Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Lieutenant General Tukur Buratai hoisted the Nigerian flag in a symbolic ceremony at the recently recaptured border town of Gamboru-Ngala in Borno State.
A statement yesterday by army spokesman Colonel Sani Usman said the army chief hoisted the flag on Wednesday at the strategic and economic town just by the river bank that divides Nigeria and Cameroon.
Usman said: “This signifies the restoration of Nigeria’s authority and complete possession of its territory within the area.” He stated that the recapture of the town was in line with vision and the mission of the Nigerian Army of defending the territorial integrity of our great nation. Buratai also thanked President Muhammadu Buhari for providing all the desired leadership, support and logistics that made the Nigerian Army to perform effectively.
He however warned the troops that there was a lot to do, adding that the war is not over as the terrorists were yet to give up. Usman further said Buratai also had a brief interaction with a spontaneous and mammoth crowd of both Nigerian refugees and Cameroonian citizens across the river that converged to receive him.
The statement added that the COAS had an interactive session with the Special Forces who bared their minds on a number of issues to which he obliged them with instant solutions and promises.
Usman further said later in the evening, during a special Camp Fire to celebrate the recapture of Dikwa and Gomboru Ngala, Buratai apart from further interacting with the troops, decorated an officer, Muhammed Abu Ali.
Ali was earlier granted accelerated promotion from the rank of Major to Lieutenant Colonel for his courage, bravery and exceptional performance during the fight against the Boko Haram terrorists.
Usman further said the Chief of Army Staff was accompanied by the Commander, “Operation Lafiya Dole” and head of Military Command and Control Centre, Major General YM Abubakar, Commander Multinational Joint Task Force, Major General II Abbas, Chief of Training and Operations, Major General FO Ali, Commander, Nigerian Army Ordnance Corps, Major General RO Yusuf, Coordinator of Army Aviation and Major General LEO Irabor among others
