₦airaland Forum

BitmapStudios:
Thank you for the prompt and ever factual expository.
I had always thought Olusegun Obasanjo was a Lt. General. Thank you again.
Do you know why Olonisakin, the immediate past CDS was a Lt. General and never promoted to (a 4star) General? Was it more of political than the regimental oversight?

Buhari is referred to as Maj. General, do you know of any reason why he didn't promote himself to a full General (I mean, since he was the HOS)?

Thanks again sir.

naptu2:
General Olonisakin was a 4-star general.

Some heads of state choose not to promote themselves. Jerry Rawlings was a flight lieutenant and Muamar Ghaddafi was a colonel.

BitmapStudios:
Most mainstream media keep addressing Olonisakin as Lt. General. I think they should be synergy between the Defence press and mainstream press.
Thank you for the clarification.

I'm sorry I forgot go ask the other time, can the president prefer to choose his ADC from other forces rather the NA? Like, can he pick from the Navy or Airforce?

naptu2:
Who was Yar'Adua's ADC and where was he from?

TooMuchStuff:
Look at this Fula....o.
Was Dennis not force to convert to Islam first before being offered the Job??
Oga, we know levels

Dansuqi:
What is your problem? What performance are you talking about.promotion is suppose to be every 3 to five years.apart from promotional exams,courses and workshops and higher studies,what performance are you talking about?

MJlee31:
I have a question in Nigeria most ADC are from the nigeria army..
Is it that it is only the army PERSONNEL that is qualified to be the president ADC...
And what about sss PERSONNEL too

chloride6:
If promotion is simply manadated and not merited the result is mediocrity.

It's only in Federal Service &Military you see people promoted because they "passed" exams.

Dansuqi:
Like what merit

BitmapStudios:
Thank you for the prompt and ever factual expository.
I had always thought Olusegun Obasanjo was a Lt. General. Thank you again.
Do you know why Olonisakin, the immediate past CDS was a Lt. General and never promoted to (a 4star) General? Was it more of political than the regimental oversight?

Buhari is referred to as Maj. General, do you know of any reason why he didn't promote himself to a full General (I mean, since he was the HOS)?

Thanks again sir.

zoedew:
Enrol and be admitted to train at the NDA. With the right equipment you will hold your own in battle.

Blueelf:
Is Lt Col Dodo battle-tested. Seems to me he has never fought a day in the North-East. This position ought to be for battle-hardened veterans

seborrhic:
His former ADC started as a lt.col,just six years as ADC without any combat experience or leading a formation,just carrying suitcase up and down for Buhari,he is set to become a brigadier General.
Meanwhile there are several thousands stagnated in their ranks for several years,even with combat experience.
What a load of tumfoolery

ogbonti:
that’s the north for you - Yakubu Gowon promoter himself from Lt.Col to Major General overnight - skipping the ranks of Colonel and Brigadier- General —— And later from Major General to General skipping Lieutenant General

Murtala Mohammed promoted himself from Brigadier-General to General skipping the ranks of Major General and Lieutenant General

Ibrahim Babangida promoted himself from Major General to General skipping the rank of Lieutenant General

Andusalami Abubakar promoted himself to General from Major General skipping Lieutenant General


so na their way - cutting corners and then we wonder why the country is failing


That Buhari ADC Abubakar is very arrogant

Always smirking like he owns the world - trying to act more important than the president

no more free money or welfare for him - na salary only now from now on


But he must have collected estacodes up to $10 million in 5 years because ANYTIME BUHARI TRAVELS INTERNATIONALLY - his ADC gets at least $100,000 within Nigeria it’s $10,000 and Buhari has travelled more than 60 times internationally and 200 times within Naija

so the guy is made - and other small small gifts from visitors just to say thank you for opening door for Oga - those ones na millions of dollars

Hmm Guy man is made!

Sewgon79:
Army, Navy, Air Force can be President ADC so far it is Armed Forces.

But Vice Président and Governor and other politicians ADC must be Police

patwilly:
Naptu2, wouldn't you consider the promotion of Col ML abubakar as too rapid considering he was just a major in 2015 when Buhari came into power? What has the officer done to justify his rapid rise to colonel from.Major in just 5 years?

naptu2:
President Nestor Kirchner of Argentina caused controversy when he decided to promote his ADC, Lieutenant Colonel Graham from lieutenant colonel to colonel one year ahead of his classmates.

