The sacked Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, and two other service chiefs, Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Hasan Abubakar, and Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla, are set to receive generous retirement benefits.

The benefits include bulletproof vehicles, domestic aides, and lifetime medical care.

Their exit follows President Bola Tinubu’s appointment of new service chiefs on Friday.

General Olufemi Oluyede has been named the new Chief of Defence Staff, while Major-General W. Shaibu takes over as Chief of Army Staff.

Air Vice Marshal Sunday Kelvin Aneke becomes the new Chief of Air Staff, and Rear Admiral I. Abbas the Chief of Naval Staff. The Chief of Defence Intelligence, Major-General E.A.P. Undiendeye, retains his position.

The President’s Special Adviser on Media and Public Communication, Sunday Dare, said in a statement on Friday that the removal of the service chiefs was in furtherance of the Federal Government’s ongoing efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s national security architecture.

According to the Harmonised Terms and Conditions of Service for Officers and Enlisted Personnel in the Nigerian Armed Forces, signed by President Tinubu on December 14, 2024, the service chiefs are entitled to substantial retirement packages upon disengagement.

The document stipulates that each retiring service chief will receive a bulletproof SUV or an equivalent vehicle, to be maintained and replaced every four years by the military.

They are also entitled to a Peugeot 508 or an equivalent backup vehicle.

Beyond the vehicles, the package includes five domestic aides — two service cooks, two stewards, and one civilian gardener — along with an aide-de-camp or security officer, and a personal assistant or special assistant.

They will also retain three service drivers, a service orderly, and a standard guard unit comprising nine soldiers.

READ ALSO:JUST IN: Tinubu Sacks CDS Musa, Names New Army Boss

The benefits extend to free medical treatment both in Nigeria and abroad, as well as the retention of personal firearms to be retrieved upon their demise.

However, while officers of lieutenant-general rank and equivalents are entitled to international and local medical care worth up to $20,000 annually, the benefits for the service chiefs, though not stated in the document, are believed to be considerably higher.

The HTCOS reads, “Retirement benefits for CDS and Service Chiefs: The following benefits shall be applicable: one bulletproof SUV or equivalent vehicle to be maintained by the Service and to be replaced every four years. One Peugeot 508 or equivalent backup vehicle.

‘’Retention of all military uniforms and accoutrement to be worn for appropriate ceremonies; five domestic aides (two service cooks, two stewards, and one civilian gardener); one Aide-de-Camp/security officer; one Special Assistant (Lt/Capt or equivalents) or one Personal Assistant (Warrant Officer or equivalents); standard guard (nine soldiers).

“Three service drivers; one service orderly; escorts (to be provided by appropriate military units/formation as the need arises); retention of personal firearms (on his demise, the personal firearm(s) shall be retrieved by the relevant service); and free medical cover in Nigeria and abroad.”

However, the policy specifies that such entitlements apply only if the retired officers have not accepted any other appointment funded from public resources — except when such an appointment is made by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

In such cases, the officers, according to the document, will only receive allowances commensurate with the new role rather than a full salary.

Retired soldiers protest lavish perks

Reacting, some retired soldiers decried what they described as the luxurious benefits and entitlements reserved for service chiefs and senior military officers.

They lamented that junior personnel continued to suffer neglect and unpaid entitlements despite years of service to the nation.

READ ALSO:BREAKING: Tinubu swears In New INEC Chairman, Amupitan

The retired officers expressed frustration over the disparity in welfare and treatment between senior and junior ranks within the military.

One of the leaders of the discharged soldiers demanding their owed entitlements, Sgt. Zaki Williams, expressed frustration over the entitlements reserved for the service chiefs.

Speaking in an emotional tone, Williams, who claimed to be speaking for more than 700 soldiers in his group, said many retired non-commissioned officers had been abandoned despite dedicating their lives to defending the country.

He said, “I don’t really understand how our people in Nigeria do things. The people at the top always do things to favour only themselves. They don’t care about the poor or the junior ones who sacrificed everything.”

The retired sergeant recalled that government officials had made several promises to improve their welfare, but none had been fulfilled.

“Since the day they made those promises to us, we went back home and didn’t hear anything again. Everything just ended there. We’ve been waiting till now, but nothing has happened,” he added.

