The Nigerian Army is at a critical juncture, and addressing the issue of deserving officers being deliberately denied promotion is crucial to boosting morale and ensuring combat readiness. The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, has emphasized the importance of personnel welfare, operational jointness, and institutional reform in transforming the Army into a more professional, adaptable, and resilient force.

Empirical evidence suggests that timely promotions are a key factor in motivating officers and enhancing their performance. The current state of delayed promotions is not only demotivating but also poses a significant risk to national security. The COAS and the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) must take immediate action to address this issue and ensure that deserving officers are promoted timeously.

In this regard, there's an urgent need to establish a Promotion Review Committee: The committee should be tasked with reviewing all pending promotions and making recommendations promote based on merit and seniority.

Implement a Merit-Based Promotion System: The system should be based on objective criteria, including performance, experience, and qualifications.

Increase Transparency: The promotion process should be transparent.

Address Grievances: The COAS and CDS should address grievances and complaints from officers who feel they have been unfairly denied promotion.

Provide Training and Development Opportunities: The Army should provide training and development opportunities to officers to enhance their skills and prepare them for promotion.

The Nigerian Army has made significant strides in recent years, with improved equipment and logistics contributing to enhanced operational effectiveness. However, the prolonged delay towards addressing issues about promotion, especially for those that have exhausted the last attempt despite the presidential directive to these effects, smacks suspicion on the part of General Oluyede, the Chief of Defence Staff, and even General Waidi, the Chief of Army Staff, for an underlining sabotage.

This is the way to conveniently explain the letter recently signed by the Military Secretary, Major General Ifeanyi Okoro, which announced the embargo on retirement and expect officers disgruntled as a result promotion denial to exhibit high morale in carrying out presidential order security emergency in the country.

We just hope that the actions of these two army chiefs dragging presidential directive on the reviews of clemency for promotion would not end up catastrophic for the entire regime considering the earlier before now a number of vibrant officers unhappy over matter of promotion became utterly subversive.

So, paramount and as a matter priority in the welfare scale to boost morale of the officers and men, timely promotions remain a major concern.

Accordingly, the COAS whom recently announced a comprehensive overhaul of the Army's training, operational, and administrative structures must wittingly drop his ego and direct the needful unless there's something up the sleeve been kept away from the public view.

Finally, the COAS and CDS should prioritize the promotion of deserving officers to boost morale and combat readiness.

The Army should implement a transparent and merit-based promotion system to ensure fairness and equity.

The government should provide adequate resources and support to address the shortage of accommodation and other welfare issues affecting Army personnel.

By addressing these issues, the Nigerian Army can enhance its operational effectiveness and better tackle the complex security challenges facing the nation.

• Being text of a statement issued on Sunday, December 21, 2025, by the Coalition of Civil Society Group for Transparency and Good Governance, signed by the Secretary General, Amb. Mohammad N. Bn Ahmad.

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