A former Senator representing Kano Central, Rufai Hanga has claimed that President Muhammadu Buhari is yet to sack the Service Chiefs because he is afraid of a coup.
Bibian AnekweNews reports that there have been mounting pressure from Nigerians, including lawmakers and top members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) on the president to sack his service chiefs over the rising cases of insecurity across the country.
In an interview with The Sun, Hanga, a former member of the House of Representatives, wondered why the security chiefs are still keeping their jobs despite attaining the age of retirement.
“The Senate and the House of Representatives have made this call several times, but the president has refused to act for the reasons best known to him. Some people say he is afraid of coup,” he claimed.
“He once mentioned it that he didn’t want to change the Service Chief because there were very ambitious officers down the ladder. That means he is afraid of coup. The most unfortunate thing is that these Service Chiefs have overstayed their usefulness.
“Some of them have spent 40 years in service. The rule is that you retire after 35 years of service or upon the attainment of 60 years of age. Some of these people have spent far and above their age of retirement so much that the junior officers are being retired.”
While describing the situation as demoralizing and disheartening, the former Senator stated that the sack calls by federal lawmakers were mere political statement.
“The resolution is empty because the president has refused to budge to their demand. So, there is nothing they can do,” Hanga said.