President Nestor Kirchner was succeeded by his wife, President Cristina Fernandez De Kirchner and she appointed the first female aides-de-camp to the President in Argentina's history.

Nobody anticipated any trouble, until the President took about 20 steps and could not move again. Since the drummers and dancers were carrying on excitedly, there was not much attention focused on him at that point. He whispered to the ADC, who had by then moved close to him, that he may fall if he took as much as another step. Moving quickly, Mustapha draped the lapel of the President's babariga over his uniform, so that no one would see his right hand, which he had used to support the President while pulling him forward with his shoulder and right leg. Many in the ecstatic crowd watched the awkward and slow movement of the President. The ADC succeeded in dragging him forward until he could make a detour to enter the nearest room at the arrival hall. It was a public place, but all the officials were immediately cleared by a visibly worried Togolese President, who helped the ADC to sit President Yar'Adua on a chair provided for him.

naptu2:
It is rumoured that President Vladimir Putin is grooming one of his former ADCs, Alexei Dyumin, to succeed him as president of Russia.

He promoted Dyumin from colonel to major general, then made him deputy minister of defence and has now made him the governor of Tula.

Lieutenant General Alexei Dyumin.

www.nairaland.com/attachments/13073138_1206600416994299236476417030448529496774551n_jpeg221e8279b2b1568c591dfabf340be7dd

naptu2:
I referred to Yar'Adua when I said that President Roosevelt usually leaned on his ADC when he had to stand in public because he didn't want the public to know that he had been crippled by polio. I'll explain that reference.

Olusegun Adeniyi wrote about an incident that happened in Lome, Togo in which President Yar'Adua had difficulties inspecting a guard of honour and had to be helped by his ADC, Colonel Dennis Mustapha Onoyiveta.

Olusegun Adeniyi, "Power, Politics & Death", Kachifo Limited, 2011, p184

Okoroawusa:
Bad belle

naptu2:
Finally I’ve found time to give you a better answer. I’ve answered this question in several posts on this thread, but the answers are scattered across many pages in the thread, so perhaps this is an opportunity to put them all in one place.

Your question is in two parts, (1) “Why do we always see the Nigerian president’s ADC behind him at all times?” and (2) “I've seen pictures of foreign presidents and I notice you don't see the ADC like you do in NIgeria, why is that so?” so my answer will be in two parts.

1) “Why do we always see the Nigerian president’s ADC behind him at all times?”

Virtually every country in the world provides military ADCs to their head of state and commander in chief. Traditions and protocols regarding the use of ADCs vary from country to country.

In most cases the major role of the ADC is to provide immediate military advice to the commander in chief in case the country comes under attack and the C in C is unable to contact his regular military advisers. The ADC also assists the commander in chief when he is carrying out military functions like reviewing parades, conferring honours, etc. (an ADC is actually like a personal assistant to a senior military officer and the head of state has an ADC because he or she has the military title of commander in chief).

Regional governors also had military ADCs during the First Republic, but that’s not the case with state governors during the Second, Third and Fourth Republics (they have/had police ADCs).

In many countries the ADC stands behind the C in C during most (not all) of his public engagements (so that he can provide immediate assistance to the C in C if the need arises) and this is also the practice in Nigeria. Some people erroneously believe that this practice began as a result of military rule or that it is peculiar to Nigeria, but that is not true, however, I do think that the use of the ADC has increased since the end of the Second Republic.

The governor-general of Nigeria, Sir James Robertson, is assisted by his ADC as he decorates Edward Iduorobo Ogedegbe with the British Empire Medal (civil division), for twenty years of loyal and efficient service in the field of oil palm development and research. The picture was taken in 1959 by Eliot Elisofon.
www.nairaland.com/attachments/13073242_1068730314902416045664754249001413440344632o_jpeg994c732cbaf3012c2a814e32d58564e3

Here is a video of Nnamdi Azikiwe being sworn in as president of Nigeria on October 1st, 1963. You can see that he is wearing the uniform of a field marshal and that he has an ADC (Orho Obada) with him.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TPgbteWcBCY

Here is a video of President Hilla Limann’s visit to Nigeria on April 1st 1980 (I remember how much Ghanaians hated this man, at least the Ghanaians in Nigeria at that time). You can see that President Limann came with his naval ADC and that President Shagari also had his ADC, Colonel Usman, with him.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sabjJUph2Y

However, I do think that the use of the ADC has increased since the end of the Second Republic. Usually the ADC only stood behind the C in C when he was carrying out his military functions (Independence, Remembrance, Army, Navy and Air Force day military parades, parades in honour of visiting heads of states, when he was conferring honours, etc.).

