Swimming competitions prepare troops for military operations – GOC
Halima Adulkadri
The General Officer Commanding (GOC) 81 Division, Nigerian Army, Maj.-Gen. Obinna Ajunwa, on Monday, said that swimming championships have helped to physically and mentally condition and prepare troops for military operations in the riverine areas.
Ajunwa said his at the ongoing Inter-formation Platoon Combat Swimming Championship 2022 that would end on Dec. 1 at the National Stadium (conventional swimming) and Old Slave Village, Badagry (combat swimming) respectively.
It was reported that seven army Divisions: 1 Div Kaduna, 2 Div Ibadan, 3 Div Jos, 6 Div Port Harcourt, 81 Div Lagos, 82 Div Enugu and Nigerian Army Headquarters, Garrison, Abuja are participating in the event.
The GOC said that competitions of such nature were an essential part of military training, evident in the high premium the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt.-Gen. Faruk Yahaya, attached training and professionalism as one of the key pivots of his vision.
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Ajunwa said that the vision of the COAS was to have: “A professional Nigerian Army Ready To Accomplish Assigned Mission Within A Joint Environment In the Defence Of Nigeria.”
The GOC said that he was convinced that new lessons would be learnt during the championship which would be used by the participants to sharpen their professional competency and skills.
Ajunwa thanked Lt.-Gen. Yahaya for the moral and financial support he provided for the swimming championship in particular as well as his top-notch leadership to the Nigerian Army in general.
Also speaking, the Commander Corps, Nigerian Army Engineers, Maj.-Gen. Kamil Kadiri said that the championship would improve the physical and mental abilities of the participants with a view to reinforcing the overall compact preparedness of the troops.
Kadiri, also the Special Guest Of Honour at the event, said that the Nigerian Army and other sister agencies including security agencies were currently involved in multiple-single-service operations and combined operations.
The commander said that the conventional and combat swimming events would, therefore, equip troops with the skills to conduct operations optimally, especially, in riverine and amphibious terrains.
