Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State says the security challenges faced under the former security chiefs came as a result of their delving into politics.
According to Governor Wike, “instead of concentrating on the security of the nation, the service chiefs were very much involved in politics.”
Speaking as a guest on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, Wike urged the new leaders of the armed forces not to toe the path of their predecessors.
“This was the problem we had with the previous chiefs, they were involved in politics rather than face the security of the nation.
“Nobody can deny that fact; the moment you politicize security, then you are bound to have problems,” Wike stated via a zoom call.
The governor warned that if the new service chiefs are to toe the path of those before them, then the nation will not experience any turnaround in security issues.
The PDP chieftain said the nation appreciates the change of service chiefs, but warned that the issues do not end at the exchange of baton.
“The new people that are appointed must ask themselves, what is our agenda? Is our agenda to continue with where the last service chiefs stopped, or to make sure we improve?”
The governor’s statement comes few hours after New Chief of Defence Staff, Major General Lucky Irabor led other service chiefs on an operational visit to the Headquarters, Command and Control Centre of Operation Lafiya Dole in Maiduguri, the Borno State Capital.
This trip by the new service chiefs serves as the first operational visit aimed at better prosecuting the war against the insurgents and other miscreants across the country, a task which Governor Wike says is too enormous to be mixed with politics.
