The Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Buratai has announced that the Nigerian army has inducted eight units of locally made combat vehicles Mine–Resistant, Ambush–Protected (MRAP), also called `EZUGWU’’ into Operations Lafiya Dole and Sahel Sanity.
Speaking at the inauguration of the vehicles in Kaduna, Buratai noted that the new equipment which was manufactured by the Command Engineering Depot, Kaduna and designed specifically to withstand improvised explosive device attacks and ambushes, has aided military operations against bandits and Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists in the North East.
A Smart Factory also called Additive Manufacturing Technology, Vehicles Assembly shop and Officers/Soldiers accommodation at Command Engineering Depot (CED) was also commissioned by Buratai who was represented at the event by Commandant Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), Jamil Sarham.
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He said; “The vehicles have significantly improved our capability to defeat our common adversary, Boko Haram and the Islamic State of West Africa Province.
“Induction of the vehicles is a clear testament to the unprecedented commitment of the Nigerian Army to building industrial capacity of the CED to undertake in-depth Research, Development and Innovation (RDI).
“Today, one of the greatest challenges facing the Armed Forces of Nigeria (AFN) and other security agencies is an outright reliance on importation of defence logistics from allies.
“Accordingly, President Muhammadu Buhari posits that Nigeria’s dependence on other countries for critical military equipment is unacceptable, the country must evolve (a) viable mechanism for near self-sufficiency in military equipment and logistics production.”
