NDA RC 32 celebrates 40th anniversary with special golf kitty

Members of the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), 32nd Regular Combatant Course on Saturday teed-off special golf kitty at TY Buratai Golf and Country Club, in commemoration of their 40th Anniversary celebration.

The special golf kitty is part of the series of events lined up by the NDA Alumni association to celebrate its 40th (Ruby) anniversary since commencement of their military career on July 5, 1982.

The outgoing President of the association, retired Maj.-Gen. Iliya Abbah, said the members had spent 40 years already as military officers starting from the cadet training up to service and then into retirement.

He said that the anniversary celebration was a forum for them to come together to reminisce their past.

According to him, it is a celebration of all members of the course, including those that are not lucky to have been commissioned as officers, but reported to the academy and started training with them.

“The aim of this coming together is to keep ourselves abreast of the situation in the country.

“Yes, we are retired personnel but we still have a lot to give to the country in terms of national security needs.

“We always meet to discuss issues like this and where the nation will still require our services, we will be ready to offer it.

“keeping ourselves together is a major achievement because it is not easy when you have already left service,” he said.

Abbah said that some personnel left service more than 10 years ago, some five years while others for three years.

”Then for you to still bring yourself together like that is an achievement which means you are still cooperating among yourselves,” he said.

He said that the association under his stewardship had been able to adequately take care of the welfare of members, including the families of those that had lost their lives in battle or through other causes.

He said that the association had also contributed to uplift the lives of some of the less privileged ones.

”As the men are here at the golf tournament today, their wives are in some orphanage homes giving out some donations which they contributed to take care of them,” he said.

The incoming NDA President, retired Rear Adm. Apochi Suleiman, said that the new executives would build on the foundation the predecessors had laid to take the association to greater height.

Suleiman said that members of the 32 regular combatant course were ready at all times to contribute their experiences toward addressing national challenges.

According to him, they are still on reserve list because they left service not too long ago.

He said that they were 145 that started cadet training as at July 5, 1982, and about 78 of them are around for the anniversary celebration.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the golf kitty was teed-off by 9.00 a.m. at the TY Buratai Golf and Country Club, Mambila Barracks, Asokoro.

The anniversary celebration is expected to end with a dinner and award night at Army Headquarters Command Mess 1. (NAN)