•Alex Badeh: Defence Headquarters blasts Obasanjo

The Nigerian military has upbraided its former commander-in-chief and former Nigerian President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, over his recent comments linking the postponement of the February elections to the plot by President Goodluck Jonathan to perfect using service chiefs rig the elections.

It accused him of ‘playing to the gallery’ and politicising ‘serious national security issues’. It said his conduct has become an embarrassment to the armed forces and his conduct unbecoming of a military general.

“..his conduct and unguarded utterances of late have fallen short of the standard of discipline expected of an individual who has had the privilege of service in the military and risen to the status of a General. The behavior of retired General (Chief) Obasanjo has been so unbecoming and continues to constitute a serious embarrassment to the military before all who have reasonably and rightly adjudged the essence of military background in terms of the high value and standard it tends to contribute to statesmanship,” said the statement signed by Major General Chris Olukolade for the Defence Headquarters.

Olukolade said Obasanjo’s comments about the military are far from being “noble”, which can be interpreted to mean that the old General’s views are ‘disgraceful’.

The statement by the military high command showed a total lack of respect for superiors, the same way the army had dragged the reputation of another former head of state, Maj. General Muhammadu Buhari in the mud, as controversy over his educational qualification raged.

Obasanjo joined the army in 1958, a year after the present Chief of defence staff, Air Marshall Alex Badeh was born and retired from the army, in 1979, the same year that Badeh enrolled in the military. Obasanjo must wonder what kind of institution he and the retired generals had bequeathed, an institution that no longer has ‘officers and gentlemen”!

Here is the full statement:

“The Defence Headquarters has noted the remarks of a former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo as reported in the media stating his views on perceived state of the armed forces and the roles being allegedly played by the military in the nation’s political process in recent times. The leadership and cross section of the military believes that the former President and retired General has every right to be interested in the actions and fate of the military. Hence, his views like many others will continue to be accorded the well-deserved attention. It is however noteworthy that most of his utterances lately indicate an attitude of playing to the gallery or indulging in politicization of serious national security or military affairs.

“For instance, the comments credited to Chief Obasanjo alleging that the postponement of the General Elections was to enable President Jonathan to use the Service Chiefs to plot a tenure extension is to say the least, very surprising. It is surprising indeed, considering the fact that the retired General chose to ignore the clarification and emphatic assurances of non-partisanship of the military as declared in a DHQ statement on the position of the Armed Forces in the ongoing political activities. His motive as usual remains unknown but it is certainly less than noble or well intentioned. We dare say again that Chief Obasanjo’s assertions are false.

“Much as the military desires to respect the old General and his views, it has become necessary to point out that his conduct and unguarded utterances of late have fallen short of the standard of discipline expected of an individual who has had the privilege of service in the military and risen to the status of a General. The behavior of retired General (Chief) Obasanjo has been so unbecoming and continues to constitute a serious embarrassment to the military before all who have reasonably and rightly adjudged the essence of military background in terms of the high value and standard it tends to contribute to statesmanship.

“We feel constrained to remind the old General that the world has moved beyond that parochial and self-adulating reasoning and mindset which he seems stuck to. Indeed, he needs to be told that by virtue of their better training, exposure, education, assessment and environment, the military personnel of today are already far beyond his level in their appreciation of democracy and it’s indispensability for the stable and prosperous society which Nigerians cherish.

“In this instance, the military wishes to inform the retired General, that the institution which he bequeathed to the nation has certainly developed beyond how he left it. The Nigerian military is now better placed to strive for the maintenance of the legacies & ethos of service, valour, subordination to constituted authorities, and nonpartisan commitment to duty and fatherland. It has to be restated that the military as an institution, is neither as inept in the discharge of its duties, nor is it being misused for political ends in the manner the retired General Obasanjo who was also a former President has possibly been made to believe”.