Senator Orji Uzor Kalu has urged President Bola Tinubu to stop the recurring practice of appointing junior military officers as service chiefs while more senior officers remain in service. The lawmaker, who represents Abia North, issued the warning on Thursday during a debate on a bill seeking to overhaul Nigeria’s Armed Forces Act.

The bill, titled “A Bill for an Act to Repeal the Armed Forces Act and to Re-enact a modern, constitutionally compliant and operationally responsive legal framework for the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and for related matters, 2025,” triggered strong reactions from senators, including Kalu.

Speaking during the plenary, Kalu argued that bypassing senior officers to appoint juniors as the Chief of Army Staff, Chief of Naval Staff or Chief of Air Staff damages morale within the military and leads to the unnecessary loss of highly trained personnel.

He explained that such appointments force senior officers—often from older courses such as Course 39 and Course 40—to retire prematurely once officers from lower courses, like Course 41, are elevated above them.

“Presidents should stop appointing officers for these top military positions above their seniors who are still in service,” Kalu said. “When you make such appointments from below the ranks, all the senior officers still in service are forced to resign prematurely. This situation has affected hundreds of senior officers over the years.”

He also stressed that millions of naira and years of training invested in these officers go to waste when they are pushed out before completing their service.

As Kalu continued his remarks, Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin intervened, cautioning that the matter is extremely sensitive and should be approached carefully.

“We should be careful in this matter because it’s strictly a matter of military tradition that we do not fully understand,” Jibrin noted.

The bill that sparked the debate was sponsored by Abdulaziz Yar’Adua, chairman of the Senate Committee on Army. Despite the heated exchanges, the bill passed its second reading and was referred to the Senate Committees on Defence, Army, Navy and Air Force for further review. The committees are expected to submit their findings within four weeks.