ByAgency Report
President Bola Tinubu has appointed Christopher Musa, a major general, as the new chief of defence staff (CDS) and Taoreed Lagbaja, a major general, as chief of army staff.
Mr Tinubu also appointed Emmanuel Ogalla, a rear admiral, as chief of naval staff and Hassan Abubakar, an Air vice marshal, as the chief of air staff, while Emmanuel Undiandeye, a major general, was appointed chief of defence intelligence, among others.
The new CDS, Mr Musa, born on 25 December 1967 in Sokoto, hails from Zangon Kataf in Kaduna State.
He is a member of the 38th Regular Course of the Nigerian Defence Academy and was commissioned on 21 September 1991 into the Nigerian Army Infantry Corps.
Mr Musa holds a Masters’s in Defence Studies from the National Defence University in Beijing, China.
He has held several command appointments during his military career and was at the thick of the fight against Boko Haram and ISWAP terrorists for over a decade.
He was Theatre Commander, Operation Hadin Kai, in the North-east before his deployment as commander Infantry Corps, from where he was appointed as CDS.
The new COAS, Mr Lagbaja, hails from Ilobu in Oṣun and is a member of the 39 regular courses of the Nigerian Defence Academy.
He holds a Bachelor’s in Geography from NDA Kaduna and a Master’s from U.S. Army War College.
Until his elevation as COAS, Mr Lagbaja was the chief of operation (Army) and had served as General Officer Commanding 1 Division, Kaduna, and 82 Division, Nigerian Army Enugu.
He had held command positions in several military operations, including Operation HARMONY IV in the Bakassi Peninsula, the United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Operation ZAKI.
He was also part of the Internal Security Operation in Benue, Operation LAFIYA DOLE, Operation MESA/UDO KA, and Internal Security Operation in the South East.
As GOC 1 Division in Kaduna, he led troops of Operation FOREST SANITY in confronting terrorists in Kaduna and Niger States.
The new Chief of Naval Staff hails from Enugu Ezike in Enugu State and is a member of 39 Regular Course of NDA. He was born in 1968.
Until his appointment, he was the Director of Lessons Learnt at the Naval Headquarters Department of Policy and Plans.
Mr Ogalla is a regular combatant and has held several command appointments and attended several courses both at home and abroad.
The new CAS, Mr Abubakar, was born on 11 September 1970 and hails from Shanono Local Government Area in Kano State. He was enlisted into the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) as a member of 39 Regular Course of NDA and was commissioned Pilot Officer on 19 September 1992.
He was the Air Officer Commanding Logistics Command until his new appointment and attended several courses.
Mr Abubakar holds a Bachelor of Science from the Nigerian Defence Academy Kaduna and Basic Flying Training Courses at the 301 Flying Training School Kaduna.
He also attended the National Defence Course at the Nasser Higher Military Academy, Cairo – Egypt, and holds a Master’s in International Affairs and Diplomacy from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.
The new Chief of Defence Intelligence, Mr Undiandeye, hails from Bedia in Obudu Local Government Area of Cross River State. He was, until his appointment, the Commandant of the Martin Luther Agwai International Leadership and Peacekeeping Centre, Jaji, Kaduna State.
Mr Undiandeye was a member of the Troop Contributing Countries Working Group for developing the second edition of the United Nations Infantry Battalion Manual (UNIBAM) published in 2020 by the UN Office of military affairs.
He is of the Intelligence Corps of the Nigerian Army.
(NAN)
