providing timely and useful information to the NA and other security agencies in ensuring a safe and secured environment.
Speaking at the commissioning, the Chief of Operations, Major General Boniface Sinjen stated that the project is part of the COAS Special Intervention Civil- Military Cooperation Project, approved and funded by the COAS to give succour to communities in need. He disclosed, that these acts of benevolence over the years, have helped galvanize the needed support from citizens, as force multipliers for troops combating insecurity in troubled parts of the country. He noted, that the center is expected to nurture and cultivate athletes, empowering them to represent Jen community, the state and the nation.
The event was attended by Taraba State Government functionaries and traditional leaders, the President, Nigerian Army Officers’Wives Association (NAOWA) Mrs Mariya Lagbaja and members of the Association, Principal Staff Officers from the Defence and Army Headquarters, , senior serving and retired military and paramilitary officers, amongst several others.
