By: Okosun Dennis
It was a night to remember as the Nigerian Navy held a Gala Night as part of series of events marking the 2023 Presidential Fleet Review at the Admiralty Hall Naval Dockyard, Victoria Island Lagos on Saturday night.
With who is who in the Nigerian Navy present – both serving and retired – led by the amiable Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Awwul Zubairu Gambo, captains of industries, foreign dignitaries and other sister services, the hall came alive with sonorous music from a Naval Rating whose voice sends guest hopping on their seats while the rhythm lasted.
The lavishly beautified hall was a reflection of the colours of the Nigerian Navy – blue and white. The atmosphere was calm; guest beautifully dressed in both English and traditional attires.
It wasn’t an evening for speeches but eating and dancing with various choreography from the Nigerian Navy Secondary Schools and NOWA’s Model Schools. Mostly teenagers; they took the stage and held the guests spellbound with their cultural display, flexibility, colourful dresses and their captivating songs depicting cultural identity in Nigeria.
From Calabar, Ibos, Yorubas, Hausas, Binis, there were abundance of rich cultural groups depicting our cultural values and identity as they performed and entertained the guest during the event to cap up the 2023 Presidential Fleet Review Maritime Discourse which held earlier in the day at the same venue.
For a very long time, it would remain an unforgettable event, reenforcing their moto: “Onward Together”, they brought everybody together for peace and unity, and by extension looking at other dimension on how to better the service and comprehensively dominate the maritime space, truncating the activities of pirates and other sea robbers.
