Why General Adeniyi was removed as Commander

The Nigerian Army on Tuesday effected a major shake up and released the postings and appointments of some senior officers.

The posting was approved by the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Lt Gen TY Buratai.

However, one of the senior officers affected by the shake up was Maj Gen OG Adeniyi, who was redeployed from Headquarters Theatre Command OPLD Maiduguri to NARC as Senior Research Fellow.

Gen. Adeniyi was replaced by Maj Gen F Yahaya from Headquarters 1 Division Kaduna as the new Commander of the Headquarters Theatre Command Operation LAFIYA DOLE (OPLD) Maiduguri.

However, Maj. Gen. Adeniyi’s redeployment may not be unconnected to viral video where he was pleading with the government and the Chief of Army Staff to provide weapons for the soldiers in war front to do their jobs.

In the video, the ex-Commander says, “Good morning sir. [I’m] General Adeniyi. The soldiers are not running. The three Battalions are standing and fighting though there are casualties.

“Intelligence assessment concerning the Timbuktu Triangle is very wrong sir. Since yesterday we’ve met a very strong resistance.

“Not less than 15 gunshots are facing us. This morning, this people have fired over 100 RPT at us. They have fired several mortars on us.

“This is the true situation sir. I’m here on ground . No any sector commander is running or not leading their men.

“These soldiers are not running . We are good to go but here now these things are working against us.”

The video also shows some injured soldiers lying helplessly on the ground while others shout angrily.

Following this outburst was the removal of Gen. Adeniyi from the battle front on Tuesday although the army explained that the redeployment was as a routine/normal exercise intended to reinvigorate the system for greater professional effectiveness and efficiency.

General Adeniyi removal has also raised a lot concerns among Nigerians on social media .