20 Generals may go as Buhari replaces Buratai, service chiefs
No fewer than 20 members of courses 34 and 35 may proceed on retirement as the President, Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday removed service chiefs and appointed a new set of officers to replace them.
The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina in a statement titled, “President Buhari appoints new service chiefs”, named officers who would head the nation’s armed forces.
According to him, they include Chief of Defence Staff, Major General Lucky Irabor; Chief of Army Staff, Major General I. Attahiru; Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral A.Z Gambo and the Chief of Air Staff, Air-Vice Marshal Isiaka Amao.
Earlier in his statement, the Presidential Spokesman, Adesina, stated, “President Muhammadu Buhari has accepted the immediate resignation of all service chiefs and their retirement from service.
“Those involved are the Chief of Defence Staff, General Abayomi Olonisakin; Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai, Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok Ekwe Ibas and Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar.
“President Buhari thanks the outgoing service chiefs for what he calls their “overwhelming achievements in our efforts at bringing enduring peace to our dear country’, wishing them well in their future endeavours.
Meanwhile, some Senators asked the newly appointed service chiefs to hit the ground running by tackling the worsening insecurity across the country.
Senator Eyinnaya Abariba (Abia South) said, “The appointment of new service chiefs is better late than never. We have been calling for this for a long time now.
“Let us hope that this team would stem the tide of insecurity”.
On his part, Opeyemi Bamidele said, “This is just one out of a number of steps needed to be taken to tackle insecurity, which is making life difficult for Nigerians.
“We should work on the morale of the serving military officers so that they can pursue the war against banditry and insurgency very well”.
