24 Senior Officers of the Nigerian Army Face Retirement As Farouk Yahaya Becomes COAS
To accommodate the appointment of Major General Farouk Yahaya as the new Chief of Army Staff, some 24 senior officers of the Nigerian Army with the rank of Major General may have to ‘end’ their careers (COAS).
This is due to their seniority in rank to Yayaha, who was just nominated by President Muhammadu Buhari as the next Chief of Army Staff
According to Report, the President named Major General Yahaya, a Sokoto State native, as the new COAS last Thursday, following the death of the previous COAS, Lt-Gen Ibrahim Attahiru, in a plane crash in Kaduna State on May 21, 2021.
On Friday, he returned to the Army Headquarters in Abuja to resume his duties.
However, it has been reported that the newly appointed Army Chief’s senior commanders may have to make way in order to accommodate him in his new role.
According to reports, Yahaya’s appointment will effect 24 generals, 13 from the North and 11 from the South.
According to a document studied by PR Nigeria that shows those who are above the new COAS in terms of seniority, the North West, where Faruq is from, has three Major Generals who are senior to him. Major Generals MSA Aliyu, YP Auta, and J Sarham are among them.
JO Akomolafe, UM Mohammed, NE Angbazo, and Kay Isiyaku are the four North Central Generals above the new Army Chief.
Major Generals AS Maikobi, SA Yaro, AT Hamman, AM Aliyu, HPZ Vintenaba, and IM Yusuf are among the six from the North East.
These five Major Generals from the South West–JB Olawumi, G Oyefesobi, BM Shafa, BA Akinroluyo, and KO Kadiri–are Faruq’s superiors in the Army.
CO Ude, MO Uzoh, CC Okonkwo, BI Ahanotu, and OF Azinta, all from the South East, are the newly appointed COAS’s “seniors.”
The only Army senior commander from the South-South who is also Faruq’s senior is Major General HE Ayamasaowei of Bayelsa State.
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According to the data, the Nigerian Army now has over 100 officers with the rank of Major General.
However, a retired military official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to PRNigeria said the pick of Yahaya as the new COAS could be because the new COAS is a member of the Army’s elite infantry corps, which is part of the combat and operational forces.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Defence, Bashir Salihi-Magashi, has supported President Muhammadu Buhari’s choice to designate Major General Farouk Yahaya as the new Chief of Army Staff, according to Naija News.
According to the Minister, when picking the new Army Commander, Buhari did not consider ethnic or religious concerns, but simply national interest.
