As part of events to mark the 2026 Children’s Day, hundreds of Students from government-owned and privately-owned schools in Rivers State on Wednesday got a hands-on experience of aviation and military operations as the Police Community Relations Committee (PCRC), Rivers State Command, partnered with the Nigerian Air Force to celebrate with the children.
The event held at the Nigerian Air Force Base in Port Harcourt with theme “Inspiring Dreams, Building Futures,” exposed more than 38 schools to the world of aviation through base excursions, lectures, drama presentations, quiz competitions and child safety sessions.
Participating schools included Air Force Secondary School, Community Secondary School Nkpolu Oroworukwo, Community Secondary School Mgbuosimini, Comprehensive Secondary School, Borokiri, Government Girls Secondary School, Rumuokuta, alongside other government-owned and private schools from across the state.
Speaking, Chairman of PCRC Rivers State, Dr. Voke Emore, said the initiative was aimed at inspiring children early and steering them away from social vices by showing them real career possibilities in aviation and security.
“We are celebrating children from different schools because they are the leaders of tomorrow. If we do not set things right now, we may lose many of our children to different vices,” Emore told journalists at the event.
He hinted that major highlight of the event was the guided excursion around the Air Force Base, where children saw helicopters used in Nigeria’s counter-insurgency operations and learned how they function.
“Most of the helicopters here are used in fighting insurgency in Nigeria. We want the children to begin to see possible career paths for themselves. Some of them may become pilots, aeronautical engineers or professionals in other fields in future,” Emore said.
He added that practical exposure leaves a stronger impression than classroom teaching alone, on the children.
In his remark, Commander of the 115 Special Operations Group, Nigerian Air Force, Group Captain A.A. Opaleye, represented by the Group Training Officer, Wing Commander David Olushola Olagbede, described the collaboration as the first formal Children’s Day partnership between PCRC Rivers and a NAF unit.
Opaleye added that the collaboration with the PCRC was a significant step towards community engagement and youth development.
The programme, he said, was designed to build creativity, discipline, leadership and ambition through lectures, live drama by the Rivers International Film Festival team, and sessions on child safety.
“The excursion right here on this base, was an opportunity for these young ones to see, up close, what a life of discipline, service, and purpose looks like, because imagination and creativity are not luxuries; they are tools. There was also a special presentation on child safety, because every dream requires a safe child to carry it” Olagbede told the children.
He urged them to dream big, stay disciplined in their studies, and believe they can succeed and achieve greatness regardless of their background.
Teachers, parents, caregivers, security personnel and pupils attended the event.
