By Adekunle Williams
A former lawmaker, Mr Olumuyiwa Jimoh, has described President Bola Tinubu’s decision to sack service chiefs and appoint new ones as a strategic move to strengthen security architecture.
Jimoh, a former Deputy Majority Leader of the Lagos State House of Assembly, said this in an interview in Lagos on Friday.
Tinubu, in a statement issued by Sunday Dare, one of his media aides on Friday, made sweeping changes in the country’s military leadership.
Tinubu said this was in furtherance of the efforts of the Federal Government of Nigeria to strengthen the national security architecture.
According to the statement, the President appointed Gen. Olufemi Oluyede to replace Gen. Christopher Musa as the new Chief of Defence Staff.
“The new Chief of Army Staff is Maj-Gen. W. Shaibu, Air Vice Marshall S.K Aneke is Chief of Air Staff, while Rear Admiral I. Abbas is the new Chief of Naval Staff. Chief of Defence Intelligence Major-Gen. E.A.P Undiendeye retains his position.
Reacting to the development, Jimoh said the decision should not come as a surprise, as it falls within the President’s constitutional powers to reorganise the military leadership whenever necessary.
He said: “It’s not a new thing. The President has the authority to appoint or reshuffle the service chiefs to enhance the nation’s security structure.
“This may have been done to strengthen our national defence system, and it is a welcome development.”he said.
Addressing rumours circulating in some quarters about an alleged coup plot being behind the shake-up, Jimoh dismissed such claims as speculative and unfounded.
“I’m not in the Nigeria Defence Academy or the military, but whether there are rumours or not, the President has every right to reshuffle his team.
“Whether it’s the service chiefs, ministers, or ambassadors. That is why he is the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces,” he said.
