Buhari Laments Inability to Keep Campaign Promises As Jubilation Heralds Sack of Service Chiefs

President Muhammadu Buhari during a meeting with the service chiefs said his regime had not found it easy keeping the promises it made in 2015.

According to a statement by Adesina, the President urged the service chiefs to be patriotic, saying the country was in an emergency.

The statement quoted the President as telling the service chiefs that “We’re in a state of emergency. Be patriotic, serve the country well, as your loyalty is to the country.

“You know the stage we were in 2015, you know the stage we are now, and the undertakings we made.

“We promised to secure the country, revive the economy, and fight corruption. None has been easy, but we have certainly made progress.”

At the end of the meeting, Irabor, in an interview with State House correspondents, said Buhari told them that the expectations of Nigerians were high and they must do everything to meet them.

The North Central Governors Forum enjoined the new service chiefs to evolve in new strategies that will adequately address the security challenges that have bedeviled the region and the country as a whole.

The Chairman of the forum,  Abubakar Sani Bello of Niger State made the call on Wednesday in a statement while lauding the appointment of new service chiefs describing it as a noble decision by the President.

On its part, Borno Concern Citizens Forum hailed the removal of the former service chiefs as being timely and long overdue.

One of its leaders, Zanna Boguma, told The PUNCH that said the former service chiefs whose appointments were celebrated for being merited in 2015 suddenly became unpopular because of the degeneration in security of the country, particularly in the North-East.

There was jubilation in some military barracks over the Tuesday removal of the service chiefs.

A video circulated on social media captured some personnel screaming for joy and dancing in their barracks over the development.

There had been discontent in the armed forces over the lack of promotion and career stagnation occasioned by the extended stay of the service chiefs.