Former Zamfara governorship candidate Sani Shinkafi has called for the immediate dismissal of the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, warning that his continued stay in office undermines Nigeria’s war against insecurity.
Shinkafi, who praised President Bola Tinubu for appointing retired General Christopher Musa as Minister of Defence, said the decision signals a renewed commitment to defeating terrorism and banditry.
His call follows a resurfaced 2021 Channels TV video showing Matawalle, the then Zamfara governor defending bandits and asserting that “not all of them are criminals.”
The clip has triggered widespread outrage and renewed demands for his removal.
In a statement issued on behalf of the Patriots for the Advancement of Peace and Social Development, Shinkafi slammed Matawalle and former Defence Minister Mohammed Badaru as “the worst appointments in the ministry’s history,” accusing both of lacking the qualifications to manage national security.
“Gen. Musa is exactly the leader Nigeria needs at this critical time,” Shinkafi said. “Appointing a chartered accountant and someone with only vocational training to oversee defence was a serious misjudgment that weakened the fight against terrorism.”
He noted that Matawalle’s past comments portray him as a “bandit sympathizer,” making him unfit to continue in office. He also argued that Matawalle cannot remain as junior minister under Gen. Musa, who previously served as his subordinate as Chief of Defence Staff.
Shinkafi further urged President Tinubu to scrap the Ministry of State for Defence entirely, describing it as an unnecessary duplication that disrupts military command and places key security agencies, including the maritime domain, the Pension Board for veterans, and the Defence Industries Corporation under a junior minister.
“Nigeria cannot afford two ministers running parallel administrations while battling nationwide insecurity,” he said. “Security experts agree: the office should be abolished.”
He argued that Gen. Musa’s widespread acceptance and the intensifying calls for Matawalle’s removal reflect the country’s desire for competence over politics.
“Matawalle should honourably resign or be shown the way out. National security comes first,” Shinkafi said.
