NWC well positioned to train foreign military personnel, boost maritime security – CNS

The Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral EI Ogalla, has disclosed that the Naval War College, NWC, Calabar is better equipped and well positioned to also train military personnel from other countries.

Speaking in Calabar when he led 22 graduates of the Naval Warfare Course 7 to pay a courtesy call on Governor Bassey Otu upon their graduation, Ogalla said the College is the highest Naval training institution in Nigeria and was built to boost security in the maritime sector, as well as enhance the capability of officers to make sound decisions both in command and management positions.

He told the governor that the College was formerly in Rivers State but had to relocate and is now well established in Calabar where there are arrays of other naval facilities, and has attained international standards and recognition.

The chief of naval staff disclosed that throughout the duration of the course, no adverse incident was recorded.

Ogalla drew attention to the global nature of security challenges, which he said constitute a clarion call for militaries all over the world to embrace long-term and robust strategic postures to be able to combat such threats.

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He highlighted insurgency and banditry as some of the irregular challenges facing the nation.

Ogalla, who was Special Guest of Honour, thanked the state government for the provision of land and support for the Navy.

Receiving the Chief of Naval Staff and the War College graduates, Peter Odey, the state deputy governor, who stood in for the Governor Bassey Otu, congratulated the 22 graduates.

He said the Nigerian Navy has been of great help to the state, adding that apart from the Navy Reference Hospital which has become known as the best hospital in the South-South Region of Nigeria, the men of the Nigerian Navy have been proactive in carrying out their security duties with dedication.

The governor assured the Navy of the State’s determination to support them with land and any other things they might be in need of in the state.

Commandant of the Naval War College of Nigeria, Rear Admiral MB Hassan, assured that the graduands had been imbued with the same skills as their predecessors.

Hassan said the 22 officers represented the final crop among their contemporaries who were now capable of undertaking higher operational level command responsibilities and making meaningful contributions towards solving many of the nation’s security challenges.

He charged the Course 7 graduands to showcase the defining characters of the War College when they return to their respective services.

The Naval War College was established in line with the Nigerian Naval Order 08/17 which promulgated its creation. The College first started at a temporary site in Ubima, Rivers State, in 2017, before relocating to Calabar.