PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari has reinstated Major General Ahmed Mohammed the former general officer commanding the Seventh Mechanised Division of the Nigerian Army who was suspended after his troops opened fire on him during a mutiny.  

In September 2014, 12 soldiers were sentenced to death by a military tribunal after they were found guilty of mutiny following an incident on May 14 when they fired shots at Major General Mohammed in Maiduguri. They had opened fire on their commander after four of their colleagues had been killed in a Boko Haram ambush. 

Since assuming power, President Buhari has changed his service chief and the new chief of army staff Lt General Tukur Buratai has instituted a review panel which pardoned the men. In an attempt to draw a line under the matter, President Buhari has instructed the Nigerian Army to reinstate Major General Mohammed, with immediate effect. 

After the initial incident, Major General Mohammed was called to the military headquarters in Abuja and retired. Now, 15 months after that incident, the former commander has been recalled and is awaiting posting by Nigerian Army headquarters. 

In 2014, the chief of defence staff Air Chief Marshal Alex  Badeh, ordered the then chief of army staff Major General Kenneth Minimah, to immediately relieve Major General Mohammed of his post in order to save the integrity of the military before the global community. Brigadier Mahmud Ibrahim was named the acting commanding officer of the division to replace him. 

 At the time, an army spokesman said: “General Mohammed is a fine officer, no doubt and that was why the chief of army staff appointed him the commanding officer of that all-important division but his appointment has failed to yield any visible dividends. It was then that those terrorists became daring, attacking communities and towns at will and this did not go down well with the military authorities. 

Soldiers were grumbling over their welfare, as if something was missing somewhere, so, that unfortunate incident became an eye opener to Abuja and because of the timing, when all eyes are on us over how to free those Chibok girls, he has to give way to another officer. The attendant problems were a stain on the record of Mohammed, but for the fact that the chief of army staff was expecting a change from him, he would have been removed immediately during the crisis." 

On January 15 last year, General Kenneth Minimah named Major General Lamidi Adeosun as the substantive commander of the Seventh Mechanised Division. Lt General Buratai confirmed the appointment upon assuming officer and General Adeosun is responsible for Operation Lafiya Dole, the war against Boko Haram.