New military structure as service chiefs take over
Armed Forces, Latest Politics Thursday, January 23rd, 2014AS the new service chiefs formally take over the mantle of leadership today, a picture of the new military and its structure has emerged.
Those who are taking over from their predecessors are Chief of Defence Staff, Air Marshal Alex Sabundu Badeh, new Chief of Army Staff, Maj.-Gen. Kenneth Tobiah Jacob Minimah, new Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Usman Jibrin and Chief of Air Staff, Air Vice Marshal Adesola Nunayon Amosu.
Though information obtained by The Guardian from the Nigerian Army Seniority Roll Regular Combatants Officers for 2013 doesn’t show the whole picture of the seniority in the Army, Minimah is number 17.
Six persons on the seniority list who have left service include Ihejirika, who retired as COAS effective 16-01-2014, Maj.-Gen. L.P. Ngubane (retired voluntarily with effect from November 10, 2013 on attaining the age ceiling 56 years for a major general), Maj.-Gen. M.B. Monguno (retired voluntarily with effect from September 23, 2013 on attaining the age ceiling of 56 years), Maj.-Gen. C.O. Onwuamaegbu (retired voluntarily on October 29, 2013 on attaining the age ceiling of 56), Maj.-Gen. O.A.C. Ariahu (retired voluntarily with effect from September 9, 2013 on attaining the age ceiling of 56 years) and Maj.-Gen. A.K. Kwaskebe (retired voluntarily on August 8, 2013 on attaining the age ceiling of 56 years).
Information obtained shows that in reality, based on laid down Army rules, there are actually only 10 officers senior to Minimah in the ranks of major general on the date of his appointment. They include those who are his seniors either by virtue of seniority on promotion and three of his course mates who have senior Nigerian Army (NA) numbers. Out of the seven senior officers who are Minimah’s seniors, two are already due for retirement this month of January 2014.
They include Maj.-Gen. S.U. Abdulkadir (Commander, Training and Doctrine Command) who was notified of his retirement according to the rules and has applied for voluntary retirement having attained the age ceiling of 56 years on January 27, 2014 and Maj.-Gen. A.A. Olaniyi who is due for retirement on attaining the age ceiling of 56 years on January 29, 2014 but was granted six months extension which will terminate on July 2014 because there are special engineering projects he is overseeing for the Army.
Of the five remaining officers who are senior to the new Chief of Army Staff, two have been notified of the impending retirements and they have equally applied for voluntary retirements. They include Maj.-Gen. S.Y. Audu, who is due for retirement on May 27, 2014 on attaining the age ceiling of 56 years and Maj.-Gen. P.J. Isang who is due for retirement on May 21, 2014 on attaining the age ceiling of 56 years. Of the three remaining senior officers, Maj.-Gen. E.E. Bassey is to disengage from service on December 15, 2014 when he would have served his full 35 years in service. By tradition, he is expected to be notified in June 2014 to enable him to apply for voluntary retirement. Maj.-Gen. J.S. Kwabe is due for retirement on April 2015 while Maj.-Gen. A.B. Marwa is due for retirement in February 2015.
And in the complex nature of military seniority, there are five officers who were senior to Minimah in NDA, being members of 22, 23 and 24, but are currently junior to him, having lost seniority at various times of promotions. Still in service, they are due to retire at various times between next month and later next year. They include Maj.-Gen. D.D. Kitchener (NDA Regular Course (RC) 22 but who is due to retire on February 14, 2014; Maj.-Gen. A.M. Gana (NDA RC 23 who is due to retire on October 2, 2014); Maj.-Gen. M.B. Ibrahim (NDA RC 24 who is due to retire on July 13, 2015; Maj.-Gen. A.A. Martins (NDA RC 24 who is due to retire on January 7, 2015 and Maj.-Gen. N.O. Ojiji (NDA RC 24) who was awaiting Army Council approval to proceed on his disengagement from service on January 16, 2014, the day the new changes were announced in the military.
The three course mates of Minimah who have senior Nigerian Army (NA) numbers include Maj.-Gens. H.I.O. Ayoola, U. Buzugbe and E.B. Awala. They are all members of NDA RC 25 as Minimah.
Even in the Nigerian Air Force, the new Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), Air Vice Marshal Amosu, who is the same NDA RC 25, has nine of his senior officers still in service. They include Air Vice Marshals D.S. Dillimo, N.A. Spiff, I. Umar, C. Onyemaobi, I.A. Kure, M.M. Maisaki, M.A. Akisami and E.E. Osim. By appointing the CAS, only pilots are considered. And out of the nine, only three are pilots.
For the new Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral Jubrin, who is a member of NDA RC 24, he doesn’t have the challenge of dealing with many of his seniors like his counterparts in the Army and Air Force. He has only one, Rear Admiral James Oladimeji, a member of NDA RC 23 and the current Chief of Administration, Defence Headquarters.
With the advent of democracy in 1999, President Olusegun Obasanjo appointed Lt.-Gen. Samuel Victor Leo Malu (NDA RC 3) as COAS. Malu was replaced on April 2011 by Gen. Alexander Ogomudia (NDA RC 7). Ogomudia was replaced in June 2003 by Gen. Martins Luther Agwai (NDA RC 8). Agwai was replaced by the late Gen. Owoye Andrew Azazi (NDA RC 12) in June 2006. Azazi was replaced by the late Lt.-Gen. Luka Yusuf (NDA RC 14) in May 2007 while Lt.-Gen. Abdulrahman Bello Dambazau (NDA RC 17) replaced Yusuf in August 2008 while Lt.-Gen. O.A. Ihejirika (NDA RC 18) replaced Dambazau on September 8, 2010. Ihejirika has the record of the longest serving COAS since the nation returned to democratic rule. He was in office for three years four months and seven days.
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