If coup rumour was true, Tinubu acted wisely in changing service chiefs - Olisa Agbakoba

Olisa Agbakoba, a senior advocate of Nigeria (SAN), hasdefended President Bola Tinubu’s decision to replace the nation’s servicechiefs. Tinubu had on Friday announced changes to the leadership ofthe armed forces as part of efforts to strengthen the country’s securityarchitecture. The shake-up saw new appointments across the defencehierarchy, including the replacement of the chief of defence staff (CDS). Speaking on ‘Politics Today’, a Channels Televisionprogramme, Agbakoba said the president made the right call, especially ifreports of a planned coup were true. Reports have linked the cancellation of Nigeria’s 65thindependence anniversary events on October 1 to an alleged military coupattempt. But the defence headquarters (DHQ) had dismissed thereports, saying the cancellation had no links with the alleged coup attempt. Reacting to the development, Agbakoba said the presidentdemonstrated decisiveness that was lacking in the previous administration. “You have a president who is prepared to take toughdecisions, and we know that he likes to take tough decisions,” he said. “I think he has done the right thing because hispredecessor, the late former President Muhammadu Buhari, did not like to makesuch decisions and allowed his military team to stay far longer than theyshould have.” The former Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) president addedthat the timing of the move was appropriate. “So, if it is indeed true that there was a rumoured coup, Ithink he (Tinubu) acted sensibly by doing exactly what he has done,” he said. “What we want to see now is the impact of that decision.”

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