COAS Lt-Gen Waidi Shaibu addressing 90th Restore Hope recruits in Zaria, June 18, 2026. Photo: Army PR
Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, has ordered graduating recruits to “apply decisive force” against bandits, kidnappers and other criminal elements threatening national security. He gave the charge Thursday, June 18, 2026, at the graduation of the Restore Hope programme for the 90 Regular Recruit Intake at the Depot Nigerian Army Shooting Range, Zaria.
Gen. Shaibu said Nigeria is passing through a critical period as criminals masquerading as bandits continue to inflict hardship through abductions and destruction of lives and property. “The security challenges confronting Nigeria today are complex, uncertain and ambiguous,” he told the recruits.
The COAS warned that terrorism and banditry demand more than courage. “They require intelligence, discipline and strategic thinking. The era of relying solely on conventional responses to unconventional threats is behind us,” he said. He urged the 90th Intake, to be inducted in two days, to remain resolute and professional while operating within Rules of Engagement and military ethics.
Shaibu congratulated the recruits for completing what he described as modern, rigorous training. He assured them the Nigerian Army has acquired new combat enablers and is pursuing additional equipment to make soldiering “more efficient and safer” on the battlefield.
The Restore Hope initiative is a specialised training programme designed to inculcate professionalism, discipline, resilience and loyalty while preparing recruits for Nigeria’s evolving security threats. The 90th Intake will join ongoing operations against banditry in the North-West and kidnapping across other regions.
Army Headquarters said the graduation signals a renewed push to boost manpower for Operation FANSAN YAMMA and other internal security tasks. The COAS reiterated that troops must balance decisive action with adherence to the law, as the Army scales up procurement of drones, armoured vehicles and night-fighting gear.
