By Nkechi Eze
The Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, has emphasized that the effectiveness of medical services within the Nigerian Army depends largely on the integration of standardized administrative protocols and strong inter-agency collaboration.
General Shaibu stated this on Tuesday, April 7, 2026, while receiving the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Defence Health Maintenance Limited, Surgeon Rear Admiral Azeeze Bayo Afolayan, during a courtesy visit to the Army Headquarters in Abuja.
In a statement issued by the Acting Director of Army Public Relations, Colonel Appolonia Anele, the army chief noted that as the Nigerian Army continues to conduct complex operations across the country’s six geopolitical zones, maintaining the physical and mental readiness of personnel remains a strategic priority that requires a responsive and modern healthcare system.
He stressed that the welfare of troops must extend beyond active service to include sustained support for veterans who have dedicated their lives to national service.
General Shaibu observed that retirement often exposes former service members to socio-economic vulnerabilities due to limited access to resources. He therefore called for comprehensive support structures that would guarantee the long-term welfare of retired personnel.
“The man must survive after a lifetime of dedicated service,” the army chief stated, reaffirming that the Nigerian Army’s responsibility to its personnel is a lifelong obligation.
He further advocated for a dependable safety net to ensure that former service members are not left without financial or medical assistance after leaving active duty. The COAS also described Afolayan as a quintessential “insider,” whose continued service to the country after retirement demonstrates the enduring value of institutional experience in strengthening national systems.
In his remarks, Afolayan called for the institutionalization of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), particularly within the Human Resources and administrative departments of military medical units.
He explained that efficient healthcare delivery within the armed forces depends heavily on standardized administrative systems, including the use of uniform documentation and clearly defined operational procedures.
According to him, moving away from ad-hoc administrative practices toward a structured, policy-driven framework would ensure accurate documentation of medical personnel data while removing bureaucratic bottlenecks that could delay the delivery of healthcare services to troops and their families across the country.
Afolayan also outlined a framework aimed at improving the utilization of Secondary Care Providers (SCPs) within the military healthcare system.
He noted that expanding the use of SCPs would enable the Nigerian Army to deploy medical personnel more efficiently across its various formations and units.
By leveraging well-equipped secondary healthcare facilities, he said, the army would be able to optimize its medical workforce while ensuring that soldiers especially those deployed in volatile operational theatres have timely access to specialist care through a streamlined and cost-effective management structure.