Libyan president, Colonel Gaddafi and President Shehu Shagari at the Murtala Muhammed Airport in 1983.
www.nairaland.com/attachments/13073258_2605613720066403095932663074233869746282736n_jpeg4129d1d475737e8c3a66980133fd0cc7

I’ve discovered that many Nigerians believe that the ADC is the chief bodyguard or chief detail of the C in C, but this is not really true. The Chief Security Officer (CSO) as the name implies, is actually the head of the C in C’s security team. He sits in the front passenger seat of the president’s car and he is always close to the president. The CSO is usually in mufti (obviously because the CSO usually belongs to a unit that requires him to be in mufti).

The president’s CSO was a member of the Police Special Branch during the First Republic. In the Second Republic the president’s CSO was a member of the National Security Organisation (NSO) and in the Fourth Republic the CSO is a member of the State Security Service (SSS).

However, under military rule the CSO was usually a member of the Directorate of Military Intelligence (DMI) of the rank of major. ADCs of heads of state of Nigeria are usually of the rank of lieutenant colonel or colonel. Therefore the ADC outranked the CSO.

Military officers usually have several aides who assist them, e.g. an ADC, an orderly and a batman. However, they do not have a civilian CSO. The ADC is like a personal assistant to a senior military officer and in this role he coordinates the other aides of the officer, including his security guards. And so under military rule the role of the ADC gradually encroached on the area of responsibility of the CSO (because he outranked the CSO and because he coordinated the president aides).

naptu2:
2) “I've seen pictures of foreign presidents and I notice you don't see the ADC like you do in NIgeria, why is that so?”

This is not really true. There are very many countries around the world in which the ADC always stands behind the C in C and in fact, unlike Nigeria, this has nothing to do with military rule. Kenya has never experienced military rule, but the ADC to the C in C of Kenya usually stands behind him. In fact, in Kenya it’s the ADC, rather than any civilian CSO, who sits in the front passenger seat of the president’s car. It’s quite similar in Ghana and in many countries in Africa, the Caribbean, Asia and South America.

Presidents Jomo Kenyatta (1963-1978), Daniel Arap Moi (1978-2002), Mwai Kibaki (2002-2013) and Uhuru Kenyatta (2013-present) and their ADCs.
www.nairaland.com/attachments/13073259_2605557720064908229415484628039173134371652n_jpeg0f1f689d6314efedf770bbecba28c8b9

This photo caused a stir in Kenya because it is unusual to see the ADC without the president, but Uhuru Kenyatta’s digital media adviser took a picture with the ADC.

Director Digital, New Media & Diaspora in the office of the president Dennis Itumbi took time to pose for a photo with the President’s Aide-de-Camp Colonel Peter Njiru. This was during a state banquet for Chinese PM.

This is a man we never see standing alone, leave alone with anyone else other than the president.
www.nairaland.com/attachments/13073260_2611397020064885929417713748264047823864336n_jpeg1b772ab58d3f36ca1fabd28dbf6f113f

And here’s a picture of the ADC standing behind President Kenyatta at the same state banquet.
www.nairaland.com/attachments/13073261_2605560520064880896084885431344353349923067n_jpegcd8e77131e57c30ba33d8c491bb14485

Former Kenyan president, Daniel Arap Moi (1978-2002) and his ADC.
www.nairaland.com/attachments/13073262_2616891820064884629417845866108638782556239n_jpeg7e4d6749e570f2fc231ee1f38333aa4c


There was controversy in Ghana in 2015 during the opening of the ECOWAS summit in Accra. A civilian aide approached President Mahama’s ADC to get a copy of the president’s speech so that he could photocopy it and distribute to journalists. The president had given the speech to the ADC as they walked into the venue of the summit. The ADC gave the speech to the aide. The civilian aide returned the speech a few minutes later. Unknown to the civilian aide the last two pages of the speech were stuck in the photocopier and he had returned an incomplete speech to the ADC. The ADC placed the speech on the podium and stood behind the president as he read the speech. The president read the speech and discovered that it was incomplete. He actually said, “Well it seems I am missing some pages”. He eventually summarised what was in the missing two pages and ended his speech. The permanent secretary of the state house promised that there would be an investigation into the incident.

