Encomiums as former Army Chief Lagbaja is buried

Mr Tinubu described the late army chief as a “true soldier, a general and officer who symbolised the best of his profession and whose commitment to the nation he loved was singular and undiluted.”

In a solemn and dignified ceremony, Nigeria’s military and political leaders paid their last respects to the former Chief of Army Staff, Taoreed Lagbaja.

Mr Lagbaja, a lieutenant general, died in Lagos after a brief illness. Before his death on 5 November, the former army chief had been rumoured dead, however, the Defence Headquarters debunked the news, explaining that he was on leave.

A week after the rumoured death, PREMIUM TIMES reported that President Bola Tinubu appointed Olufemi Oluyede, a major general, to act as army chief. The president would later decorate Mr Oluyede with the new rank of lieutenant-general, an indication he is set to be made substantive army chief.

Last respect

President Tinubu and his entourage, including some senior Nigerian military officers and foreign military personnel, were at the National Military Cemetery, Abuja, where Mr Lagbaja was laid to rest in the presence of his young wife, Mariya, and their two children.

In his remarks, Mr Tinubu described the late army chief as a “true soldier, a general and officer who symbolised the best of his profession and whose commitment to the nation he loved was singular and undiluted.”

“For me, he was a trusted advisor whose formidable intellect and breadth of knowledge served this nation well,” the president said.

Mr Tinubu said God took Mr Lagbaja’s life at “a time when his service to the nation could mean so much.”

However, the president celebrated the “selfless” lieutenant general “who gave everything for Nigeria.”

PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported that the president during the burial ceremony, posthumously conferred the title of Commander of the Federal Republic (CFR) of Nigeria on Mr Lagbaja. The deceased’s wife, Mariya, received the award on behalf of her late husband.

The CFR is Nigeria’s third highest honour, below the GCFR and GCON.

Other dignitaries present at the burial service included Vice President Kashim Shettima, Minister of Defence Mohammed Badaru and Inspector General of Police Kayode Egbetokun.

Earlier at the National Christian Centre, Abuja, the First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu, praised the late army chief as an “exemplified man, a soldier, a gentleman and a patron with an unwavering dedication to the service…”

The first lady said her thoughts and prayers “are with his (Mr Lagbaja) wife, Mariya, their two children, family and friends and colleagues.”

On Thursday, the Nigeria Army held an event in honour of Mr Lagbaja shortly after his body arrived at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport at 12:16 p.m.

The event, a Service of Songs, was held at the Army Headquarters Garrison Parade Ground, Mogadishu Cantonment, Abuja.

Who is late Lagbaja?

Mr Lagbaja was appointed as the army chief by President Tinubu on 19 June 2023

He was born on 28 February 1968, in Ilobu, Irepodun Local Government Area of Osun State. He lived his early life in Osogbo where he attended St Charles Grammar School and Local Authority Teachers College.

He was admitted into the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) in 1987 as a member of the 39th Regular Course. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant on 19th September 1992 into the Nigerian Infantry Corps.

Between 1992 and 1995, Mr 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.

By 2009, he became Deputy Chief of Staff G1 at Headquarters 81 Division and subsequently, he became Commanding Officer at 72 Special Forces Battalion Makurdi from 2012 to 2013 and 2014 to 2015.

In 2016, he was named the Chief of Staff at Headquarters 8 Task Force Division, Monguno. He served as Director of Operations at the Army Headquarters Department of Army Training and Operations from January – December 2018. He was a Commander of Headquarters 9 Brigade, Ikeja, Lagos State and Headquarters 2 Brigade, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.

Before he was appointed as army chief, Mr Lagbaja was General Officer Commanding Headquarters 82 Division from March 2021 – August 2022 and Headquarters 1 Division – from August 2022 – June 2023.

Earlier in 2008, he attended the Military Observers Course on Peacekeeping Wing at the Nigerian Army School of Infantry Jaji (February – May 2008) and ECOWAS Standby Force Battalion Command Post Course – Peacekeeping Centre, Bamako, Mali – (June – August 2010).

He started his career as a second lieutenant and died as a lieutenant general, a rank he attained in September 2019

Mr Lagbaja participated in Operation HARMONY IV in Bakassi Peninsula; United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC); Operation ZAKI Internal Security Operation in Benue State; Operation LAFIYA DOLE; Operation MESA/Operation UDO KA – March 2021 – August 2022 – Internal Security Operation in South-east Nigeria (Anambra/Abia/Ebonyi/Enugu and Imo States); and Operation FOREST SANITY – Aug 2022 to 2023 – Internal Security Operation in Kaduna/Niger states.

Mr Lagbaja is not the first army chief to die while in office. In 2021, Ibrahim Attahiru, a lieutenant general and then chief of army staff died in a Kaduna-bound plane crash. Mr Attahiru died alongside 10 other military officers and crew.