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President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday called on Nigerians to renounce violence and divisive tendencies, stressing the importance of unity and prosperity for the country.
He reminded citizens that the relative peace they enjoy is due to the sacrifice of the men and women of the Armed Forces who have laid down — and continue to lay down — their lives to ensure Nigeria’s territorial integrity.
Tinubu shared these thoughts in a tweet posted on his official X handle to mark the 2025 Armed Forces Remembrance Day.
He said, “Let us eschew violence and divisive tendencies for a peaceful and prosperous nation. Let us all become ambassadors of peace.
“We can build a future of hope and optimism together, where peace and unity reign supreme. Thank you, and long live the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
Tinubu noted that the Armed Forces Remembrance Day allows the nation to express its gratitude and pay tribute to “our ex-servicemen and women who selflessly sacrificed their lives to defend the territorial integrity of Nigeria and other nations.”
“Our nation is in dire need of peace, and so is the world. As we mark this solemn event today, remember that people laid down their lives, and many still do so, to guarantee our peaceful co-existence,” he added.
Meanwhile, Vice President Kashim Shettima led dignitaries, including members of the diplomatic corps, to the National Arcade in Abuja for the Armed Forces Remembrance Day and wreath-laying ceremony.
Shettima represented President Tinubu, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federation, as Special Guest of Honour.
Tinubu, who is customarily the Special Guest of Honour, is in the United Arab Emirates for the 2025 Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week.
The ceremony kicked off at 10:07 am with Shettima’s arrival and his mounting of the saluting dais, where he took the National Anthem.
Wednesday’s events included the Last Post, signalled by the bugle in memory of the fallen heroes, prayers by Christian and Muslim clerics, a minute’s silence, and wreath laying, led by the Vice President.
Others who laid wreaths were Senate President Akpabio, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu; Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun; Minister of Defence, Abubakar Badaru; Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike; and Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawale.
The Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa; the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Olufemi Oluyede; the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla; the Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Hasan Abubakar; and the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, also laid wreaths.
Others who laid wreaths were the Dean of the Diplomatic Corps and Cameroonian Ambassador to Nigeria, Salaheddine Ibrahima; Chairman of the Nigerian Legion, Maj. Gen. Abdulmalik Jubril; and the representative of the Military Widows Association, Mrs Olubunmi Ese-Okiti.
The wreath-laying ceremony was followed by three-volley shots, after which the Special Guest of Honour, represented by Shettima, signed the Armed Forces Remembrance Day Anniversary Register and released the white pigeons.
Afterward, Shettima was honoured with the National Salute, marking the end of the ceremony.
Briefing journalists after the event, Defence Minister Badaru said the ceremony shows surviving members of the families of the fallen that their sacrifice remains fresh in the collective memory of the nation.
“I must thank Nigerians for praying day and night for our fallen heroes. It is a solemn moment, and we remember those who have paid the supreme price while guarding our country.
“This is really an occasion that calls for prayer, unity, and for those living members of the Armed Forces to know that they will be remembered when they fall,” he noted.
Chairman of the Nigerian Legion, Maj. Gen. Abdulmalik Jubril (retd), said Wednesday’s ceremony honours the living servicemen and women as much as it honours the fallen.
Jubril noted that those in service must see the honour as signalling that they serve a grateful nation.
He said, “My thought is of gratitude to the entire nation for coming together to support the fallen heroes. Not only fallen heroes, but also those who have served and have retired, and those who are serving; this is a very excellent signal to them that even after service, even after sacrifices, Nigerians will not forget them; they’ll continue to support them.”
For her part, the National President of the Military Widows Association, Ese-Okiti, urged the Federal Government to expedite life insurance claims for its members who lost their husbands in action.
She explained, “Life insurance is the only thing we are fighting for now. They’ve paid some army people, Navy and Air Force, and some army people are still waiting for their own, and they have assured us that they will pay very soon.
“For anyone who has a problem getting their entitlements, we push the paper forward and go to the authorities to find out. It has stages; it’s not like immediately your husband dies; they will give you the entitlement.
“There are some records they follow; the next of kin, who is to collect what. They will prepare the paper, and when it is time, they will give it to you.”
The Armed Forces Remembrance Day is an annual event organised by the Ministry of Defence to commemorate the nation’s fallen heroes, who paid the supreme price during the First and Second World Wars, the Nigerian Civil War, peace support operations around the world, as well as various internal security operations.
The ceremony is held every January 15 as it marks the end of the Nigerian Civil War on the same date in 1970. Previously, it was observed on November 11, alongside other Commonwealth nations.
Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume; the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari; and the Minister of Women Affairs, Imaan Suleiman-Ibrahim, also attended the ceremony.
