Femi Adesina, the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to
the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), says Nigerians are not
in position to assess the competence or suitability of the new service chiefs
appointed by his principal.
“You and I would not be able to assess them because we are civilians. To use the word of the military, we are bloody civilians. We would not know. So, we are not in a position to assess these service chiefs and why they were appointed,” Adesina said Tuesday on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme.
After much pressure from Nigerians for the President to
bring in fresh hands to pilot the country’s anti-terrorism war especially
against Boko Haram in the North-East, Buhari announced the appointment of four
new service chiefs on Tuesday.
The new service chiefs are Major-General Leo Irabor as Chief
of Defence Staff; Major-General Ibrahim Attahiru as Chief of Army Staff; Rear
Admiral A.Z Gambo as Chief of Naval Staff; and Air-Vice Marshal I.O Amao as
Chief of Air Staff.
Many Nigerians have, however, doubted the competence of the
newly appointed Chief of Army Staff, Major-General Ibrahim Attahiru.
A former Theatre Commander of operation Lafiya Dole,
Attahiru had been removed by the Nigerian Army High Command for failing to stop
Boko Haram in 2017.
The then Chief of Army Staff, Lt.Gen Tukur Buratai, had
given Attahiru 40 days to capture Boko Haram leader, Abubakar Shekau, dead or
alive. Attahiru’s failure to live up to expectations saw him being removed
without any posting.
But the President’s spokesman said his boss did a thorough
job in coming up with the four newly appointed commanders.
He said, “The style of the president is to call for service
records. He would scrutinise many and then he can make up his mind on who is
best suited (for the job). Don’t forget that other people like the minister of
defence and other retired general he would consult and those who know. And he
has come up with choices that he thinks are best for Nigerians at this time.”
Adesina further noted that the appointment of the new
service chiefs was not based on federal character but was based on competence.
The presidential spokesman said, “There are certain
appointments that are subject to federal character. For instance, the
constitution says there must be a minister from each state of the country but
there are certain appointments that are also not subject to federal character
and one is in the security.
“They (service chiefs) are not subject to federal character,
it is about competence and ability to deliver. So, the president would appoint
whoever he thinks would deliver and to the best level for the country.
“Appointments that are subject to federal character would be
done accordingly and those that are subject to the prerogative of the
president, he would do it according to his prerogative.”
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