President Bola Tinubu has promoted acting Chief of Army Staff Olufemi Oluyede from Major General to Lieutenant General. Oluyede’s appointment as acting COAS follows weeks of speculation around former Army Chief Lt. General Taoreed Lagbaja’s health. Presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga confirmed Oluyede would “act in the position pending the return of the indisposed substantive Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Taoreed Abiodun Lagbaja.”
A distinguished military leader, Oluyede has served in various high-stakes positions, including Commander of the Infantry Corps in Jaji, Kaduna. Commissioned as a second lieutenant in 1992, he has participated in multiple peacekeeping and defense missions, including ECOMOG in Liberia and Operation HADIN KAI in Northeast Nigeria.
