Nigeria’s ambassador to the Benin Republic, Lt-Gen Tukur Buratai (retd.), has identified effective leadership in the military as key to a successful command.

“The contemporary security environment is volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous and the current operating environment in Nigeria is not different,” explained Mr Buratai. “We are now confronted with multi-dimensional complexities and challenges that require focused military leadership as part of an all-encompassing strategy for ensuring national security.”

Mr Buratai, a former chief of army staff, stated this in a lecture he delivered at an Infantry annual leadership lecture series and biennial reunion held at the Infantry Corps Centre, Jaji Military Cantonment, on Thursday.

The theme of his lecture was ‘Mr Command and leadership in the Nigerian Army: My style and experience’.

Mr Buratai stated that effective leadership was an essential skill that shaped organisational culture and affected outcomes and performance of units, formation, or establishments.

He noted that regardless of the quality of training, equipment, and resources, optimal performance still depended largely on the style of leadership at various levels.

Mr Buratai further stated that strategic military leadership required in-depth knowledge of political, economic, informational, and military elements of national power, as well as their interrelationships.

“Cooperative learning, mentoring, case studies, role-playing, and simulations are also key and geared towards producing leaders who know intuitively how to think and make high-quality informed decisions,” he added.

Mr Buratai urged leaders of the Nigerian Army to develop themselves sufficiently and prepare adequately to function effectively to shape outcomes at both the operational and strategic levels.

“The need to train and prepare the future leaders of the Nigerian Army to take certain decisions as they increasingly carry out complex missions in a considerably broader sphere of influence is very crucial,” stated the ex-service chief. “This will necessitate changes in the focus and methods of training to incorporate innovative instructional approaches centred on analytical and critical thinking.”

(NAN)