‘Abrupt and worrisome’ — ADC asks Tinubu to explain sudden change of service chiefs after alleged coup plot

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has asked PresidentBola Tinubu to be transparent with Nigerians on the reasons behind the suddenshake-up in the leadership of the Nigerian military. Tinubu approved sweeping changes in the nation’s militaryleadership on Friday. In a statement, Bolaji Abdullahi, national publicitysecretary of the ADC, said while Tinubu, as commander-in-chief, has theconstitutional authority to make such appointments, the timing of the changeshad raised public concern. Abdullahi said the decision to replace nearly all theservice chiefs was “abrupt and worrisome”, especially as it comes amidwidespread rumours of an attempted coup. “We reiterate our earlier view that the reactions of thegovernment to the dangerous rumour have veered between deliberate obfuscationand outright confusion in a matter that required crystal clarity,” he said. He noted that most of the affected service chiefs wereappointed only 28 months ago, with the current chief of defence staff havingserved just one year as chief of army staff before his promotion. “This kind of decision has serious and far-reachingimplications for stability within the ranks and therefore could not have beentaken without strong reasons,” Abdullahi said. The ADC spokesperson maintained that the federal governmentowes Nigerians a categorical explanation of what truly happened. “As an opposition political party, our interest remains thestability of our country and our democracy,” he added. Abdullahi said the ADC was deeply worried by recentdevelopments in neighbouring Chad and other Sahel states, noting that Nigeriacould not afford instability within its armed forces. He accused the Tinubu administration of being “distracted,”saying insecurity continues to worsen while the government appears more focusedon politics than governance. “Insecurity continues to spread with terrorist groupsstaging a comeback in some parts of the country, while bandits reign supreme inother parts,” he said. He added that the near-total change in military leadershipwould only fuel more speculation and conspiracy theories. “The federal government must address the issue transparentlyand reassure Nigerians that our democracy is not under threat,” Abdullahi said. The ADC had earlier urged the federal government to clarifythe true nature of the rumours of a thwarted coup and “address the nationtransparently if any threat truly exists”. On October 18, the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) dismissedreports claiming that the cancellation of Nigeria’s 65th independenceanniversary events was linked to an alleged military coup attempt.

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