President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment Major General Olufemi Oluyede as the Acting Chief of Army Staff.
The new appointment lends credence to the news in a section of the media that the Lt. Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja may have died in a foreign hospital where he is allegedly being treated for an undisclosed illness.
Though army authorities warned the media for peddling unfounded information and claimed that Lt Gen Lagbaja was away as part of his annual leave to take a deserved rest.
However, the appointment a new Army boss was announced in a statement issued in Abuja on Wednesday by presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga, with a caveat that the appointment is “pending the return” Lt. Gen Lagbaja.
The statement read:
President Tinubu appoints Major General Olufemi Olatubosun Oluyede as acting Chief of Army Staff
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, has appointed Major General Olufemi Olatubosun Oluyede as the acting Chief of Army Staff (COAS).
Oluyede will act in the position pending the return of the indisposed substantive Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Taoreed Abiodun Lagbaja.
Until his appointment, Oluyede served as the 56th Commander of the elite Infantry Corps of the Nigerian Army, based in Jaji, Kaduna.
The 56-year-old Oluyede and Lagbaja were coursemates and members of the 39th Regular Course.
He was commissioned a second lieutenant in 1992, effective from 1987. He rose to Major-General in September 2020.
Oluyede has held many commands since his commissioning as an officer. He was Platoon Commander and adjutant at 65 Battalion, Company Commander at 177 Guards Battalion, Staff Officer Guards Brigade, Commandant Amphibious Training School.
General Oluyede participated in several operations, including the Economic Community of West African States Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) Mission in Liberia, Operation HARMONY IV in Bakassi, and Operation HADIN KAI in the North East theatre of operations, where he commanded 27 Task Force Brigade.
Oluyede has earned many honours for his meritorious service in various fields of operations. These include the Corps Medal of Honour, the Grand Service Star, Passing the Staff Course, and Membership in the National Institute.
Others are the Field Command Medal, the Field Command Medal of Honour, and the Field Training Medal.
Oluyede also received the coveted Chief of Army Staff Commendation Award.
He is married and has three children.