The National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno, has accused President Muhammadu Buhari’s Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, of undue and dangerous interference on national security matters.
Consequently, Monguno fired a warning memo to all service chiefs to desist from taking further directives from Kyari.
Monguno said Kyari’s directives to service chiefs were sometimes issued without the knowledge much less approval of the President, a practice he said has added to the government’s failure to contain insecurity.
“Chief of staff to the President is not a presiding head of security, neither is he sworn to an oath of defending the country,” Mr Monguno said in the December 9, 2019, letter.
“As such, unprofessional practices such as presiding over meetings with service chiefs and heads of security organisations as well as ambassadors and high commissioners to the exclusion of the NSA and/or supervising ministers are a violation of the Constitution and directly undermine the authority of Mr President.
“Such acts and continues meddlesomeness by chief of staff have not only ruptured our security an defence efforts but have slowed down any meaningful gain that Mr President has sought to achieve.”
Mr Monguno’s letter comes as insecurity returns to centre stage as a major cause for worry among Nigerians.
