The commander, Infantry Corps of the Nigerian Army, Godwin Mutkut, urged warrant officers and senior non-commissioned officers to uphold effective leadership and management as they discharge their responsibilities. Mr Mutkut gave the charge on Monday while declaring open the Leadership and Management Seminar Course 48/2028 at the Warrant Officers’ Academy in Jaji, Kaduna.

He said effective leadership and management were crucial to the military profession, given the armed forces’ hierarchical structure and personnel’s responsibility to lead, train, and manage subordinates.

The commander said leadership involves providing direction, exercising authority with humility, and influencing personnel to achieve organisational objectives.

According to him, management involves coordinating people and resources through appropriate processes to achieve set objectives.

He said the seminar was designed to expose participants to practical leadership and management principles, drawing from the first-hand experiences of serving and retired senior military officers.

Mr Mutkut urged participants to actively engage in the lectures, interactive sessions and discussions to gain practical knowledge that would enhance their leadership capabilities.

He said the knowledge acquired would enable them to contribute effectively to military operations and the attainment of national strategic objectives.

The commander said the seminar would also prepare participants for their roles in managing subordinates and carrying out administrative and operational responsibilities.

He described the programme as an important learning opportunity for officers and senior non-commissioned officers across the Nigerian Armed Forces.

Mr Mutkut urged participants to maintain positive attitudes, ask questions, and take advantage of the resource persons’ experiences throughout the seminar.

The commandant of Warrant Officers’ Academy, Anthony Wende, said the seminar was part of the academy’s training programmes to bridge leadership and management gaps between commissioned officers and enlisted personnel.

Mr Wande said the programme provided participants with opportunities to share perspectives and experiences on contemporary leadership and management issues.

He described the Warrant Officers’ Academy as the apex military training institution for warrant officers and senior non-commissioned officers in the Nigerian Armed Forces.

According to him, the academy plays a vital role in developing the cadre’s leadership, administrative, counselling, mentoring, and career-development skills.

He said the training packages were designed to address critical factors affecting effective junior leadership and personnel management during peace and war.

Mr Wande said the seminar aimed to equip participants with the confidence, character, integrity, critical judgement, and sense of responsibility required to discharge their duties.

The commandant said the participants included personnel from the Nigerian Army, Nigerian Navy and allied students from Liberia. He said the five-day seminar was timely, particularly given the changing nature of contemporary security challenges and military operations.

Mr Wande urged the participants to pay maximum attention to the lectures and engage the resource persons through questions and interactive sessions.

He said the resource persons comprised serving and retired senior military officers selected to share their experiences and expertise with the participants.

The commandant reaffirmed the academy’s commitment to developing effective junior-level leadership capable of responding to contemporary and dynamic security challenges.

(NAN)