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*Photo:Alhaji Mohammed Badaru Abubakar*
Nigeria’s defence minister, Alhaji Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, has resigned his appointment, with immediate effect.
In a letter dated December 1, sent to President Bola Tinubu, Abubakar said he was quitting on health grounds.
Observers believe he may have been eased out over a recent interview he granted BBC Hausa Service. Badaru said although many enclaves of terrorists and bandits are known, they cannot be targeted with airstrikes as they are deep within forests, where he said bombs have limited impact.
The statement was widely condemned as a drawback in the ongoing war against terrorists.
President Tinubu has accepted the resignation and thanked Abubakar for his services to the nation.
President Tinubu will likely inform the Senate of Badaru’s successor later this week.
Badaru Abubakar, 63, was a two-term governor of Jigawa state from 2015 to 2023. He was appointed as a minister on August 21, 2023, by President Tinubu.
His resignation comes amid President Tinubu’s declaration of a national security emergency, with plans to elaborate on its scope in due course.