The Nigerian Senate’s resolution asking President Muhammadu Buhari to immediately initiate a way of sacking the current overstayed service chiefs and replace them with new ones with new ideas and solutions may fall on deaf ears.
Resolutions of the Senate Tuesday were sequel to a motion entitled, ”Beheading of 67 Farmers in Borno by Boko Haram insurgents: Need for Urgent Decisive Action” and sponsored by Senator Kassim Shettima, All Progressives Congress, APC, Borno Central and co-sponsored by 17 other Senators.
The Vote-of-No-Confidence on Buhari’s inability to secure Nigeria comes in the wake of Saturday’s brutal massacre of 43 rice farmers in Zabarmari District of Jere Local Government Area of Borno State.
However, in what a prepared as a counter motion from the Presidency, Garba Shehu, a presidential spokesman, had declared that the nation’s service chiefs would remain in office as far as President Muhammadu Buhari is satisfied with their performance.
Shehu, who featured on Arise TV programme on Monday night, said the calls for the sack of the service chiefs are “out of place.”
During the TV programme monitored by TheCable, Shehu faulted claims the tenure of the service chiefs have expired, saying the law does not prescribe such term limit.
“I am not aware that the tenure of service chiefs is subject to any law or regulation that is clearly stated. They serve at the pleasure of the president,” he said.
“If the president is satisfied with their performance, he keeps them. And the buck stops on his table with all due respect to the feelings of Nigerians.
“The clamour for the sack is out of place considering that the president is not subject to the opinion of the opposition political party which has clamoured for this all the time.”
Shehu said contrary to the view of the opposition that “they have a role” in the tenure of service chiefs, it is “entirely up to him (the president) to decide”.
“He decides who he keeps as a service chief and for how long,” he added.
The Senators, Tuesday, rubbished Buhari’s poor handling of the security situation in Nigeria that has led to massive killing and wanton destruction of property across the country.
According to them, the President lacks the legitimacy to remain in power as he can no longer provide for the security of lives property.
The Senators on the floor of plenary queried Buhari for remaining in office as Commander-In-Chief if he cannot marshal the country’s security to protect the people.
According to the Senators, President has breached the 1999 Constitution as amended against the backdrop that has failed to adhere to section 14(1) of 1999 Constitution which has to do with the government and the people as well as stipulates that the Federal Republic of Nigeria shall be a state based on the principles of democracy and Social Justice.
The Senate said that Nigeria as a nation cannot move forward until the lives of every Nigerian is protected and secured, just as it stressed that the primary objective of government is the provision of security and the protection of its citizens, adding that protecting the lives and property of citizens is the primary obligation of government and any government that cannot discharge this basic obligation losses any iota of legitimacy
According to the Senate, the time has come for Chief of Defence Staff, General Abayomi Olonisakin; National Security Adviser, NSA, Major- General Mohammed Babagana Monguno; Chief of Army Staff, General Tukur Yusuf Buratai; Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar and Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Marshal Ibok- Ete Ibas to go because they have outlived their usefulness.
Meanwhile, Pan Niger Delta Forum, PANDEF, the apex socio-cultural organization of the South-South Region, has described the Senate’s call for the sack service chiefs as cowardly.
National Chairman of PANDEF, Air Commodore Idongesit Nkanga (retired) who stated this Tuesday in Uyo, opined that they should rather bring to the attention of the president citizens’ dissatisfaction with insecurity in the country and not to ask for the sack of service chiefs.
Hear him, “First of all, the Senators themselves are not serious. It is not for them to say sack Service chiefs. They should rather inquire from the president what is causing this insecurity in the country because the security of the country is in his hands.
“If there is insecurity the person that will take the blame is the Commander-In-Chief the president), or are they afraid of accusing the Commander in Chief? Supposing the president sacks the service chiefs and the insecurity continues?
“The security situation is getting worse, people are dying. If the president now feels that to sack his Service chiefs is the answer, he will do it, but for the Senate to say sack Service chiefs, as far as I am concerned is cowardly.”
Nkanga, who is a former military administrator of Akwa Ibom State, pointed out all these while Nigerians have been calling for the sack of the Service Chiefs and he (president) refused to do so, that the same should know that there is something wrong.
He recalled, “And we (PANDEF) have made a statement on that much earlier, that the service chiefs’ removal may not necessarily end the insecurity in the country. The truth remains that Service chiefs are at a level lower than the Commander-in-Chief and they take orders from him.
“And every country wants to preserve its national interest. And we have said this before that defence policy is derivable from national interest and it is not the Service chiefs that tell us what the national interest is, it is the Commander-in-Chief.”
