Taoreed Lagbaja, Nigeria’s Chief of Army Staff, is dead.
According to a statement by Bayo Onanuga, earlier, today, Mr Lagbaja, a lieutenant general, died in Lagos after a brief illness. He was 56.
Bayo Onanuga’s statement reads, “He passed away on Tuesday night in Lagos after a period of illness.
“President Tinubu expresses his heartfelt condolences to the family and the Nigerian Armed Forces during this difficult time. He wishes Lt. General Lagbaja eternal peace and honours his significant contributions to the nation”.
It would be recalled that Lagbaja was rumoured dead two weeks ago but the Defence Headquarters repudiated the story, saying that he was on leave.
This, however, was followed a week later by President Bola Tinubu appointing Olufemi Oluyede, a major general, as acting chief of army staff; and subsequently decorating Oluyede with the new rank of lieutenant-general.
About Lagbaja:
Taoreed Lagbaja was born on 28 February 1968, in Ilobu,in the Irepodun Local Government Area of Osun State. He attended St Charles Grammar School and Local Authority Teachers College, both in Osogbo.
He entered the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) in 1987 as a member of the 39th Regular Course; and was commissioned as a second lieutenant on 19th September 1992 into the Nigerian Infantry Corps.
Between 1992 and 1995, Lagbaja was platoon commander of the 93 Battalion. From 1995 to 2001, he was platoon commander of 72 Special Forces Battalion. In 2001, he obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Geography from the Nigerian Defence Academy. He studied Strategic Studies at the US Army War College at the Master’s level.
He was an instructor at Nigerian Defence Academy between 2001 and 2004. He was a Grade 2 Staff Officer in charge of peacekeeping at the Army Headquarters Department of Army Training and Operations. Then he was a Directing Staff at Armed Forces Command and Staff College from 2006 – 2009.
He was appointed as the army chief by President Tinubu on 19 June 2023
