Pix above: Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla,
The Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla, has commissioned an electrification project in the Shaku community in Lavun Local Government Area of Niger State.
The project, which is the first of its kind in the community after several decades of being thrown into darkness, was executed under the CNS Special Intervention Quick Impact Project Scheme in honour of Rear Admiral Zakariyyah Shaku Muhammad, Chief of Communication and Information Technology, Nigerian Navy.
Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla, represented by Chief of Naval Transformation, Rear Admiral Mike Gregory Oamen, explained that the project was to promote the Navy Military Corporation and foster harmonious collaborative relations between the navy and the community.
“The projects are targeted at serving Rear Admirals, where we identified critical quick-impact projects that will have maximum impacts on the socioeconomics of the people.
“This is non-kinetic line operations for the Nigerian Navy to forge relationships with our host community where we operate and win their hearts and minds.
“Through this, we can get requisite support from communities in terms of intelligence and other information; we hope it will bring development to the community and environs,” he said.
Earlier in his welcome address, Rear Admiral Zakariyyah Shaku Muhammad, Chief of Communication and Information Technology, Nigerian Navy, expressed happiness over the project, saying, “That the electrification of the Shaku community was a desire of my (his) late father, Alhaji Muhammad Shaku, 30 years ago.
“I thanked the CNS for bringing the vision to fruition; the project will open up the community to positive possibilities, and youths will go into enterprises to keep them busy,” he said.
He added that the project would unlock opportunities for enhanced education and digital literacy as well as economic activities such as vocational and entrepreneurial jobs.
He said the project would also boost security and safety in the Shaku community and environs and called on them to continue to work together in fostering a culture of maintenance and responsible energy usage.
In his separate remarks, Niger State Governor, Hon. Mohammed Umaru Bago, appreciated the CNS for the intervention, adding that the electricity project would boost economic activities in the area.
Bago, who was represented by the Niger State Commissioner, Homeland Security, Brig. Gen. Mohammed Bello Abdullahi, however, appealed to members of the community to ensure the maintenance of the project with the view to benefit from it.
Meanwhile, the event was attended by Commander, 313 Artillery Brigade Command, Minna, Brig. Gen. Ahmed Bobo, representative of Etsu, and senior officers from the Nigerian Navy.