Late Ghanaian president, Professor John Atta Mills with his ADC at the closing session of the African Union summit in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea.
www.nairaland.com/attachments/13073277_2617307620064900996082871189102419940531587o_jpeg7cb23ddb896d8ce9887584b7d7fd2a7e

Former Ghanaian president, John Dramani Mahama and his ADC.
www.nairaland.com/attachments/13073303_104921851699848886939078163141938073576121n_jpeg871c49e2e12a88fca63b94173ceb651c

Former Pakistani prime minister, Nawaz Sharif and his ADC
www.nairaland.com/attachments/13073272_2617202220064894029416901855409669466192456o_jpegd6fdc223028f1e49147b429f5b330408

www.nairaland.com/attachments/13073273_2611625420064896462749991801424912273364725o_jpeg1d645bbec25793a6ffc558bd30279e81

Therefore, when you wrote “foreign presidents” I’m going to assume that you were referring to the West or to G8 countries.

In the United States it’s all a game of smoke and mirrors. There’s an unwritten understanding between the media and the president’s aides that the president’s security guards and aides are not the story. The politicians are the story. The media do as much as they can to keep the president’s personal aides and security guards out of their shots (because they are not the story), while the guards and aides are trained to stand out of view of the camera (because they are not the story). I’m going to give you perfect examples of this in a minute, but I need to first explain the role of the ADC in the US.


The term “aide de camp” (ADC) has been shortened to the word “aide” in the United States, so you hear people talk about “military aide”, rather than ADC. The role of the president’s military aide is to give him immediate military advice in case the United States comes under attack (especially if he is unable to contact his other military advisers). The aide also carries the “nuclear football”, which is a case that contains the nuclear codes that enable the president to launch a nuclear attack. Finally, the role of the aide, as the military assistant to the president, also includes performing the tasks of the president’s civilian personal assistant if the civilian personal assistant is unavailable. The US president has five full time military aides, one for each branch of the military (army, navy, air force, marines and coast guard) and 45 part time military aides. Due to the nature of the tasks that the full time aides are required to carry out, there must be at least one full time military aide close to the president at all times (hence the nickname “elbowman”, because the aide is required to be close to the president’s elbow at all times).


The military aide at the president’s elbow. President Ronald Reagan and his ADC, Colonel John Kline (US Marines). Colonel Kline is carrying the nuclear football. He later became a member of the US House Of Representatives.
www.nairaland.com/attachments/13071088_1170102616992051203367886396892516938788449n_jpeg209d7852bea8b0f87c7c829417b06019

Earlier I said that it’s all a game of smoke and mirrors in the US. The media do not focus attention on the aides and security guards of the president because (1) they are not the story and (2) focussing on them could put their lives in danger. Here’s a perfect example.

Do you know that the US vice president also has military aides? (the secretary of defence has military aides too) . Yes he does and this is so that he can get immediate military advice or launch nuclear weapons if the president is killed or incapacitated during an attack.

Well, during the last presidential election campaign, Vice President Biden referred to and pointed at his ADC (on two occasions at two separate campaign rallies), yet the TV footage did not show the ADC. If it was in Nigeria a camera would have focussed on the ADC and the director would have switched to that camera (and that’s actually quite natural, so that people at home can see what the vice president was pointing at).
Biden was trying to show that you need to have someone in the White House whose judgement you can trust and who wouldn’t act irrationally or be easily provoked, so he said that, “I have a guy back here who follows me everywhere I go” (he pointed at the aide) “He carries the nuclear codes. The nuclear codes!” Yet they did not show the aide! Watch the clip below.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHsxai04lFk


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4rGmx738-5Q

There was also a video on YouTube some years ago in which they interviewed a former Secret Service operative about the job and he also stated that they were taught to stay just out of the view of the cameras. There were two videos that perfectly illustrated this point.

There was a G8 or G7 summit in Canada and President Obama gave David Cameron a lift on Air Force One (I think they flew between two Canadian cities). The first footage I saw was from one of the major news services. We saw Obama and Cameron descend from Air Force One, they each unfurled their umbrellas (it was drizzling), shook hands with someone and them went to their limousines and drove off. It looked like there were few security guards around.

