By Eugene Onyeji
Lagos State governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Saturday commended the Nigerian Armed Forces for keeping the peace in different parts of the country, assuring that the state government would continue to do what was expected in remembrance of fallen soldiers, saying his government will always support their families.
Governor Sanwo-Olu stated this at the state Ministry of Home Affairs Parade and Wreath Laying Ceremony to commemorate the 2022, Armed Forces Remembrance Day.
At the event held at the Remembrance Arcade, Tafawa Balewa Square, Lagos, Governor Sanwo-Olu also said the event was a regular tradition set aside for the remembrance of fallen heroes and that his government had been proactive through the state Ministry of Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation to ensure the welfare of Nigerian legion and spouses of fallen heroes were taken adequate care of.
Officers of the Nigerian Army, Navy, Air Force and veterans in the Nigerian Legion marched in a memorial procession to honour fallen ex-servicemen at the colourful ceremony.
The military parade was followed by a traditional 21-gun salute to honour the departed service personnel.
After laying the wreath, Sanwo-Olu said the sacrifice made by the fallen heroes was supreme and marked the symbol of the nation’s unity. He charged members of the armed forces to continue to uphold the fine traditions bequeathed to the military by the departed soldiers.
The governor said the State had not only honoured the efforts of the fallen heroes by participating in the yearly armed forces remembrance day, he said Lagos had also catered for the welfare of families of departed soldiers living in the State through various intervention programmes.
“Today, we have come out in honour and in remembrance of fallen members of the Nigerian Armed Forces, who, at one time or the other, had been of great service to our nation and paid the supreme price to keep our unity and security. As a yearly tradition, the State Government comes together with military formations and veterans to commemorate this day in their honour and say that their sacrifices are not in vain.
“This is to continue to encourage the men of the Nigerian Armed Forces and to show them that the country will continue to remember them and ensure their efforts are not in vain. As a government, we have been supporting our soldiers to keep the territorial integrity of this nation secure, while working with them in the areas of intelligence gathering to ensure Lagos remains safe for our citizens and visitors.”
As Lagos government supports families of fallen soldiers through the ministry of women affairs and poverty alleviation, Sanwo-Olu said his administration had not left out military veterans residing in the state in government’s welfare and intervention programmes packaged for ex-service personnel.
He said: “At the State level, we see our ex-servicemen and women as members of our community. We see them as people for whom we have responsibility. We promised we will equip their schools with unlimited Internet access and computers to support their children.
“All of these have shown that we have not abandoned our veterans. We will continue to help servicemen that have retired and create welfare support for the spouses and families of the ones that have departed, because we consider them as major stakeholders in our entire community.”
