By Samuel Akpan/Daniel Okejeme
Nigeria’s Vice President Kashim Shettima on Wednesday led top government officials, including Senate President Godswill Akpabio, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Chief Justice of Nigeria, and members of the Federal Executive Council to lay wreaths in memory of the nation’s fallen and living heroes.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Chief Justice of Nigeria, and service chiefs. National Assembly, service chiefs, and diplomatic corps,
The event, which took place at the National Arcade in Abuja on Wednesday, marked the climax of activities for the 2025 Armed Forces Celebration and Remembrance Day (AFCRD).
Apart from the wreath-laying, the ceremony also featured the firing of three volleys, a tradition that dates back to the old custom of halting fighting to remove the dead from the battlefield.
The celebration, which started with a series of activities, including prayers and an interdenominational Christian service, aimed to honour the sacrifices made by Nigerian citizens for the cause of peace.
The event also sought to solicit support for the families of fallen heroes.
In his address, VP Shettima reiterated the importance of remembering and honouring the nation’s heroes, both living and dead.
The Armed Forces Celebration and Remembrance Day is celebrated globally to recognize and appreciate the sacrifices made by citizens for the cause of peace.
In Nigeria, January 15 is set aside annually to honour the fallen heroes who laid down their lives during the First and Second World Wars, the Nigerian Civil War, peace missions, and internal security operations.
The event was also attended by members of the diplomatic corps, the Nigerian Legion, and widows of late officers and soldiers. The Vice President signed the anniversary register and released ceremonial pigeons as a symbol of national peace and freedom.
The Defence Headquarters also organized a lecture, art exhibition, and display of locally produced military equipment as part of the celebration.
Abuja residents and commuters expressed frustration over the significant disruptions caused by the closure of several roads, including those leading to the Defence Headquarters and the Three Arms Zone, where the Armed Forces Remembrance Day ceremony was held.
According to commuters who spoke to Persecondnews, many were forced to alight from their vehicles near the Ministry of Finance headquarters and embark on a 25-minute trek to NITEL Junction, causing considerable inconvenience.
Men from the Nigerian military, Nigeria Police, NSCDC, and Federal Road Safety Corps were deployed to cordon off the routes.
A resident, who identified himself only as Umaru, said:”We appreciate the sacrifices our gallant men make daily, but barricading the road from the Ministry of Justice to here is nothing but causing us unnecessary hardship.
“Our gallant officers are paying the ultimate price daily for the safety of this nation; we owe them a debt of gratitude, but this barricading is really too much.
“If they had barricaded the road from the Ministry of Finance axis up to the Federal Secretariat, it will still serve the same purpose,’’ he told Persecondnews.
Another resident, Timothy Chukwu, is of the opinion that a day like this should have been declared a public holiday.
According to him, if the federal government values the sacrifices being made, they should declare a holiday for them.
“I think the government should make today a public holiday if they really value the sacrifices these men are making. It will also save us from this endurance trek this morning.”
For Martha, another resident, no sacrifice is too much to make for the fallen soldiers, saying “this is nothing compared to what these people go through to keep us safe and united. Yes, it is tiring, but it is once a year, and so it is forgivable.”
The Armed Forces Remembrance Day (AFRD), also simply known as Remembrance Day, is observed on every January 15.
Leave a comment