Then I saw the second video. It was an amateur video of the same event (I suspect that the camera person was an airport worker). We could see the president and the prime minister as they came down from Air Force One, but this time we could also see that there was a line of security guards in trench coats standing a few feet away from them. There was also a line of uniformed security guards (some of them with dogs) standing farther away and there were also Secret Service Counter Assault Teams (CAT) on the roof of the airport building (I suspect that they included both snipers and spotters). There’s a helicopter that always follows the US president’s motorcade, in order to spot threats before they get close to the motorcade. That helicopter was circling the airport. None of these things could be seen in the news footage from the networks.

I can’t write about smoke and mirrors without writing about the ultimate deception. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt was crippled by polio when he was younger, yet he campaigned for and served two and a half terms as president without most Americans knowing that he was wheelchair bound. How did he achieve this? He often made campaign speeches while seated at the back of convertibles, Secret Service agents often confiscated the cameras of cameramen who took pictures of the president while he was getting off or seating on his wheelchair and when he had to “stand” he often leaned on his ADC or his son and his walking stick.

FDR requested that the press avoid photographing him walking, maneuvering, or being transferred from his car. The stipulation was accepted by most reporters and photographers but periodically someone would not comply. The Secret Service was assigned to purposely interfere with anyone who tried to snap a photo of FDR in a “disabled or weak” state.

Gallagher, Hugh Gregory. FDR's Splendid Deception. Revised Edition ed. 1985. Arlington: Vandamere Press, 1994.

Roosevelt’s favourite ADC was Major General Edwin Martin “Pa” Watson. General Watson served as the junior ADC to President Woodrow Wilson and as the senior ADC to President Roosevelt (which means that he served two wartime presidents). General Watson followed Roosevelt everywhere he went. In fact, they were so close that the president sometimes spent his holidays at General Watson’s house. Remember that I said that the ADC would take over the duties of the president’s (civilian) personal assistant whenever he was unavailable? Well, when Roosevelt’s chief of staff fell ill the president made General Watson his appointments secretary. This meant that he decided who saw the president and who didn’t.

General Watson followed Roosevelt everywhere he went during World during World War 2. He was at most of the meetings between President Roosevelt, Prime Minister Churchill and Premier Stalin. He was also (on behalf of the President) in constant touch with most of the famous commanders of World War 2, such as General Dwight Eisenhower, General Douglas MacArthur and Admiral Nimitz.

General Watson attended the Yalta Conference with the President despite the fact that he was in poor health. He suffered a brain haemorrhage during the return journey and died at sea. He was buried at the National Cemetery at Arlington.

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and his army ADC, Major General Edwin Martin "pa" Watson. Notice that the President is supporting himself with his cane on his left hand and he has his right hand in his ADC's arm.
www.nairaland.com/attachments/13071139_1274395116991905303382474236525807297540952n_jpeg9aad306910743b31a575e1b22b22c532

President Franklin D. roosevelt and his Naval ADC, Captain Daniel J. Callaghan, taking the salute of a composite Battalion of the 14th Infantry at Gatun Locks, Panama Canal Zone, as they were disembarking from USS Tuscaloosa (CA-37) on 18 February 1940. (Daniel Callaghan attained the rank of Rear Admiral before he was killed during the 2nd World War when an enemy shell hit his flagship.
www.nairaland.com/attachments/13071089_1274552216992054736700868094978826865411486n_jpega82705999fb1107b1dbc1869775920fd

We’ve also had our own Roosevelt type situation in Nigeria. Olusegun Adeniyi wrote about an incident that happened in Lome, Togo in which President Yar'Adua had difficulties inspecting a guard of honour and had to be helped by his ADC, Colonel Dennis Mustapha Onoyiveta.

Nobody anticipated any trouble, until the President took about 20 steps and could not move again. Since the drummers and dancers were carrying on excitedly, there was not much attention focused on him at that point. He whispered to the ADC, who had by then moved close to him, that he may fall if he took as much as another step. Moving quickly, Mustapha draped the lapel of the President's babariga over his uniform, so that no one would see his right hand, which he had used to support the President while pulling him forward with his shoulder and right leg. Many in the ecstatic crowd watched the awkward and slow movement of the President. The ADC succeeded in dragging him forward until he could make a detour to enter the nearest room at the arrival hall. It was a public place, but all the officials were immediately cleared by a visibly worried Togolese President, who helped the ADC to sit President Yar'Adua on a chair provided for him.

Olusegun Adeniyi, "Power, Politics & Death", Kachifo Limited, 2011, p184

So you see, the military aide is always very close to the president. Always and at all times, despite the fact that you don’t necessarily see him because of the unwritten agreement between the media and the president’s aides that the aides and security guards are not the story.

