By Levinus Nwabughiogu & Omeiza Ajayi

ABUJA — The Presidency, yesterday, dismissed reports that President Muhammadu Buhari has replaced the Chief of Defence Staff, General Gabriel Olonisakin, and Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas, as service chiefs.

Defence Headquarters and Minister of Defence, Mansur Dan Ali, also asked the public to discountenance rumours of replacement of service chiefs.

Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, made the clarification in a statement.

He stated that the service chiefs still have a little time to stay in office, saying the purveyor of the report should have confirmed the story before going to press.

He said: “It is necessary to respond to a false story published today (yesterday) to the effect that President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the replacement of Chief of Defence Staff, General Gabriel Olonisakin, and Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas, as service chiefs.

President Buhari

“The newspaper, rather than rush to print an unsubstantiated story, would have done better to confirm the information at its disposal, from many available military and government information channels.

“It then would have avoided the self-inflicted wound of publishing a one-legged story that is not completely true, and damaging its brand in the process.

“Gen Olonisakin is due to retire from the Army next week, having satisfied the official number of years in service. He is yet to be replaced. But the Chief of Naval Staff has a short while more, and President Buhari could, therefore, not have approved his replacement yet.

“This administration has repeatedly pledged commitment to transparency and accountability, and one of the hallmarks of that is making information available to the media.

“But when some sections of the media would rather speculate, than cross-check and double check information, then it borders on deliberate mischief. That, surely, is not the way to go, for national cohesion and development.”

Director of Defence Information, Brigadier-General Rabe Abubakar, also asked Nigerians to dismiss the report, expressing disappointments that the conventional media tagged along with the social media to disseminate incorrect information.

“It is unfortunate that the false information was not only on the social media but also the conventional media; it is very wrong. We don’t know where these people are getting their information from. Issues of such importance should be cleared from the highest echelon.

On his part, Minister of Defence, Mansur Dan-Ali, in a statement by his Public Relations Officer, Colonel Tukur Gusau, while refuting the report of alleged sack of Olonisakin and the Naval chief, Ibok Ete-Ibas, said the rumours should be disregarded, insisting that he was not aware of such development, contrary to reports that linked him to it.