Chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum, Kayode Fayemi, has urged the service chiefs in the country to recommend their successors to President Muhammadu Buhari.
The recent horrific killing of at least 43 rice farmers at Zabarmari in the Jere Local Government Area of Borno State had sparked fresh calls for the sacking of the country’s service chiefs by the President.
However, Fayemi said it is not about the sacking of the service chiefs but it is about “transitioning them out of their current responsibilities into retirement”.
The Ekiti State governor spoke on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics programme monitored by The PUNCH.
He said, “The service chiefs have served the country well, they’ve given their best and they’ve been committed. I know them personally and I know how well they are committed to ensuring that we get rid of this insurgency. Still, the point I am making is that if you have done something, the same thing for five years, and you have even gone beyond your retirement age, of course, once you are a service chief, you may argue that there is no retirement age. Still, the military has protocols, the military has processes and from time to time, one of the real considerations is a renewal of the leadership.
“My approach is for Mr President to ask them in their role as service chiefs who understand the military very well, who know their men very well, even to be the ones to suggest some of the best men that may step into their shoes.
“It’s not about sacking them; it’s about transitioning them out of their current responsibilities into retirement. A part of me even feels that there may be some of them that would instead exit now but they wouldn’t want to be seen as jumping ship if Mr President has not directed them but I am not the president of Nigeria and the president has within his rights to determine how he wants to direct this.
“Our own as governors and field commanders in the 36 states is to let him know the feelings of our people about security in the country and that we will do when we have the meeting.”
Fayemi said the 36 state governors would meet with the President very soon and convey the feelings of the people on the insecurity in the country to him.