The newly appointed first female Acting Director of Nigerian Army public relations, Lt Col. O.A. Anele has pledged to lead the directorate of Army public relations with transparency and respect.
Lt Col Anele disclosed this on Tuesday in her maiden speech during the handing over ceremony in Abuja.
“As I begin this journey, I pledge to lead the Directorate with transparency, professionalism, respect, and proactiveness”, she said, adding, “We will continue to tell the Nigerian Army’s story, not just through words, but through actions that reflect honour, sacrifice, responsibility and service to the nation”.
Anele expressed gratitude to the Chief of Army Staff, COAS, Lieutenant General OO Oluyede, for finding her worthy for the appointment, assuring to justify the confidence by remaining absolutely loyal, committed, focused and results-driven.
The Ag Director also commended her immediate predecessor, Major General Onyema Nwachukwu for his resilience, and professionalism resulting in laying a formidable foundation that has transformed the Directorate of Army Public Relations to an enviable state.
She lauded the efforts of the media for professionalism in reporting the activities of the military, and encouraged the practitioners to continue to uphold truth, fairness and responsibility in their engagements for the good of our great country, Nigeria.
Anele implored the officers, soldiers and civilian staff of the Directorate to remain loyal, hardworking, focused and united, stressing that “knowing that with shared vision and collective effort, we will take Army Public Relations to greater heights”.
Speaking earlier, the outgoing director of public relations, Nwachukwu, highlighted the transformation recorded by the directorate while he held sway for four years.
“Today, I dare to say with confidence that I did not merely react to these challenges, I boldly confronted them head-on with innovation, vision, purpose. One of the major milestones was the retooling of the Directorate with cutting-edge multimedia equipment, positioning us to respond swiftly and professionally to both operational and non-operational media engagements. I ensured the acquisition of modern cameras, editing suites, audio-visual systems and digital communication tools necessary to thrive in the fast-paced global media space”, he pointed out.
Additionally, he emphasized, he recognized the centrality of human capital development. So, he facilitated specialized local and international training for officers and soldiers, exposing them to global best practices in strategic communication, crisis messaging, digital warfare, and media analytics. “This has undoubtedly transformed the way we tell the Nigerian Army’s story credibly, and authoritatively”.
The brief handing over ceremony was attended by officers and soldiers in the directorate.
