President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has appointed Major General Olufemi Olatubosun Oluyede as the acting Chief of Army Staff (COAS). He replaces Lt. Gen. Taoreed Abiodun Lagbaja, reportedly ailing from an undisclosed health condition.
The statement Bayo Onanuga, President Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, said, “Major General Olufemi Olatubosun Oluyede will act in the position pending the return of the indisposed substantive Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Taoreed Abiodun Lagbaja.”
Before this appointment, Gen. Oluyede, 56, was the 56th Commander of the elite Infantry Corps of the Nigerian Army, stationed in Jaji, Kaduna.
Having been commissioned as a second lieutenant in 1992, Oluyede achieved the rank of Major-General in September 2020. Throughout his career, he has assumed numerous commands, including as Platoon Commander and adjutant at the 65 Battalion, Company Commander at the 177 Guards Battalion, and Staff Officer for the Guards Brigade.
His operational experience includes participating in several missions such as the Economic Community of West African States Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) Mission in Liberia, Operation HARMONY IV in Bakassi, and Operation HADIN KAI in the North East theatre, where he led the 27 Task Force Brigade.
Earlier this month, due to his prolonged absence from official duties, it began to be speculated that Lagbaja was ailing from a health condition and had been secretly flown abroad for medical treatment.
Although the army officially disputed all suggestions about the seriousness of Gen. Lagbaja’s condition, today’s appointment of an acting COAS could underscore to many observers that the condition of the substantive COAS – what it is – has not been improving.
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