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‘Sack the service chiefs. Even common sense dictates that they should go,’ Shettima tells Buhari

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The former governor of Borno State, Kashim Shettima, on Monday urged President Muhammadu Buhari to sack the service chiefs over poor performance.

Shettima, who featured in a programme on Arise TV on Monday, said the service chiefs have served the country diligently over the years but their best is no longer good enough for the country.

He charged the president to dispense with the service of the military top brass in the best interest of the country, saying “even common sense dictates that they should go.”

The service chiefs were appointed by President Buhari in 2015.

Many Nigerians including members of the National Assembly and civil society groups have demanded the sack of the military chiefs over the worsening security situation in the country.

The ex-governor said: ”Why I was agitating for the removal of the service chiefs has to do with the fact that they have given their best but their best is no longer good enough. Shehu Usman Aliyu Shagari had three service chiefs in his four years of stewardship.

“Obasanjo in his second coming started with Victor Malu, he had Alex Ogbemudia and subsequently, he had Martin Luther Agwai before he had Azazi as his Chief of Army Staff.

READ ALSO: By still keeping service chiefs Buhari is breaking the law —Shekarau

“Jonathan and Yar’Adua started with Gen. Yusuf. Subsequently, they had Abdulrahman Bello Dambazzau, then Azubuike Ihejirika, and then Kenneth Minimah. In eight years they had four service chiefs.

“The current chief of defence staff is on course 25. He is in his 41st year of service. Is he so indispensable? The current chief of Army staff is course 26. The current Major Generals did not meet them in the Nigeria Defence Academy (NDA). Are they so indispensable?

“Nobody is indispensable. And the definition of insanity according to Albert Einstein is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. We believe that morale is high, there is the need for the injection of people with new ideas, with fresher perspectives to come and address the issues.

“By June next year, course 35 members are going without reaching the pinnacle of their careers. So justice, equity, fairness, and even commonsense demands that these service chiefs should go.”

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