President Muhammadu Buhari has ordered the new service chiefs to put in their best and secure Nigeria from the hands of insurgents.
Handing down the order, shortly after he decorated the new service chiefs with their new ranks at the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Friday, Buhari said he expected them to secure the country before the rainy season, when farmers would return to their vocation.
The president advised the service chiefs to identify and deploy competent officers to achieve the target.
“During our four-hour security meeting, I have taken the responsibility as the Commander-in-Chief for you to go out into the field and secure the country.
“I have accepted responsibility for your action on the field. It is up to you to identify your competent officers irrespective of seniority and paper qualification and deploy them to make sure that we secure this country.
“You have got a few weeks to do that because, by the rainy season, we expect people to develop confidence and go back to the land so that we don’t get into trouble by being away from the field and therefore unable to produce enough food for the nation,” Buhari said.
The new service chiefs decorated with new ranks are the Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor; Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant-General Ibrahim Attahiru; Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Awwal Zubairu; and Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Isiaka Amoo.
At the event were Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo; Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha; Minister of Defence, Bashir Magashi and Chief of Staff to the President, Ibrahim Gambari.
