By Amofokhai Williams
In a significant move to recalibrate Nigeria’s fight against pervasive security threats, President Bola Tinubu has dismissed the nation’s military service chiefs and appointed a new command team, effective immediately.
The sweeping changes, announced on Friday by Special Adviser Sunday Dare, see the replacement of the Chief of Defence Staff and the heads of the Army, Navy, and Air Force.
The move is described as a strategic effort by the Federal Government to “strengthen the national security architecture” amid ongoing challenges.
The outgoing Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, has been replaced by General Olufemi Oluyede.
General Musa, who led the armed forces during a period of intense operations against insurgent and bandit groups, received the President’s “most profound appreciation” for his “patriotic service and dedicated leadership.”
The new service chiefs appointed by the Commander-in-Chief are:
Chief of Army Staff: Major-General W. Shaibu
Chief of Air Staff: Air Vice Marshal S.K. Aneke
Chief of Naval Staff: Rear Admiral I. Abbas
In a retention signaling continuity in defence intelligence, Major-General E.A.P. Undiendeye will remain in his post as Chief of Defence Intelligence.
The reshuffle comes at a critical juncture for Nigeria’s security forces, which are engaged on multiple fronts, including the counter-insurgency campaign in the North-East, rampant banditry in the North-West, and escalating communal conflicts in the Middle Belt and other regions.
In a direct charge to the new appointees, President Tinubu tasked them with justifying the confidence reposed in them and demanded a further enhancement of the “professionalism, vigilance and comradeship that define the Armed Forces of Nigeria.”
The new service chiefs assume command with immediate effect, inheriting the formidable mandate of securing the nation’s territory and restoring public confidence in the country’s security institutions.
