Nigerian Military, Coup D’etat and Theatrics of Politicians

Nigerian Military, Coup D’etat and Theatrics of Politicians

By MUKHTAR Ya’u Madobi,

If not that the authorities of the Nigerian military acted swiftly, some mischievous propagandists would have succeeded in making Nigerians agitated over a fake coup plot. The coup rumour, indeed, was the handiwork of some desperate politicians with vaulting ambition.

The unscrupulous elements alleged that some officers within the Nigerian Military met with a Presidential candidate, and plotted how to jeopardize the forthcoming general elections, in a bid to drag the country into chaos.

However, it is good to note that the Nigerian military in collaboration with other sister security agencies have been working relentlessly in order to ensure security for the successful conduct of the 2023 general elections.

It is unfortunate that some enemies of the country are working behind the scene in order to compromise these efforts by the military so as to instigate unrests, prior to the elections.

While debunking the rumour, the Defence Headquarters, through the Acting Director of Defence Information, Brig.-Gen. Tukur Gusau, said that “those who made the false claims were agents of destabilization and violence seeking to heighten tension in the polity and would be made to face the wrath of the law.”

In a statement made available to newsmen in Abuja on Saturday, Gusau added that “It needs to be stated that the Armed Forces of Nigeria is a professional military that is loyal to the constitution of the Federal Republic and will never be part of any evil plot against our democracy.

“Besides, the Military remains apolitical and neutral in the current political process and will not engage in the alleged shenanigans.

“The Armed Forces of Nigeria will never be part of any ignoble plot to truncate our hard-earned democracy.”

In order to serve as deterrence to others who may wish to follow same suit, the masterminds should not go scot-free for this devilish acts. Thus, the military high command should ensure that those who fabricated and spread the unfounded report were invited by appropriate law enforcement agencies to substantiate their claims.

It is documented that Nigeria has experienced several military coups since its independence in 1960. Nonetheless, the country is now practicing and enjoying democratic form of leadership with the military playing a critical role in ensuring its success through performing its constitutional mandates of ensuring security.

Revisiting the history of military ousting showed that the first coup occurred in January 1966, when a group of mostly Igbo officers overthrew the democratically elected government of Prime Minister Abubakar Tafawa Balewa. This was followed by a counter-coup in July 1966, which saw the return of power to the Northern-dominated government.

In 1975, General Murtala Mohammed overthrew the government of General Yakubu Gowon and established a new military regime. In 1983, General Muhammadu Buhari overthrew the civilian government of President Shehu Shagari and established another military regime.

Also, in 1985, General Ibrahim Babangida overthrew Buhari’s regime and ruled until 1993 when he was forced to step down after annulling the presidential elections. In 1998, General Abdulsalami Abubakar took over from Sani Abacha and handed over power to an elected civilian government in 1999. Since then, there have been no successful military coups in Nigeria.

Since inception, the Nigerian Military has been a powerful tool for realizing the country’s core national interest, one of which is the safeguarding of Nigeria’s territorial integrity and protecting the lives and properties of the citizens.

Up to now, the AFN has never rested its oars on these mandates, and thus, the military do not supposed to get this unwarranted distraction especially at this crucial moment when the country is preparing to go to polls in less than two weeks.

It is gratifying to note that the current service Chiefs under the Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor are the most apolitical in recent times, both in ‘theory and practice.’ They hardly dabble into politics or support anyone’s political aspirations. They are just professional in their utterances and actions.

Let’s therefore cheer our military and support their cause by appreciating their efforts.

MUKHTAR is the author of a book on “National Security Strategies” and is a staff writer with the Emergency Digest.