President Muhammadu Buhari has sacked all service chiefs including the National Security Adviser (NSA), Sambo Dasuki.
Special Adviser to the President (Media and Publicity), Femi Adesina, who confirmed this to state house correspondents, Monday, said the decision was with immediate effect.
The affected officers are Alex Badeh, the Chief of Defence Staff; Usman Jibrin, the Chief of Naval Staff, Kenneth Minimah, the Chief of Army Staff and Adesola Amosu, the Chief of Air Staff.
All of them were appointed by former president, Goodluck Jonathan, on January 16, 2014. Badeh took over from Ola Sa’ad Ibrahim; Minimah replaced Azubike Ihejirika; Jibrin succeeded Joseph Ezeoba and Amosu became chief of air staff following the elevation of Badeh.
The immediate replacements include: Major-General Abayomi Gabriel Olonishakin as the new Chief of Defence Staff; Rear Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas as the new Chief of Naval Staff; Air Vice Marshall Sadique Abubakar as the new Chief of Air Staff; Air Vice Marshall Monday Riku Morgan as the new Chief of Defence Intelligence; Major-General T.Y. Buratai as the new Chief of Army Staff; and Retired Major-General Babagana Monguno as the new National Security Adviser.
Since he assumed office on May 29, Buhari has met with the dismissed military chiefs on three occasions.
The sackings were expected as the president has repeatedly criticised the military’s inability to defeat Islamist group Boko Haram.
The insurgent Boko Haram group has recently launched a series of deadly guerrilla attacks, killing more than 250 people.
Boko Haram is thought to be responsible for more than 10,000 deaths.
The new military chiefs are expected to work closely with neighbours Chad, Cameroon and Niger as they join forces to tackle Boko Haram.
The group has also stepped up attacks on these countries.
At least 12 civilians were killed in Cameroon in a suspected Boko Haram suicide attack, Sunday evening, a military source told the BBC.
Two soldiers also died, along with two bombers who blew themselves up in Fotokol, near the border with Nigeria.
Chad will be the headquarters of an expanded Nigeria-led regional force of around 7,500 troops.
Its formation has gained momentum since President Buhari took office in May.
On Saturday morning, 15 people died in the main market in Chad’s capital, N’Djamena, when a man dressed in a burka blew himself up.
Boko Haram claimed responsibility for the attack.
Recently, former Army chief, Lt Gen Kenneth Minima said the upsurge in violence was the result of military success against the jihadists, as he further suggested that Boko Haram no longer had the capacity to fight the army and so had resorted to attacking soft targets with bomb blasts.
