The Chief of Air Staff, Oladayo Amao, has said he and his navy and army counterparts have agreed to subject themselves to the leadership of the Chief of Defence Staff, Lucky Irabor.
The air force chief stated this during an inspection tour at the Tactical Air Command in Makurdi, Benue State on Friday.
He said as it is in every part of the world, the army, air force and navy will henceforth be subordinates of the defence headquarters.
He said the defence headquarters is responsible for the command and control of the entire armed forces of Nigeria .
He added that all ongoing joint operations and Joint Task Forces are directly subordinated to the defence headquarters and their commanders report directly to the CDS.
The Air Force spokesperson, Edward Gabkwet, quoted Mr Amao as saying the new service chiefs had all agreed to tow this new line as efforts are on to bring the various security challenges to an end.
“When we say we are members of the armed forces of Nigeria (AFN), we mean the three services represent a single entity. When we accept the fact that we the members of the AFN constitute a united entity, the need for rivalry will not arise,” he said.
Mr Amao also spoke of his resolve to revert to the military tradition of adherence to seniority and hierarchy in the appointment of officers to head command posts.
‘According to him, “Situations where subordinate officers are given command appointments ahead of their seniors does not augur well for the system as this breeds insubordination and indiscipline.”
On discipline, Mr Amao said there would be no sacred cows when it comes to discipline as those found wanting would be punished in accordance with the Armed Forces Act.
He urged personnel to support the 131 Engineering Group, being the hub of some of the platforms which he said would be arriving, as well as make the foreign technicians feel at home.
The platforms, according to the CAS, when fully operational, would be deployed immediately to the theatres of operations and should hopefully be the game changers in all DHQ led operations nationwide.
The CAS also stated that efforts were currently underway to improve the combat efficiency of the NAF and other services to an appreciable level and these efforts have the full backing of President Muhammadu Buhari.
Mr Amao urged the personnel to continue to support the federal government in its efforts to equip NAF and other services.
He assured that improved personnel welfare and promotion would be given special consideration as soon as they meet the criteria set for the promotion.
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