President Bola Tinubu on Thursday officially decorated Nigeria’s new service chiefs at the Council Chamber of the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The ceremony, which started shortly after 2pm, saw Tinubu joined by Vice President Kashim Shettima and the spouses of the officers, all in their service uniforms, as they pinned the new ranks on the appointees.
The decorated officers include General Olufemi Oluyede as Chief of Defence Staff, Lieutenant-General Wahidi Shaibu as Chief of Army Staff, Air Marshal Kennedy Aneke as Chief of Air Staff, and Vice Admiral Idi Abbas as Chief of Naval Staff.
Their appointments followed Senate confirmation on Wednesday, after a two-hour closed-door screening where lawmakers probed the nominees on strategies to strengthen national security and improve coordination among the armed forces. Tinubu had earlier requested a fast-tracked confirmation to “ensure continuity in the nation’s security leadership.”
Senior government officials, lawmakers, family members of the service chiefs, and top military officers attended the event.
The decoration comes a week after a major shake-up in the military hierarchy, aimed at injecting new direction into Nigeria’s defence structure. Major General E. A. P. Undiendeye, the Chief of Defence Intelligence, retained his post.
Addressing rumours linking the reshuffle to an alleged coup plot, Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, clarified, “The President acted within his authority as Commander-in-Chief. Service chiefs can be hired and fired by the President.”
Earlier on Monday, Tinubu met privately with the new service chiefs at the Villa. They arrived in a black Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van, escorted by a green Toyota Land Cruiser, for a 40-minute session during which they were tasked with taking decisive action against insurgents and bandits, particularly in the North.
The reshuffle followed an October 19 report claiming some officers were planning to overthrow the government, a claim later dismissed by Defence Headquarters as “false and mischievous.” Brigadier-General Tukur Gusau, Director of Defence Information, described the allegations as stemming from “issues of indiscipline” and intended to “cause unnecessary tension and distrust among the populace.”