Major General Olufemi Olatubosun Oluyede has been appointed by President Bola Tinubu as the acting Chief of Army Staff (COAS), pending the return of the substantive COAS, Lt. General Taoreed Abiodun Lagbaja.
Hereunder are ten things to know about the new acting COAS:
1. Prior to his appointment, Oluyede served as the 56th Commander of the elite Infantry Corps of the Nigerian Army, stationed in Jaji, Kaduna.
2. Major General Oluyede was born in 1968, he is 56 years old.
3. Oluyede and Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Lagbaja were coursemates and members of the 39th Regular Course of the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA).
4. He was officially commissioned as a second lieutenant in 1992, but his service was retroactively recognised as starting from 1987.
5. Oluyede was promoted to the rank of Major General in September 2020 after over a three-decade-long military career.
6. He has been involved in several high-profile 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, where he commanded the 27 Task Force Brigade.
7. Major General Oluyede has received numerous accolades throughout his service, including the Corps Medal of Honour, the Grand Service Star, the Field Command Medal, and the Chief of Army Staff Commendation Award.
8. His military education includes passing the prestigious Staff Course, and he is a member of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Nigeria’s highest policy think tank.
9. Major General Oluyede is married with three children.
10. Oluyede is not the substantive COAS as thr incumbent Lt. Gen. Lagbaja is only on medical vacation.
