The Nigerian Navy has inaugurated and handed over an ultra-modern 500-capacity hall mini marts and an Information Technology (IT) garden at Ibore-Uneah in Irrua Esan Central Local Government Area of Edo State.
The event reinforced the commitment of the service to grassroots development and stronger civil-military relations.
The facility executed under the Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS) Special Intervention Quick Impact Project Scheme is designed to provide social and economic infrastructure for Ibore-Irrua and neighbouring communities.
The Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS) Vice Admiral Idi Abbas who was represented by the Director of Nigerian Navy Veteran Affairs Rear Admiral Reheem Taofeek said the initiative reflected the Navy’s recognition that national security and prosperity were strengthened when communities were empowered through meaningful development.
Abbas said the project was another demonstration of the Navy’s civil-military cooperation efforts which seek to address critical community needs while strengthening relationships between the Armed Forces and the people.
The CNS said the ultra-modern hall would provide a venue that is conducive to host community meetings and other social activities while the mini marts and IT garden would contribute to the socio-economic development and improved quality of life of residents.
He said: ‘The Nigerian Navy recognises that the security and prosperity of our nation are strengthened when communities are empowered through meaningful development.
‘This understanding continues to guide the Nigerian Navy’s civil-military cooperation efforts and the Chief of the Naval Staff Special Intervention Quick Impact Project Scheme which seeks to address critical community needs while fostering stronger bonds between the Armed Forces and the people we serve.’
Abbas hailed the project facilitator Rear Admiral Michael Gregory Oamen (retd.) for identifying the community’s needs and utilising the opportunity and funding provided under the intervention scheme to deliver the facility.
He described Oamen’s initiative as an example of leadership that translates into tangible benefits for the people urging beneficiaries to protect and maintain the facility to ensure its sustainability.
Abbas also expressed appreciation to the Edo State government the leadership of Esan Central Local Government traditional rulers community leaders contractors and other stakeholders for their contributions to the success of the project.
Oamen a former Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) Western Naval Command said he conceived the project to expand the Nigerian Navy’s contribution to grassroots development through non-kinetic civil-military interventions.
He explained that although similar quick-impact and civil-military assistance initiatives had historically been associated largely with the Nigerian Army he saw an opportunity for the Navy to extend its developmental footprint to communities outside its traditional maritime security responsibilities.
The former FOC described himself as a proud son of the community saying he facilitated the project to bring a Nigerian Navy-backed intervention to Edo State.
He said: ‘National security is not achieved solely through military hardware or operations; it is sustained through mutual trust goodwill and shared progress between the Armed Forces and the civilian population.
‘When the military actively invests in social infrastructure it reinforces the fundamental truth that our military personnel are drawn from these very communities and our ultimate calling remains the protection and uplifting of the Nigerian people.’
The retired naval officer said the location of the facility at Ibore-Uneah community Irrua was deliberate given its accessibility to surrounding communities.
Expressing appreciation to the CNS and the naval headquarters for supporting the initiative as well as government officials traditional institutions and residents for their cooperation during its execution Oamen urged the residents to take ownership of the facility preserve it and utilise it as a centre for unity and community progress.
The community’s spokesman Mr. Victor Evbohimen thanked the facilitator and the Nigerian Navy for the project.
He said: ‘The community has been struggling to have a town hall before this intervention it shall be well with the facilitator and the Nigerian Navy.’
Addressing reporters a former Director at the Nigerian Armed Forces Command and Staff College Jaji Maj.-Gen. Victor Ebhalemen (retd.) expressed appreciation to the CNS for the project.
Dignitaries at the event included officers and men of the Nigerian Navy and sister security agencies indigenes of the community among others.