Lt.-Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), promised on Wednesday that the newly formed 114 Battalion in Wukari, Taraba, will quickly begin operations to combat insecurity in the state.
When he met Taraba State Governor Agbu Kefas in Abuja at the Army headquarters, Lagbaja offered the guarantee.
He said that the move was a part of attempts to improve the 6 Brigade of the Army’s operations and activities and broaden the horizons of peace and stability in the state.
In order to improve the 6 Brigade and the garrison’s operations and activities, the COAS further committed to seeing that more combat enablers were provided.
“I will see to it that the 114 Battalion in Taraba takes off right away so that we have additional soldiers on the ground.
“The units and formations will collaborate with the state government, particularly in the implementation of non-kinetic measures that the governor has already enacted.
“We’ll make sure that Taraba is peaceful.
The battalion named in the order of battle is now based in Borno’s northeast and engaged in operations there.
“Looking past that, we’ll make sure the 114th battalion’s Taraba rear unit takes off.
In order to expedite the departure of the rear unit of the battalion, he remarked, “as soon as we get the next set of recruits from depot, we will muster some force and bring them to Taraba.”
The governor was praised by lagbaja for his willingness to increase support for the 6 Brigade in order to maintain peace and stability in Taraba.
He declared that Army headquarters will make every effort to make sure that any support offered functioned best for the state’s general peace.
He asserts that Taraba can serve as a springboard for promoting stability throughout Nigeria’s northeast.
I vow the army’s preparedness, willingness, and availability to assist with the government to further establish peace and stability in Taraba before spreading to other Northeastern regions, the general said.
Kefas had earlier stated that the purpose of his visit was to further enlist the Army’s assistance and cooperation in addressing the security situation in Taraba. He praised the Army’s actions to date for stabilising the state.
Kefas pointed out that Taraba’s security issues were special in light of the state’s bordering states of Adamawa, Benue, Plateau, Nasarawa, Gombe, and Bauchi.
He claimed that the government’s goal was to prioritise and control the huge, ungoverned areas that lay within its borders in order to protect the security and welfare of its people.
In light of the Navy and Air Force’s scant presence in Taraba, the governor promised that the government was ready to provide support for the Army.
Taraba, Kefas continued, was also eager to help the new battalion get off the ground by providing land and infrastructure.
