The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to publicly explain the reasons behind his sudden dismissal of Nigeria’s service chiefs amid widespread speculation of an attempted coup.
The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, in a statement issued on Friday, expressed concern over what he described as “a lack of transparency and clarity” surrounding the president’s decision.
Abdullahi acknowledged that the President reserves the constitutional authority to hire and fire service chiefs but insisted that the timing of the action, coming amidst heightened rumours of a coup attempt, raises public anxiety.
“While we acknowledge that the President, as the Commander-in-Chief, reserves the power to make such changes as he may deem fit, we are somewhat concerned that this change is coming in the wake of widespread rumours of an attempted coup,” Abdullahi said.
He accused the Federal Government of handling the sensitive development poorly, saying its response so far has shown “deliberate obfuscation and outright confusion in a matter that required crystal clarity.”
According to the ADC, Nigerians deserve full disclosure on the rationale behind the dismissals, especially considering recent instability in neighbouring countries within the Sahel region.
“Our position remains, therefore, that the Federal Government owes Nigerians a categorical explanation about what truly happened,” Abdullahi stated.
“We are gravely concerned in the light of developments in the neighbourhood of Chad and the Sahel States.”
The ADC further urged the Tinubu administration to demonstrate accountability and reassure citizens that Nigeria’s democratic structures remain intact despite recent security speculations.
President Tinubu had earlier on Friday relieved the Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, along with other top service chiefs, of their duties. Their removal, though yet to be officially explained, has triggered a flurry of reactions across the country and social media, with many Nigerians demanding transparency on the circumstances surrounding the decision.
