Abia State Governor, Dr Alex Otti, OFR, has used the occasion of the 2026 Armed Forces Celebration and Remembrance Day to call on Nigerians to look beyond many shortcomings of the Nation and embrace unity and the ideals the compatriots lived and died for.
Governor Otti made the call on Thursday, January 15th, during the 2026 Armed Forces Remembrance Day celebration held at the Aguiyi Ironsi Cenotaph, Ogurube Layout, Umuahia.
The Abia State Governor said that Nigerians cannot build a great nation except by making deliberate effort to inspire the change that the citizenry seeks along different front lines of the National existence.
"The Armed Forces Celebration and Remembrance Day invites all of us to look beyond the many shortcomings of our Nation, but to rise instead in unison to rededicate ourselves to the ideals for which our compatriots lived and died.
"We cannot build a great Nation by endlessly winning but by doing everything within our powers as citizens and leaders in different fields of human aspiration to inspire the change that we seek, along different front lines of national existence.
"While the virtues of chivalry and honour, temperance, and fortitude are traditionally, a part of military endeavours, it is also true that these values can be adopted by everyday people seeking to live with honour in devotion to community.
"We are therefore encouraged to learn to be as courageous as our compatriots who have chosen the path of military service and to live by the principles that support character building, provides ethical compass in decision-making, and confers legitimacy on institutions" Gov. Otti stated.
Governor Otti said that the Nigerian Armed Forces best represents the practical ideals of the Nigeria's dream, describing the armed forces as, one institution that has not only played a major role in keeping Nigeria together, but has evolv