Expdonaloaded News; Buhari directs defence ministry to produce military hardware

President Muhammadu Bu­hari has directed the Fed­eral Ministry of Defence to produce a plan for the es­tablishment of a modest Military Industrial Complex for the local production of weapons to meet some of the requirements of the country’s armed forces.Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria (DICON), one of the agencies under the ministry, has the mission to operate the ordnance factories for the manufacture and supply of arms and ammunition as well as inspecting, test­ing and recommending ordnance ma­terials intended for use by the Armed Forces and other security organizations while using the excess capacity to sup­port the development of local indus­tries.

It has only recently commenced the production of 7.62 x 39mm Special Ammunition Cartridge in her ultra-modern production facilities located in Kaduna South.
President Buhari, speaking at the graduation of the National Defence College, Abuja, described as unac­ceptable, Nigeria’s current over-de­pendence on other countries for critical military equipment and logistics.
“We must evolve viable mechanisms for near-self-sufficiency in military equipment and logistics production complemented only by very advanced foreign technologies.
“The Ministry of Defence is tasked to draw up clear and measurable outlines for development of a modest Military Industrial Complex for Nigeria.
“In this regard, it is to liaise with other strategic MDAs and industries to re-engineer the Defence Industries Cor­poration of Nigeria (DICON) to meet national military hardware and logistics requirements,” he said.
President Buhari told the gathering that his administration had, since its assumption of office, reviewed the na­ture and character of Nigeria’s security threats and challenges.
“We recognised first and foremost, the external dimensions of these threats and the need for international cooperation and common security mechanisms to tackle them,” the President said.
Buhari said his administration was “convinced that the best approach was to work within the framework of the Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC) to mo­bilise a collective regional effort in the fight against terrorism and insurgency.”
He urged the graduates and of­ficers and men of the Armed Forces to work harder to win the war against Boko Haram, terrorism and insurgency.
“We must apply a comprehensive strategy and coordinate all elements of national power against terrorism and insurgency; we must show result ori­ented leadership at all levels of military Command; we must set up an optimal organisation to manage and sustain oper­ational performance; and we must show confidence and winning mentality”.
The President assured that the Fed­eral Government under his leadership will strive to meet the operational, logis­tic, training and welfare requirements of the Armed Forces of Nigeria.
He also reaffirmed his commitment to ameliorating the hardships of people liv­ing in areas most affected by insurgency and terrorism.
“We have the will, resolve and convic­tion to apply a comprehensive strategy and coordinate all elements of national power against terrorism and insurgency,” he as­sured.
President Buhari said the National De­fence College had fulfilled the vision of its founding fathers, by becoming a stra­tegic human capacity-building institution, making credible contributions to Nige­ria and other friendly countries.