Major Shake-Up In Army As New GOCs, Commanders Emerge

The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Maj-Gen Faruk Yahaya, last Friday, approved new appointments in the Nigerian Army, including principal staff officers, commanders and other relevant key officers for the purpose of re-invigorating various commands in the Army.

In a statement, last Saturday by the Director, Army Public Relations, Brig-Gen Onyema Nwachukwu, the COAS approved the appointment of the Commandant, Nigerian Army Armoured School, Maj-Gen B.O. Sawyer as the new Director, Defence Information while the Chief of Operations Army, Maj-Gen I.M. Yusuf becomes the Commandant, Nigerian Defence Academy.

Maj-Gen T.A. Gagariga will move from Army Headquarters Department of Policy and Plans to Nigerian Army Artillery Corps as Corps Commander Artillery, and Maj-Gen V.O. Ezugwu of Training and Doctrine Command becomes the Commander Infantry Corps.

Maj-Gen M.A. Yekini is the new Chief of Defence Training and Operations, Maj-Gen M.S. Yusuf will take over as Chief of Defence Standard and Evaluation, while the Chief of Civil – Military Affairs, Maj-Gen A.B. Omozoje will take over as the Chief of Policy and Plans at the Army Headquarters.

Equally, Maj-Gen S.O. Olabanji becomes the Commander Training and Doctrine Command, Maj-Gen O.A. Akintade is the new Chief of Army Logistics, Maj-Gen O.T. Akinjobi takes over as Chief of Operations (Army), Maj-Gen J.A. Ataguba becomes the Chief of Army Standard and Evaluation while Maj-Gens K.I. Mukhtar and C. Ofoche are the new Chief of Administration and Chief of Transformation and Innovation, respectively, just as Maj-Gen A.B. Ibrahim is appointed as Chief of Training (Army).

Among the new field commanders are Maj-Gen A.K. Ibrahim, who takes over as the Force Commander, Multi National Joint Task Force, N’Djamena and Maj-Gen I.S. Ali, who becomes the General Officer Commanding 3 Division and will double as the Commander Special Task Force Operation Safe Haven.

The COAS equally approved the appointment of Commanders, Commandants of NA Institutions, Directors and other key appointments at both Defence and Army levels.

The COAS said, “The appointments are aimed to rejig the system for efficiency in the command and administration within the Nigerian Army”.

According to the statement, the appointments take immediate effect.