One of my favourite examples of this was President Clinton’s visit to Nigeria in 2001. The two gorillas stuck to President Obasanjo like glue during the visit. There was one hilarious shot when President Obasanjo was walking out of the Presidential Lounge at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport. We couldn’t actually see Obasanjo because there was a gorilla on either side of him (Obasanjo is short and the gorillas are giants) and the camera was filming from a side view. All we could see of Obasanjo was his protruding stomach.

However, you would not have seen the gorillas if you had watched CNN’s coverage of the visit. It was like they weren’t even there. Even today, I can’t get a picture of either of the gorillas on the internet, even though they were the most prominent Nigerian presidential guards in the late 1990s and early 2000s (Abacha, Abubakar and Obasanjo era).

In my view there’s a similarity between the US president’s military aide and his teleprompter. I’ve often heard people commend US presidents for delivering wonderful extempore speeches. The truth is that those speeches are not extempore speeches. He is actually reading them from a teleprompter. All US presidents since Ronald Reagan have used teleprompters, but you would never see the teleprompter when you watch their speeches on TV. The cameraman zooms in on the president and cuts out the teleprompter from the shot (this is unlike Nigeria where the NTA crew show both Professor Osinbajo and his teleprompters). Here’s a picture of President Obama reading a speech from the teleprompters. You will not see those two teleprompters if you watch this same speech on TV.
www.nairaland.com/attachments/13073285_2616668320070888128817491290631167719795676n_jpegb8174aebd8a27317f0c40d9b2e1380f4

naptu2:
The UK and former dominions (except South Africa).

In the UK and the former dominions (Australia, Canada and New Zealand) you have to remember that the prime ministers are not the C in C. The Queen is the commander in chief and she is represented in the dominions by the governors-general. They all have ADCs. In fact, in the dominions state, regional and provincial governors have ADCs, just like they did in the First Republic in Nigeria.

Aide-de-camp Colonel Jean-Claude Cloutier with then–Quebec Lieutenant-Governor (equivalent of a deputy governor) Lise Thibault.
www.nairaland.com/attachments/13073264_2611378520064879262751711015166261619323929n_jpegf1fb221ae6a48cc78e571c80088534c8

In the United Kingdom an ADC is a high ranking military officer or a member of the royal family who assists one of the most senior members of the royal family. For example, Prince Charles is an aide de camp to the Queen. What we call an ADC in Nigeria is called an equerry. The Queen’s equerry is usually of the rank of major or lieutenant colonel.

The Queen has a pretty large entourage, even though you don’t always see the members of the entourage when you watch the news. She has equerries, ladies in waiting and other people who attend to her. This is apart from the members of the Royal Protection Service who guard her. Look out for Volkswagen and Mercedes Benz minivans the next time you see the Queen’s motorcade. These usually contain her equerry, ladies in waiting and other aides.


Lieutenant Commander Andrew Canale (Royal Navy) was the Queen's equerry from 2012 - 2015. In the pictures below he helps the Queen to hold a cake that was presented to her by an Asian Women's Group during a visit to Chadwell Heath Community Centre on July 16, 2015 in Chadwell Heath, United Kingdom.
www.nairaland.com/attachments/13071386_1274235716975834938322844854741043597339153n_jpegd69b8ad837f848067da2656502787002

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In the UK, just as in the US, the media would often go to great lengths to exclude ADCs, bodyguards and other security staff from their coverage as you can see in this story in the Independent about Donald Trump’s ADC (his face was blurred). (I remember how Sky News blurred out the face of David Beckham’s bodyguard while reporting stories about David and Victoria Beckham in the early 2000s). As you’ll see in the article, the British media usually blur the faces of such people and they usually try to avoid revealing their names. However, the American media try to avoid showing them at all, but they will show their pictures if they become the story.

What happened, basically, was that President Trump met Japanese Prime Minister Shinzu Abe at Trump’s private club and hotel called Mar-A-Lago. A private guest at the club took a picture with Trump’s ADC and posted it on social media. He mentioned the ADC’s first name and said that, “This is the guy that carries the nuclear codes”. The British media published the picture, but blurred out the ADC’s face. They also did not publish the ADC’s first name. However, the American media published the picture without censoring it (since the ADC has made himself the story) and they also mentioned his first name.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/mar-a-lago-hotel-guest-nuclear-football-donald-trump-shinzo-abe-japan-pm-north-korea-missile-test-a7578366.html


While speaking about the story above, a Defence official told the LA Times.

