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There are at least four solid reasons why President Bola Ahmed Tinubu should be very careful in his appointment of the next minister of defence of the Nigerian federation.
To start with, the position of a minister of virtually any ministry can be held by any mature, educated and experienced adult, provided the person is a Nigerian. We have seen that happening in developed societies of the world.
But the core mandate of the Ministry of Defence in Nigeria, as elsewhere, is to protect the people, territories, values and interests of the country at home and overseas. It does that through a strong armed forces and in partnership with allies to ensure the nation’s security, support its national interests and safeguard its prosperity.
Whereas even a civilian can head this ministry as a minister, that can only happen when the country in question is not at war. Of course, it can be argued that Nigeria is not in a state of war but we have been waging a war against an enemy that at a time was rated by America’s CIA as the most dangerous terrorist group in the whole world.
And just when the nation had made serious inroads and was on the verge of extinguishing the Boko Haram terrorists, another war front was opened when some marauders, many of them hitherto peaceful herdsmen, took up arms, this time not directly against the state but its innocent people who they kill, rape or kidnap.
For the last two years especially, it is difficult for Nigerians, more so in the northern parts of the country, to travel from one state to the other without the fear of getting attacked or kidnapped. The Abuja-Kaduna highway became one of the most dangerous roads in the country, with kidnap cases taking place almost daily.
Whereas, on the surface, it may be argued that retired military officers superintended this crucial ministry as ministers in the last eight years, and insecurity still ravaged this country, the reality is that a lot of progress had been achieved. And in any case, even the best military general cannot stop terrorism or insecurity without the factors now being addressed by Tinubu being taken into consideration.
The reasons Tinubu should not make the mistake of appointing a civilian as the next defence minister are as follows:
Firstly, the President is a civilian, and the person he appointed as National Security Adviser is a retired police officer, the first time such has happened in the last 24 years. Of course, everyone knows just how very competent Malam Nuhu Ribadu is. At a time, some military generals were said to be disgruntled about the potential appointment of Ribadu as NSA, I recall being lectured by former Army Chief General Tukur Yusufu Buratai about the fact that the position has never been the exclusive preserve of the military. Another serving military officer told me even more on this matter, saying Ribadu was going to be good in ensuring the pursuit of Tinubu’s national security agenda.
But this worthy appointment will only be fully complemented with a retired general as defence minister, since the core responsibility of the defence ministry is about ensuring an effective military to discharge the responsibilities stated above. And definitely no one knows the military more than its own personnel, especially those who have held the position of service chiefs within the last eight years.
The second reason is that, bitter as it might sound, national security is likely to face greater challenges if, later in the year, the petitions of both Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi to Tinubu’s electoral victory are dismissed by the Supreme Court. Of course, there is no guarantee that this could happen, but, if it does, the rate of crime and criminalities at the national and sub-national levels are bound to skyrocket. There is the tendency for some to dismiss this line of thought. But it remains a reality we must embrace, for the survival of this democracy.
This brings us to the third reason, which is that the military and its personnel will feel more energized and have a true sense of belonging if one of their own is made to supervise this institution of crucial significance to the survival of Nigeria as a corporate entity. So, in case there is any upscale of unrest or terrorism, both the NSA and the defence minister, with a police and military background, respectively, can work together to quickly nip it in the bud, leveraging on their diverse experiences.
The fourth reason is that the President has just appointed service chiefs. Though all the appointees are hugely competent, the fact remains they will need some time to settle down to the onerous task of ensuring a safer Nigeria. With a defence minister who has served in the last few years as a service chief, this is going to be a lot easier. They will draw from his experience and guidance to make a quicker and more effective start to the assigned task, especially as time is of the essence.
There is the temptation to appoint a civilian who has held the office of defence minister before, but that is going to be counterproductive because the particular civilian being bandied about only held the position at a time when the nation was at its safest point. At that time, anyone could travel anywhere and at anytime without anything untoward happening. Even a small child, literally speaking, could hold that position at that time. Not anymore. Not with the formidable challenges facing us as a nation.
In any case, it is morally wrong to allow individuals who have left the APC and were never its members when the presidential election was contested and won to seek to determine, which ministry they should be posted to. Those individuals should appreciate the magnanimity of the President and allow him to post them to any ministry he deems fit.
Lastly, the appointment of a retired military chief as the next defence minister will ensure the gains of the last eight years are not lost on us as a nation. Of course, some Nigerians, in anger, see the last eight years as being wasteful in terms of our national security. But that is for those compatriots with a short memory, with all due respect.
In late 2020, Borno, almost two-thirds of which was in the control of Boko Haram during the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan, held a peaceful and successful local government election, with Governor Babagana Zulum directing the elected chairmen to leave Maiduguri for their local government secretariats scattered all over Borno State. They did. And none of them was kidnapped or even attacked by Boko Haram because the terrorists had been greatly subdued, limiting their cowardly attacks mostly to civilian and soft targets.
Since then, owing to the resilient leadership of the army leadership at the time, the enemies started surrendering to our troops in large numbers, and their leader, the evil Abubakar Shekau was killed as a result of fracas engineered by the army, within the ranks of the enemies.
Experience is not something that can be purchased at a market place. With President Tinubu already starting his tenure of office on a note of glory, he has a responsibility to ignore the naysayers and appoint a former military chief as the next Defence Minister, so that he could on a faster note have the needed environment to stimulate the economy and build for all of us the Nigeria of our dreams.
