By Henry Oladele
Lagos – In a bid to foster civil-military relations, Nigerian Air Force personnel on Saturday engaged in the clean-up of their Mafoluku and Shogunle host communities in Lagos.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the 651 Base Service Group Commander, Air Commodore Musbau Olatunji, led the team of officers, air men and women in the exercise.
The military team helped in clearing the refuse dumps and the drains blocked by empty bottles of water, polythene bags and other waste materials.
According to Olatunji, the clean-up is a way of creating a cordial relationship between the air force and the communities surrounding us.
“The kind of warfare we are engaging today is not inter-state but more of intra-state.
“This is how we confront kidnappers and militant groups who are no longer coming from other state but living among us.
“So it is very imperative that we create that friendly rapport with the communities around us because what we need to confront this kind of situation is information.
“And when you have a cordial relationship with the people around you, they will see you as a friend and give you the information that you need and with this information, half of the problem is solved,’’ he said.
The commander also noted that the Air Force had sworn to protect the citizens and the nation as a whole, adding that taking care of the environment was also part of the civil-military interaction.
“It’s not all about bullets and guns these days but security, which is more paramount, so we need to be able to take care of the health and welfare of the people which cleanliness is part of.
“When they have a healthy environment, they can prosper and see us as friends and we can live in harmony to support each other,’’ he said.
He said that the military needed the civil populace to succeed and this was one of the activities to bring civilians closer to the military.
He said that in addition to the cleaning exercise, the Air Force also carried out medical outreach by offering free medical treatment to citizens as well as sporting activities.
“By interacting with the communities, they can also be of help by giving the military useful information on intelligence gathering on internal security operations,’’ he said.
He encouraged civilians not to be scared of military officers, adding that they were only out to protect them and the nation’s territorial integrity.
He said that sanitation was the civic responsibility of everyone and appealed to residents of Mafoluku and Shogunle to maintain a clean and healthy environment.
NAN reports that residents of both communities expressed gratitude to the Air Force for the intervention. (NAN)
