The outgoing COAS requested that they be impartial and professional at all times, refusing to be swayed by any disloyal forces.
The Boko Haram insurgency was at its height when the immediately preceding Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Faruk Yahaya, took office in 2021, yet he is leaving it better than he found it.
On May 27, 2021, after the unfortunate passing of Lieutenant General Ibrahim Attahiru, who died in an airplane crash on May 21 along with 10 other officers and soldiers from the army, Yahaya was named army chief by former President Muhammadu Buhari.
He was the Theater Commander of Operation Hadin Kai, the Northeast counterinsurgency operation, prior to being named army chief.
Yahaya urged the army to maintain its victories over various security challenges, like as terrorists, bandits, and crude oil thieves, while speaking during the transfer ceremony at the Defence Headquarters in Abuja.
The outgoing COAS urged them to be impartial and professional at all times rather than getting sidetracked by what he called some unpatriotic elements.
Major General Taoreed Abiodun Lagbaja, the new Chief of Army Staff, said in his speech that his predecessor had overseen the Army’s unparalleled cautious management of resources and acquisition of military gear.
He pledged to build on the achievements of his predecessor and urged those who were leaving the military to give the Nigerian Army the chance to draw on their experiences whenever necessary.
The new COAS pledged to lead an army that will be motivated by professionalism and discipline.
Senior military leaders and the heads of the army’s major departments were also present at the ceremony.
The 23rd Chief of Army Staff is Lagbaja.
On May 27, 2021, Yahaya was chosen by the late President Muhammadu Buhari.
His appointment came a few days after his predecessor, Lieutenant-General Ibrahim Attahiru, and 10 other military leaders perished in an aircraft crash on May 21, 2021.
It was pouring severely when the incident happened close to the Kaduna International Airport at around 6 o’clock. The officers reportedly traveled to Kaduna in advance of a passing out parade of soldiers from the Zaria-based Nigerian Army Depot.
Prior to the accident, in March 2021, an Air Force plane that was assisting ground forces combat Boko Haram terrorists went missing in Borno’s northeast.
Seven officials also perished in the February 2021 military plane crash in Abuja, the nation’s capital.
At the time of Yahaya’s appointment, the nation was dealing with a number of security issues, such as an insurgency in the North-East, banditry in the North-West, secessionist movements in the South-East, and crises involving Fulani herdsmen throughout the Middle Belt and several South-West states.
