The Acting Chief of Training (Army), Maj.-Gen. Abubakar Ndalolo, has charged Senior Non-Commissioned Officers (SNCO) of the Nigerian Army to bridge the gap between officers and soldiers.
Ndalolo gave the charge at the graduation of participants of “Leadership Awareness and Development’’ for SNCOs organised by the Nigerian Army Resource Centre (NARC), on Friday in Abuja.
The 50 SNCOs including Staff Sergeants and Master Warrant Officers participated in the training.
Ndalolo said the course was aimed at equipping the participants with relevant leadership skills that would help them to lead effectively and bridge the gaps in the system while operating in a joint environment.
According to him, as leaders at your level, your ability to think fast and exercise command on the troops placed under your command is paramount to the success and growth of the Nigerian army and the country.
He called on the participants to imbibe the Chief of Army Staff’s command philosophy.
According to him, the COAS command philosophy, which is based on professionalism driven by knowledge and performance; readiness from training and empowerment; administration and cooperation with other security agencies’ must be implemented effectively at the participants’ level.
“This also epitomises the COAS vision which is to have “a Professional Nigerian Army Ready to Accomplish Assigned Missions within a Joint Environment in Defence of Nigeria.’’
“I am, therefore, convinced that you have all benefited from this leadership development programme for your individual benefit and for the system as a whole,’’ he said.
Ndalolo urged them to see the training as the beginning of their learning process toward becoming good leaders and followers wherever they were deployed.
Retired Maj.-Gen Garba Wahab, the Director General, Nigerian Army Resource Centre (NARC), said the course was designed for senior non-commissioned officers who bridge the gap between officers and soldiers.
Wahab said the SNCOs had many roles to play in terms of leadership, adding that a lot could go wrong in the army without them, especially in the area of leadership and operations.
He said that the commanding officers could effectively pass instructions to soldiers through the non-commission officers who ensured that the instructions were carried out.
“Unfortunately, over time, we have laid emphasis more on junior officers at the expense of the senior non-commission officers and that is what we want to correct.
“The course is focused on discipline and understanding the legal implication of their action or inaction.
“Everybody in the military is trained from the beginning of his career as a leader in his own right,’’ he said.
Wahab charged them to put the knowledge that they had acquired during the training to use at their various units.
The Course Senior, Master Warrant Officer Usman Garba, appreciated the army for the opportunity given to them to acquire knowledge and skills to perform optimally in their various assigned roles.
Garba pledged the readiness of the participants to use the knowledge they had acquired to contribute their quota to the system.
