The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) on Tuesday denied that the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Admiral Ola Ibrahim, sought for the President\u2019s permission to retire voluntarily from service.<\/p>\n
Brig.-Gen. Chris Olukolade, the Director, Defence Information, made the clarification at his maiden parley with Defence Correspondents in Abuja.<\/p>\n
Olukolade was reacting to reports that the CDS had sought for the President\u2019s permission to voluntarily retire from service.<\/p>\n
The director said “these media outfits, some of which quoted online news site or other anonymous sources, did not bother to check for facts before embarking on this dangerous sensational report.<\/p>\n
“Such report is capable of inciting insecurity in the country.<\/p>\n
“This is most unfortunate, especially as the report went on to paint a scenario that portrays power struggle within the service,\u2019\u2019 he said.<\/p>\n
The director added that the report was done with a view to undermine the cohesiveness of the leadership of the armed forces.<\/p>\n
Olukolade said “Admiral Ola Ibrahim remain committed to serving the nation to the best of his ability in his capacity as the CDS of the most vibrant armed forces of the sub-Saharan Africa.<\/p>\n
“For the avoidance of any doubts, it is clarified that the CDS has not tendered any such notice, neither is he ill as claimed in the spurious report.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n
He said that for most of last week, the CDS was in the United Kingdom and now in Cote D’ivoire.<\/p>\n
He said all these were in a bid to enhance the output of the Nigerian military in the discharge of its constitutional responsibilities and firming up military cooperation with its counterparts in other countries.<\/p>\n
“Therefore, any insinuation to suggest otherwise should be seen as mischievous and such speculation should be disregarded by all well-meaning Nigerians and their friends both at home and abroad.<\/p>\n
“The motive behind this false report is not yet known but it is clearly targeted at not only affecting the system negatively but also in misinforming the public on happenings in the armed forces.<\/p>\n
“It is, therefore, necessary to reaffirm the policy of the DHQ which is to remain open and accessible to whoever might wish to clarify issues, instead of engaging in speculations and rumour peddling.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n
Olukolade appealed to the media to ensure that the current security challenges confronting the country were not compounded through sensational reports.<\/p>\n
He also urged the media to remain steadfast in their calling and strive at all times to place professionalism and patriotism on the front burner.<\/p>\n
The spokesman called for caution in managing and reporting of defence matters or any issue which had implications on national security. (NAN)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) on Tuesday denied that the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Admiral Ola Ibrahim, sought for the President\u2019s permission to retire voluntarily from service. Brig.-Gen. Chris Olukolade,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11383,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11381","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n