"There is an understanding that we, as military officials and those who serve our elected officials, typically seek to maintain a low profile,” said a senior U.S. defense official, who wasn’t authorized to speak on the matter. “It's never about us. It's about the mission and the people we serve."

The ADC’s name is actually Ricardo Turner and here he is following President Trump in the picture below. Notice that, although he is walking behind Trump, there’s some space between him and the president and in fact, there’s a bit of space between the Secret Service bodyguards and the president. This is so that photographers can zoom in on the president and keep the aides out of the picture.


LANGLEY, VA - JANUARY 21: US President Donald Trump leaves the CIA headquarters after speaking to 300 people on January 21, 2017 in Langley, Virginia . Trump spoke with about 300 people in his first official visit with a government agency. In the background a military aid carries the 'football', with launch codes for nuclear weapons. (Photo by Olivier Doulier - Pool/Getty Images)
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The Pentagon said that the ADC had not broken any rules or laws, but what he did was unusual.

The Queen, as head of state of the countries in the former dominions and several countries in the Commonwealth, usually uses equerries from those countries whenever she visits them.

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II inspects the Royal Guard Of Honour with her equerry Squadron Leader Leanne Woon, (the first female equerry), on her arrival at Wellington airport. The Queen is in New Zealand on a five day official visit, her 10th to New Zealand.
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The Emperor of Japan had ADCs from 1896 till 1945. The practice was established by royal decree and the duties of the ADC included providing military advice to the emperor, accompanying the emperor to formal state occasions and acting as an assistant (chamberlain) to the emperor.

The practice was abolished after the Second World War. People blamed militarism for Japan’s role in the Second World War and everything was done to de-emphasise the role of the military after the war. In fact, Japan did not have a military after the war. They only had a small police force and the United States was responsible for Japan’s defence. A small Japanese defence force was created in the 1950s, due to fears that a communist country (the Soviet Union, China or North Korea) would try to attack Japan, but the emphasis was on the defence of Japan. The Japanese Defence Force was barred from operating outside Japan unless the country was attacked. They did not even take part in UN peacekeeping operations until the late 1990s.

However, like I said earlier, the protocols and traditions regarding the use of ADCs vary from country to country. There is no right or wrong way to use an ADC (or not use an ADC). It all depends on the needs of the C in C of the particular country and the protocols and traditions adopted by the country. You will notice that the commanders in chief of Western nations usually adopt our protocol regarding the use of ADCs when they come to Nigeria. US Presidents Carter, Clinton and Bush had very visible ADCs when they came to Nigeria (which tells you that there must have been more than one ADC on duty). The Queen also had very visible equerries on the two occasions that she visited Nigeria (she was the head of state of Nigeria the first time she visited and she had a Nigerian equerry) and Jacques Chirac also had a visible ADC when he visited Nigeria.

Queen Elizabeth, President Obasanjo, the Commander of the Brigade of Guards and (behind) Major James Duckworth-Chad (the Queen's equerry). Major Duckworth-Chad is from a very influential family. This picture was taken at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport, Abuja during the Queen’s visit to Nigeria for the 2003 Commonwealth heads of government summit.
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Johnson Thomas Umanakwe Aguiyi-Ironsi served as equerry to the Queen when she visited Nigeria in 1956. Here he is, standing behind Prince Philip in the first picture.
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Here he is standing behind the Queen as she knighted Sir Akanu Ibiam (former governor of the Eastern Region).
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And here you can see him in mufti, sitting in the front seat of the Queen’s Land Rover as she met with youths at the Race Course (now Tafawa Balewa Square) in Lagos.
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Presidents Obasanjo and Clinton with their ADCs during Clinton’s visit to Nigeria in 2000. I think President Clinton's ADC in this picture was Colonel Dana Pittard, while President Obasanjo's ADC was the late Colonel Solomon Giwa-Amu. There are obviously two US ADCs on duty here, the highly visible ADC (Colonel Pittard) and a less visible ADC carrying the nuclear football.
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US President Jimmy Carter at Dodan Barracks. Beside President Carter is the parade commander. Behind them is the Commander of the (Nigerian) Brigade of Guards, Colonel Mamman Vatsa and beside Vatsa (in white) is President Carter's ADC.
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Controversies

ADCs to political office holders are military officers who spent almost their entire day with some of the most powerful people in their country and so, there’s bound to be controversies surrounding them.
There was controversy in Argentina when former president Nestor Kirchener decided to promote his ADC one year before he was due for promotion. His wife, Cristina Kirchener, who became president after him, became the first president of Argentina to have an all-female team of ADCs.

