Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser to the President, acknowledged this in a statement issued on Wednesday. “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, regrets to announce the passing of Lt. General Taoreed Abiodun Lagbaja, Chief of the Army Staff, at age 56,” according to a statement.Here are eight things to know about the late COAS Lagbaja:
1. Taoreed Lagbaja was born on February 28, 1968, in Ilobu, Irepodun Local Government Area of Osun State. He spent his childhood in Osogbo, where he attended St. Charles Grammar School and the Local Authority Teachers College.
2. In 2008, he took the Military Observers Course at the Nigerian Army School of Infantry in Jaji (February-May) and the ECOWAS Standby Force Battalion Command Post Course at the Peacekeeping Centre in Bamako, Mali (June-August 2010).
3. He led various military operations, including Operation HARMONY IV in the Bakassi Peninsula, the United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Operation ZAKI.
4. President Bola Tinubu named him as Chief of Army Staff on June 19, 2023.
