New Chief of Defence Staff, Major General Lucky Irabor on Sunday led other Service Chiefs on an operational visit to the Headquarters, Command and Control Centre of Operation Lafiya Dole in Maiduguri, the Borno State Capital.

Their visit to the theatre for the war against Boko Haram comes a few days after they met with President Muhammadu Buhari.

This is the first time the new Service Chiefs are visiting Maiduguri since their appointment, and it also serves as the first operational aimed at better prosecuting the war against the insurgents.

Gen. Irabor and Major General Ibrahim Attahiru are not new to the operations within the theatre, as they have previously served as Theatre Commanders of Operation Lafiya Dole in Maiduguri.

The visit to Maiduguri became imperative after the service chiefs met with their Commander-In-Chief, President Buhari, on Thursday, January 28.

At the meeting, the president charged them to be patriotic, and serve the country well.

His words: “We’re in a state of emergency. Be patriotic, serve the country well, as your loyalty is to the country.”

The President congratulated the Service Chiefs on heading their various services, adding: “There’s nothing I can tell you about the service because you are in it. I was also in it, and I will pray for you. I also assure you that whatever I can do as Commander-in-Chief will be done, so that the people will appreciate your efforts.

“You know the stage we were in 2015, you know the stage we are now, and the undertakings we made. We promised to secure the country, revive the economy, and fight corruption. None has been easy, but we have certainly made progress.”

According to a statement by his special media aide, Garba Shehu, President Buhari also charged the Service Chiefs to be concerned about the morale of their officers and men, saying they should be made to feel physically and professionally secure.

He pledged that government would do its best in terms of equipment and logistics.