There was controversy in Ghana when President Nana Akufo-Addo appointed the former ADC to former president John Kufour, Major General Obed Boamah Akwa as chief of defence staff in 2017. Some people questioned whether General Akwa merited the position or whether he got the position because he was close to powerful politicians (Presidents Kufour and Akufo-Addo are members of the NPP political party). However, it must be noted that General Akwa was appointed chief of army staff by President Mahama of the NDC.

In Russia, it is rumoured that President Vladimir Putin is grooming one of his former ADCs, Alexei Dyumin, to succeed him as president of Russia. He promoted Dyumin from colonel to major general, then made him deputy minister of defence and has now made him the governor of Tula.
Lieutenant General Alexei Dyumin.
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You can see President Putin and his ADC in this video of his journey to the Kremlin for his inauguration in 2012. It shows Putin walking out of the presidential palace. His ADC is standing beside the presidential limousine. He salutes Putin, who shakes his hand, opens and closes the door for the president and sits in the front passenger seat of the limousine.

(There’s also a bit of smoke and mirrors in this video. In fact, the video is completely staged. You might notice that Putin has a much smaller guard than usual. In fact, you can’t see any bodyguards at all, apart from the ADC. You might also notice that his motorcade is much smaller than usual. This is possible because they’ve blocked all traffic from the entire neighbourhood. You can see that there are absolutely no other cars on the road, even on the adjoining streets).


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPN9OL5EqUk

Something very similar to what is happening in Russia also happened in Lagos State. Governor Tinubu’s police ADC was summoned to Abuja, detained and harassed in 2007 because the Federal Government felt that he could help the AC to win the 2007 governorship elections in Lagos. He left the Police Force and went to study abroad after that experience. He returned to Nigeria and became a commissioner in Fashola’s administration and he is still a commissioner in the Ambode administration.

naptu2:
Photo gallery of ADCs

Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy and his ADC
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Former French President Francois Holland (C) gives documents to his aide-de-camp after a meeting entitled 'Climate, Energy and Society: the College de France in Paris, France, 09 November 2015.
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The ADC followed President Hollande to the podium, placed the speech on the lectern and went to sit just off-stage.
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Former French president, François Hollande congratulated by Greek prime minister, Alexis Tsipras, after his speech before the Greek Parliament in Athens on October 23, 2015. Behind them are their ADCs.
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President Hollande inspecting a guard of honour.
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Jamaica

These Boys Scouts share in a one on one conversation with Governor-General and Chief Scout, Sir Patrick Allen (2nd left) at their annual Founder’s Week Public Meeting held at King’s House on Thursday, February 23. Major Garth Anderson, Aide de Camp to the Governor-General (background) looks on.

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damibjs:
Navy or airforce cant be the president ADC... Never! Cant explain further.. Am sorry.

Sewgon79:
The Right Honourable Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, Governor General, Head of State And Commander In Chief Of The Armed Forces Of The Federation Of Nigeria (1960-1963) and President, Head Of State And Commander In Chief Of The Armed Forces Of The Federal Republic Of Nigeria (1963-1966).

President Azikiwe had 3 ADCs (serving concurrently), one each from the army, navy and air force.

ADC = Orho Esio Obada (Nigerian Army).

Major General Orho Esio Obada

Orho Obada attained the rank of Major General before retiring from the army.

ADC = Michael Adelanwa (Nigerian Navy)

Michael Adelanwa rose to become a Vice Admiral and Chief of The Naval Staff.

Vice Admiral Michael Ayinde Adelanwa (Chief Of Naval Staff).


Major General Johnson Thomas Umanakwe Aguiyi-Ironsi, Head Of State And Supreme Commander Of The Armed Forces Of The Federal Republic Of Nigeria.

General Aguiyi Ironsi had 3 ADCs (serving concurrently), one each from the army, navy and air force.

ADC = Lieutenant Sani Bello (Nigerian Army).

Sani Bello became a Colonel and Governor of Kano State.

Colonel Sani Bello

ADC = Lieutenant Andrew Nwankwo (Nigerian Air Force).

Andrew Nwankwo retired with the rank of Captain and later became a senator.

Senator Andrew Nwankwo.