Public affairs commentator Mahdi Shehu has accused President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of reshuffling Nigeria’s military leadership for personal and political reasons, rather than addressing the country’s deepening security crisis.
In a statement shared on his official 𝕏 handle on Saturday, Shehu alleged that the President’s decision stemmed from panic over rumours of a possible coup, not from genuine concern about the rising wave of insecurity nationwide.
According to Shehu, the move reflects “selfish ambition and fear of political downfall,” which, he said, have long overshadowed the administration’s response to Nigeria’s internal challenges.
Quoting a biblical passage from James 3:16, he wrote, “Where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.”
Shehu added that the scripture aptly described Tinubu’s motives, suggesting that personal preservation outweighed national interest in the recent military shake-up.
“The killings across the country never moved the President to act,” he lamented.
“It wasn’t the bloodshed in Katsina, Zamfara, Sokoto, or Benue that triggered this change, but the mere whisper of a coup against his leadership.”
He went on to list several states, including Niger, Yobe, Borno, Taraba, Kogi, and Nasarawa, where bandits and insurgents continue to wreak havoc.
Despite the widespread violence, Shehu said, the President had consistently maintained the same military heads until the alleged threat to his rule emerged.
Describing the move as “a coup shrouded in darkness,” Shehu claimed Tinubu’s swift reaction was not about national security but about “political survival at any cost.”
Shehu also took aim at the administration’s handling of the economy, accusing the President of clinging to what he described as “a wizardly economic team” despite the worsening living conditions across the country.
“With over 130 million Nigerians living in poverty and hunger, this administration continues to turn a blind eye to its own economic failures,” he said.
“If the President could change service chiefs over fear of a coup, why can’t he change the people mismanaging the economy?”
President Tinubu had on Friday announced a major overhaul of the armed forces.
In a statement released by his media aide, Sunday Dare, the President appointed General Olufemi Oluyede as the new Chief of Defence Staff, replacing General Christopher Musa. Other senior officers were also reassigned as part of the shake-up.
AFRIPOST reports that the move has sparked mixed reactions, with some praising the fresh appointments as overdue, while critics like Shehu view it as a desperate attempt to tighten control amid growing national unease.
“The President must show that his leadership decisions are anchored on national interest, not fear,” Shehu concluded.