25 Generals in Nigerian Army to Retire as Yahaya Emerges New CoAS
The appointment of Major General Farouk Yahaya as Nigeria’s new Chief of Army Staff by President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday may signal the end of the career of 25 military major-generals in the Nigerian Army.
Yahaya was appointed about a week after the death of the former CoAS, Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru and 10 others in a plane crash in Kaduna last Friday.
His appointment was contained in a statement by the Acting Director, Defence Information, Brigadier-General Onyema Nwachukwu who wrote: “The Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed Major General Farouk Yahaya as the new Chief of Army Staff.
“Prior to his appointment Major General Yahaya was the General Officer Commanding 1 Division of the Nigerian Army and the incumbent Theatre Commander of the Counter Terrorism Counter Insurgency military outfit in the North East code named Operation Hadin Kai.”
Before his appointment, Yahaya was the Theatre Commander of the counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency operations code-named Operation Hadin Kai, in the North-East.
His emergence is expected to spell the end of the careers of about 25 major generals who were of the Regular Course 35 and Regular Course 36, all of who are his seniors.
The new COAS is of Course 37 and will not be seen to lord over course 35 and 36 who are above him in rank.
He is also junior to the other service chiefs as the Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor who is of Regular Course 34 Intake; Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Awwal Gambo and Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Oladayo Amao, who are of Regular Course 35 intakes.
The new CoAS was born on January 5, 1966 in Sifawa, Bodinga Local Government Area of Sokoto State.
He started his cadet training at the NDA on September 27, 1985 and was commissioned into the Nigerian Army Infantry Corps on September 22, 1990.
He was once Garrison Commander Headquarters Guards Brigade, Directing Staff at the Armed Forces Command and Staff College, Deputy Director Army Headquarters Department of Military Secretary, Deputy Director Army Research and Development and the Chief of Staff, Headquarters Joint Task Force Operation Pulo Shield.
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