Nigerian Navy assures on improving sea exercises to tackle maritime crimes

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The Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Adm.
Ibok-Ete Ibas, says the Nigerian Navy will improve on its sea exercises in
order to tackle maritime crimes within the waters.

Ibas said this at the opening of a two-day
workshop organised by the Naval Doctrine and Assessment Centre (NDAC),
holding at the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Quorra, Apapa, Lagos.

Ibas was represented by the Chief of
Naval Safety and Standard, Rear Adm. Ifeola Mohammed.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports
that the theme of the two-day workshop is: ‘Improving Nigerian Navy’s
Operational Procedures and Efficiency’.

According to the CNS, the workshop is for
the Navy to access the various exercises and operations that were conducted in
the Year 2018.

“Normally at the beginning of the new year,
we do an assessment so as to see which lessons we can learn from the previous
exercises and apply them to the new ones we will be conducting this year.

“This will allow for more improvement and
ability to superintend over our waters and be able to deliver our mandate,
which is to secure the maritime environment.

“The Navy will improve on its operations
this year with the aim of delivering on its mandate and to defend the nation’s
territorial integrity.

“At the same time, we will ensure safety of
ships within the commercial environment.

“We have been achieving this over the years
and we believe strongly that the Year 2019 will also be the same thing,” he
said.

The CNS also said that the workshop was
premised on the enormous challenges the Navy was currently facing.

He said that the Navy had been striving to
deploy a force that had been trained to contend with the country’s asymmetric
security dynamics.

“It is against this backdrop that the role
of NDAC, in monitoring lives and simulated naval and joint
exercises/operations; is germane towards strengthening navy’s operational
capability.’’

He said that the NDAC was expected to
continuously review naval techniques, tactics and procedures in the conduct of
maritime and land-based operations.

Ibas also assured the public that the Navy
had contingency plans being put together to ensure the forthcoming
general elections were successful.

“We will do everything in our power to
support necessary institutions, especially the Independent National Electoral
Commission (INEC), the Nigerian Police and other security agencies,” he said.

Earlier, the Admiral Superintendent, NDAC,
Rear Adm. Maurice Eno, commended the Naval authorities for
organising the workshop, adding that the time was apt.

He said that the Centre observed and
assessed several fields and simulated exercises conducted by the Defence and
Naval Headquarters, and other international navies in 2018.

The exercises that were conducted in 2018
include: Exercise (Ex.) Rivers Sweep III, and Ex. OBANGAME EXPRESS.

Others are: DHQ Contingency Plan
Simulation Exercise codenamed ‘OJU OGUN-LE’, Regional Maritime Exercise (REMEX)
codenamed `EX EKU KUGBE EX SULU INO’, `EX GBEWON Ml’ and many
others.

He thanked the CNS for his continued
support to the Centre, which he said made the workshop possible.

NAN reports that several top military
officers attended the workshop. (NAN)