Williams said the situation had left many of his colleagues demoralised and divided over whether to continue pressing for their entitlements.

“Some of us said we should protest again, but others refused. We told them that day that we were not going for another protest. If the government wants to help us, they should help us. If not, we’re done,” he said.

He also accused senior military officers of frustrating efforts by the defence ministry to address the concerns of retired personnel.

According to Williams, life after service has been extremely difficult for most of them who retired voluntarily or were discharged without compensation.

READ ALSO:Tinubu Approves Tenure Extension For Surveyor-General

“How can someone retire after years of service and still not get their entitlement? Many of us can’t even build a house. The senior officers have houses, cars, and everything good, but the rest of us have nothing,” he said.

He added that the little compensation given to some was not enough to rebuild their lives.

“If they give you N2m today, what can you really start with it in this country? You have children, family, and responsibilities, yet you can’t even afford a plot of land,” he said.

Expressing disappointment, he said most junior officers had lost faith in the system.

“We’ve handed everything over to God,” he said quietly. “We’ve cried and done our best. They promised us, but in the end, it’s still zero. We haven’t seen anything. That’s why many of us are now silent.”

Another retired soldier, Abdul Isiak, lamented that promises made to retired personnel had remained unfulfilled, leaving many struggling to survive.

He said, “All you said they would give to them would be done promptly, and they are more than what we need to sustain our lives. This is very unfair. We have suffered a lot, and they’re yet to give us our entitlements after leaving the service. What is our offence? Is it because we are junior officers?”

The former sergeant said the senior officers continued to enjoy generous retirement packages while lower ranks were denied their due benefits.

“We are preparing for another protest for them to pay us. This is very bad,” he said.

(PUNCH)

The Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries International has accused the UK Charity Commission of bias and being discriminatory in its report that alleged the church engaged in financial mismanagement.

MFM denied that its UK branch’s accounts were frozen due to financial mismanagement by its trustees.

According to a report by The Cable, the UK Charity Commission had frozen assets belonging to MFM over transparency concerns.

The commission said it opened an inquiry after financial concerns were identified, including the alleged misappropriation of charity funds.

The inquiry found that trustees in the MFM charity wing could not demonstrate that they had adequate oversight or control over more than 100 bank accounts operated by individual branches.

READ ALSO:UK Police Hunt Asylum Seeker Mistakenly Freed For Sex Offence

But reacting to the allegations in a statement on Saturday by its spokesperson, Dan Aibangbe, the church described the commission’s action as “a gross distortion of facts and a deliberate mischaracterisation of a closed chapter.”

MFM insisted that no wrongdoing or fraud was ever found against its trustees.

“The issues raised were related to administrative governance, not a finding of fraudulent activity by the trustee body. This matter is old and not a fresh development. It is misleading to present it as a current scandal,” the church said.

In the statement titled ‘A Point-by-Point Rebuttal: Setting the Record Straight on the MFM–UK Charity Commission Matter,’ the church said none of its bank accounts were frozen, describing such claims as “a complete fabrication.”

The statement added, “No bank accounts belonging to MFM were ever frozen. The commission’s report identified no evidence of systemic financial misconduct by the trustees. The entire process was a display of overreach, not an exposure of fraud.”

READ ALSO:UK Is A Home, Not Hotel, Kemi Badenoch Tells Immigrants, Starmer’s Govt

MFM maintained that the Charity Commission acted “not on concrete evidence but on rumours and gossip,” claiming that the regulator’s expectations of uncovering large-scale fraud proved unfounded after it gained access to the church’s financial records.

“When the Commission examined the records, it found nothing of the sort. Rather than close the case honourably, it embarked on a fault-finding mission, highlighting minor administrative discrepancies to justify its intrusion,” it added.

The church further described the commission’s actions as part of a pattern of procedural flaws, recalling that MFM had previously challenged the regulator’s methods in a British court and secured a judgment against what it described as “improper procedures and overreach.”

MFM disclosed that following the probe, the Charity Commission appointed an interim manager to oversee MFM’s UK operations, but the individual’s five-year tenure was more about revenue generation than stewardship.

