Nigerian military chiefs fired

  1. Posted on Friday 22 August 2008 - 09:21
    Murtala
    Image of Murtala
    Murtala Mohamed Kamara, AfricaNews reporter, Free Town, Sierra Leone
    Nigerian president, Musa Y'ardua, has fired some of the country's top military officers, shortly before leaving for the Islamic Republic of Saudi Arabia. No reason was given for the action according to sources from Abuja.
    President Umaru YarAdua
    The military top brass who were sacked include the chief of defense staff, the chief of army staff and the chief of naval staff among others and they have already been replaced.

    Sola Odunfa, a Nigerian analyst and former BBC correspondent said in an interview that the president decision did not come as a surprise to him. Sola Odunfa said former heads of states are accustomed to replacing top military brass as soon as they assume power according to him the sacked military chiefs are considered to be loyal servants of the former president Olusegun Obasanjo.

    Mr. Odunfa revealed that the actions of president Y'ardua might in some way be associated with the way the military top brass have been handling the uprising in the oil rich Niger-Delta. He said the Niger-Delta situation has been seriously affecting the Nigeria economy and the president in his wisdom thought it fit to pay more attention to that area.

    Meanwhile, public reaction from Nigeria took as a normal administrative change by the commander in chief of the armed forces.

    It can be recalled that the former Katsina state governor (Y'ardua) succeeded former President Obasanjo in last years Presidential elections which the International Elections Observation Mission says was far below acceptable standards.

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