Jonathan Extends Badeh's Tenure As Defence Chief

Source: pointblanknews.com

President Goodluck Jonathan has extended the tenure of the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS)

Air Chief Marshal Alex Sabundu Badeh, Pointblanknews.com investigations have revealed.

Born 10 January 1957, Badeh
was commissioned a pilot officer on July 3, 1979, after graduating from the Nigerian Defence Academy as a member of the 21 Regular Course on January 3, 1977.

Pointblanknews.com checks revealed that on July 3, 2014, Badeh clocked 35 years as an officer in the Nigerian Air Force.

In Nigeria, military personnel are retired on attaining age 60 or clocking 35 years in service, or which comes first.

However, five months on, Badeh, the highest ranking serving military officer, is still the Chief of Defence Staff.

Defence spokesman, Major General Chris Olukolade failed to respond to Pointblanknews.com enquiries on why Badeh was still in service.

However, some military sources offered that President Jonathan may have applied discretion as the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of Nigeria to keep the defence chief.

“Nigeria is at a critical cross-roads. The general elections are around the corner. Retiring Badeh at this stage means you have to appoint a new CDS, most likely General Kenneth Minimah who is less than a year old as Chief of Army Staff. And this, for now, may not be too good for the armed forces” offered the source.

Before his appointment as CDS, Badeh had served as the 19th Chief of the Air Staff of Nigeria. He is the fourth airforce officer to hold the position. He is the third Air Chief Marshall in Nigerian history.

Badeh started his flying career at the 301 Flying Training School on the Bulldog Primary Trainer aircraft in 1979.

In 1982, Badeh attended the Undergraduate Pilot Training at Vance Air Force Base in the United States Air Force. He attended Armed Forces Command and Staff College, and National War College Nigeria as a member of Course 14 and graduated in August 2006. He holds an M.Sc degree in Strategic Studies from the University of Ibadan.

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