Benue State Governor, Fr. Dr Hyacinth Alia, has reaffirmed the commitment of the Benue State Government (BNSG) to supporting the Nigerian Navy in their efforts to address insecurity across the country.
Governor Alia made this assurance on Tuesday, November 11, when he received the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Idi Abbas, who was in the state to inspect ongoing work at the permanent site of the Special Operations Command of the Nigerian Navy (NN) in Makurdi, the Benue State capital. The visit was part of Vice Admiral Abbas’s nationwide tour of naval units and commands.
Fr. Alia, who was represented by Dr Sam Ode, Deputy Governor, stated: “We need to provide the armed forces and paramilitary agencies with the necessary encouragement and support to effectively tackle insecurity, not only in Benue but throughout the country.”
He added that the Nigerian Navy is solidifying its presence in Benue. He expressed the state government’s willingness to be a good host to the Navy and all security agencies operating within the state.
Regarding the access road leading to the naval base, Governor Alia assured that the government’s earlier commitment to construct a thoroughfare from the main road to the base and jetty remains firm, emphasising that work on the project would commence in the shortest possible time.
In his remarks, Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Abbas, explained that his visit was part of his duty tour to familiarise himself with formations under his command. He described the Benue command as “critical and strategic,” noting its importance to ongoing operations while emphasising the need to expedite infrastructure development.
“Benue is our newest command. It’s a critical, strategic command that I feel should be up and running by now. It’s very critical to our operations, that is why we chose to come here first, to have firsthand knowledge of what is going on, with the view to expediting actions on the ongoing infrastructure work,” he said.
Addressing concerns about insecurity, the Chief of Naval Staff reassured Nigerians that “We are doing our utmost best to secure this country. As you can see, I have colleagues from other security agencies here, and we are committed to working together to make Nigeria safer and better.”
Earlier, Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) Special Operations Command, Nigerian Navy, Makurdi, Segun Olakunle, stated that the Benue State government had promised to construct the access road to the command and jetty, and expressed optimism that the government would also assist in providing electricity supply to the base.