“The interim manager showed no genuine interest in the church’s ministry, never visiting a single MFM branch in the UK throughout his tenure. Yet, he charged the church a staggering £2 million for his ‘services’—a colossal fee for a process that yielded no evidence of wrongdoing,” the church said.

READ ALSO:UK Cuts Post-study Work Period For Foreign Students

“The five-year ordeal was not about protection but predation. What the Commission spent half a decade attempting to prove could have been resolved through cooperative guidance in a single month.”

The church emphasised that the concerns identified by the Commission were administrative in nature, arising largely from the rapid growth of MFM’s UK operations, which had outpaced its volunteer-run governance framework.

“The most powerful testament to the church’s integrity is this: not a single penny was mismanaged by the trustees,” Aibangbe said. “The issues raised were purely related to governance and record-keeping in a fast-growing organisation, not the diversion or theft of funds.

“Crucially, the leadership was already aware of the administrative gaps and had started taking steps to professionalise its governance structure. The Commission’s premature and heavy-handed investigation punished the church for being a victim of its own success,” the church added.

READ ALSO:UK Links Nigeria, Others To Poisonous Alcoholic Drinks

Describing the investigation as “a biased, costly, and ultimately baseless persecution,” MFM said the experience reflected deeper prejudices against African-founded churches operating in the UK.

The church said it remains committed to transparency and accountability but called for fair treatment of faith-based organisations, regardless of their ethnic or cultural origins.

“The entire ordeal reeks of discriminatory and arrogant oversight,” Aibangbe said. “It was a display of institutional overreach, leveraging state power to burden and punish a thriving faith community.

“The truth has prevailed, and the church marches on—stronger and wiser,” it added.

The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors has declared that it would embark on a nationwide indefinite strike starting from November 1, following the expiration of a 30-day ultimatum earlier issued to the Federal Government.

NARD President, Dr. Muhammad Suleiman, disclosed this in an exclusive interview with our correspondent on Saturday.

Suleiman stated that the association’s National Executive Council reached the decision after reviewing the government’s response to their demands during its virtual emergency meeting.

He noted that the strike notice would be formally issued within 24 hours as mandated by the NEC.

READ ALSO:NMA, NERD, Others React To UK Restriction Of Doctors’ Migration

“The NEC of NARD has declared total and indefinite strike action starting November 1st of 2025. As a matter of fact, the NEC said all the 19 points are our minimum demands, and there is no going back. The notice for the strike will be out maybe later today or tomorrow,” Suleiman said.

The looming strike is expected to heavily impact services in hospitals across the country where resident doctors form the backbone of clinical care.

NARD had on September 26 given the Federal Government one month to address a series of unresolved issues affecting the welfare and training of resident doctors and medical officers across the country.

NARD noted that resident doctors and medical officers across the country continued to endure excessive and unregulated work hours, spanning several consecutive days, which endanger both their health and patient safety.

READ ALSO:FG Introduces Chinese Language Into School Curriculum

The association also raised concern over the nonpayment of the outstanding 25 per cent and 35 per cent upward review arrears of CONMESS, which should have been settled by the end of August 2025, despite several engagements with the Federal Government.

NARD described as unjust the dismissal of five resident doctors from the Federal Teaching Hospital, Lokoja, saying the action came amid widespread burnout and the ongoing migration of medical professionals abroad.

Other grievances include the non-payment of promotion arrears owed to medical officers in various federal tertiary hospitals and the failure of the government to pay the 2024 accoutrement allowance, despite repeated assurances from the Ministry of Health.

It also cited bureaucratic delays in upgrading resident doctors’ ranks following successful completion of postgraduate medical examinations. The association said these delays have led to non-payment of new salary scales and accumulated arrears.

READ ALSO:FG Introduces Chinese Language Into School Curriculum

It further decried the exclusion of resident doctors from the specialist allowance, despite their vital role in delivering specialist-level clinical care to patients nationwide.

Similarly, NARD faulted the exclusion of medical and dental house officers from the civil service scheme, a policy that has denied them rightful emoluments, professional recognition, and timely payment of salaries.

The association also condemned the downgrading of newly employed resident doctors from CONMESS three Step three to CONMESS two Step two, which has resulted in salary shortages and arrears in several federal hospitals.