Guardians Of Military Tradition: Why Ranks, Appointments And Standards Matter
By Group Captain Sadeeq Garba Shehu Rtd
As retired and serving members of the profession of arms, we have a duty not only to defend our nation but also to safeguard the customs, traditions and standards that underpin military professionalism.
A photograph currently circulating from a recent defence event appears to show a Lieutenant Colonel serving as Aide-de-Camp (ADC) to the Honourable Minister of State for Defence, Dr Bello Matawalle. If that understanding is correct, then it raises an important professional concern.
A Lieutenant Colonel is not a junior officer. He is a senior field officer, typically qualified to command a battalion of 700–800 officers and soldiers or hold significant staff appointments. Without being immodest or any nostalgia, this was a State Governor during military regimes. In military terms, he has crossed an important threshold in leadership and responsibility. Such a rank should be employed in roles commensurate with its status and command responsibilities.
Traditionally, in the Nigerian Armed Forces and across many Commonwealth militaries, the rank most commonly associated with an ADC to a Minister is that of Major. The appointment is prestigious, visible and important, but it has historically been considered appropriate for officers of that rank. This preserves both the dignity of the ADC appointment and the command status associated with more senior field officers.
Indeed, some of Nigeria’s most respected military figures who later served as Ministers of Defence – including retired Generals who had commanded formations, theatres and even entire services – did not demand, request or receive Lieutenant Colonels as ADCs. They got a Major-as it should be.They understood the importance of maintaining established military conventions and protecting the integrity of rank structures.
For this reason, I am reluctant to place blame on the Honourable Minister of State for Defence. He doesn’t know any better. Such decisions originate within military administrative and personnel systems.
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The responsibility, therefore, lies elsewhere.
It begins with the officer concerned, who should be proud of his rank and appreciate the professional implications of occupying an appointment traditionally held by a more junior rank. “No sir, its not done like that.” The blame extends upwards to those in the chain of command, personnel branches, protocol officers and senior leaders who approved or facilitated such an arrangement. One is left wondering how such a departure from established convention could pass through multiple layers of military scrutiny in a room full of senior officers, in broad daylight and still be regarded as normal.
Some may dismiss this as a minor matter. I disagree.
Professional militaries are not sustained by major decisions alone. They are sustained by thousands of small acts of adherence to standards. Once we begin to treat rank structures casually, we risk creating precedents that gradually blur distinctions between appointments, responsibilities and command authority.
As guardians of military tradition – whether serving or retired, we must speak up when we observe departures from established norms. Not to embarrass individuals. Not to score political points. Not to criticise a Minister. But to preserve the institutional values that generations before us painstakingly built.
Military customs and traditions are not ornamental. They are part of the invisible architecture that sustains discipline, professionalism, morale and respect for rank.
The Armed Forces of Nigeria remain one of our country’s most respected institutions. That reputation was earned through adherence to standards. It will only be preserved by maintaining them.
Let us therefore respectfully return to established practice: A Major is more than adequate for such an ADC appointment, while Lieutenant Colonels should be employed in appointments befitting their rank, experience and command responsibilities.
That is how standards are maintained. That is how traditions endure. And that is how professional militaries preserve their dignity across generations.
*Group Captain Sadeeq Garba Shehu (rtd) is a Security & Defence Analyst/Conflict Security & Development Consult Ltd