Bello Matawalle, the minister of state for defense, has warned all maritime criminals who threaten Nigeria’s waters that the country’s naval environment will no longer be a haven for crime because it will help promote economic activity and safeguard national security.
At the Saturday ceremony for the Nigerian Navy’s ships and helicopters’ commissioning and induction ceremony in Lagos, he issued the warning.
According to him, the Federal Government has made a commitment to safeguard the country’s waters for the sake of the country’s prosperity.
According to the President, his administration’s support for the purchase of these crucial assets underlines his administration’s commitment to safeguarding our nation’s interests and economic prosperity in line with his renewed hope agenda.
The Nigerian Navy will continue to perform fleet recapitalization to increase its operational efficiency in accordance with our statutory obligations to safeguard the country’s maritime domain. The addition of these new platforms to our fleet will, he said, “enable the Navy to dominate our maritime space and prevent criminal elements from having the freedom to engage in illegal activity in our waters.”
Read more about Tinubu’s executive order introducing new incentives for the oil sector.
He explained that the ships in service today have high endurance and advanced surveillance and rapid response capabilities.
Long-range surveillance and a high endurance are features of the three Augusta Westland AW109ST Trekker helicopters. To strengthen our surveillance and response capabilities, this will help us strengthen our maritime domain awareness capabilities in order to promote increased economic activity in the maritime environment.
“Smooth seas do not make skilful sailors,” the proverb goes. The 69th anniversary celebration at the commissioning ceremony demonstrates the gradual upgrades being made to the Nigerian Navy over the years,” Matawalle said.
He disclosed that the Nigerian Navy is still anticipating the addition of a number of platforms this year.
He claimed that among these platforms, there are, among others, two 76m High Endurance Offshore Patrol Vessels from Turkey, three 46m Fast Patrol Boats from China, and Tug Boats.
When incorporated into the Nigerian Navy fleet, these platforms will improve our operational readiness to fulfill our statutory obligations.
Source: Channels TV
Leave a Reply