The immediate past Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor (retd.), Tuesday, warned that the ugly sights of veterans protesting non-payment of entitlements must not be allowed to fester, saying this could engender feelings of resentment among serving personnel.
Irabor said this in a paper at the Armed Forces Celebration and Remembrance Day 2025 Lecture and Art Exhibition, organised by the Defence Headquarters in Abuja.
The lecture was titled, “Celebrating the Armed Forces of Nigeria in National Development.”
He said: “The ugly sights of veterans’ protest, though contrary to military discipline and ethos, owing to lack of payments of entitlements, must not be allowed to fester.
“This could also potentially engender feelings of resentment in active duty personnel, especially seeing the despicable treatment meted out to veterans.
“This shameful act should end forthwith with the payment of all accrued entitlements.”
The former CDS said the plight of servicemen and women wounded or disabled leaves a heart-breaking tale in the minds of everyone.
“This could indirectly demoralize serving personnel. It could even make veterans to go into depression for possible regrets of patriotic services rendered to the nation,” he said.
To redress this, he suggested that special support could be organised for better care of wounded and disabled active-duty and retired military personnel.
“I am aware of the on-going construction of the Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder facility and the Invictus Games project. It is very essential that these projects are completed, fully furnished, well-equipped and properly manned, sustained and well publicized for the benefit of the Armed Forces.
“The projects will also improve the perception of the federal government and the nation in general, as a grateful people for patriotic services rendered,” he said.
Irabor also called for a compressive healthcare programme for veterans.
According to him, the greatest need for veterans is healthcare.
He noted that the quality of life of veterans depreciates daily when juxtaposed with the inflationary trends.
“Even with prompt payment of monetary entitlements, the value pales when healthcare-related issues are tied to the disposable income of the veteran.
“Currently, the Defence Healthcare Insurance policy for personnel is not comprehensive. So many ailments and medical cases are not covered in the policy.
“This is a major issue that must be looked into. The special and very arduous conditions that military personnel are exposed to during active service, predispose them to all kinds of medical conditions. This is made worse in retirement.
“A special-purpose vehicle for a Comprehensive Healthcare for veterans will be invaluable in addressing this challenge,” Irabor added.
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