Chief of Army Staff (Nigeria)

The chief of army staff (COAS) has been the title of the professional head of the Nigerian Army since 1966.^[1] Prior to 1966, the title was General Officer Commanding, Nigerian Army (GOCNA). Since 1980, the post has been immediately subordinate to the chief of defence staff, the post held by the head of the Nigerian Armed Forces. The position is often occupied by the most senior officer appointed by the president.^[2]

Chief of Army Staff
Seal of the chief of army staff
Flag of the chief of army staff
Incumbent Lieutenant General Olufemi Oluyede since 30 October 2024
Nigerian Army
Abbreviation	COAS
Member of	National Security Council National Defence Council
Reports to	Chief of Defence Staff
Seat	Nigerian Army Headquarters, Abuja
Appointer	President of Nigeria
Inaugural holder	Kenneth G. Exham Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi (indigenous)
Formation	1956 (69 years ago) (1956)

The current chief of army staff is Lieutenant General Olufemi Oluyede, who succeeded Lieutenant General Taoreed Lagbaja, who died in office in November 2024. ^[3]

Role

In the chain of command, the chief of army staff reports to the chief of defence staff, who in turn reports to the defence minister, accountable to the president of Nigeria.^[4] The statutory duty of the officer is to formulate and execute policies towards the highest attainment of national security and operational competence of the Nigerian Army.^[5]

Chiefs of the Nigerian Army

Following is a chronological list of officers holding the position of General Officer Commanding (GOC) or Chief of Army Staff (COAS).^[6]

General Officer Commanding

No.	Portrait	General Officer Commanding	Took office	Left office	Time in office
1		Exham, KennethMajor general Kenneth G. Exham	1956	1959	2–3 years
2		Foster, NormanMajor general Norman Foster	1959	1963	3–4 years
3		Mackenzie, JohnMajor general John Alexander Mackenzie	1963	1963	0 years
4		Welby-Everard, ChristopherMajor general Sir Christopher Welby-Everard (1909–1996)	1963	February 1965	1–2 years
5		Aguiyi-Ironsi, JohnsonMajor general Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi (1924–1966) Later military ruler	February 1965	15 January 1966	0–1 years

Chief of Army Staff

No.	Portrait	Chief of Army Staff	Took office	Left office	Time in office	Ref.
1		Gowon, YakubuLieutenant colonel Yakubu Gowon FSS (born 1934) Later military ruler	January 1966	July 1966	6 months	[citation needed]
2		Akahan, JosephLieutenant colonel Joseph Akahan OFR FSS (1937–1968)	July 1966	May 1968 †	1 year, 9 months	[citation needed]
3		Katsina, HassanMajor general Hassan Katsina RCDS, PSC (1933–1995)	May 1968	January 1971	2 years, 8 months	[citation needed]
4		Ejoor, DavidMajor general David Ejoor (1932–2019)	January 1971	July 1975	4 years, 6 months	[citation needed]
5		Danjuma, TheophilusLieutenant general Theophilus Danjuma (born 1938)	July 1975	October 1979	4 years, 3 months	[citation needed]
6		Akinrinade, IpoolaLieutenant general Ipoola Alani Akinrinade CFR FSS (born 1939) later Chief of Defence Staff	October 1979	April 1980	6 months	[citation needed]
7		Jalo, GibsonLieutenant general Gibson Jalo CFR FSS, JSS (1939–2000) later Chief of Defence Staff	April 1980	October 1981	1 year, 6 months	[citation needed]
8		Wushishi, InuaLieutenant general Inua Wushishi CFR FSS (1940–2021)	October 1981	October 1983	2 years	[citation needed]
9		Babangida, IbrahimMajor general Ibrahim Babangida (born 1941) Later military ruler	January 1984	August 1985	1 year, 7 months	[citation needed]
10		Abacha, SaniLieutenant general Sani Abacha GCON , DSS, mni (1943–1998) Later military ruler	August 1985	August 1990	5 years	[citation needed]
11		Abacha, SaniLieutenant general Salihu Ibrahim FSS , FHWC (1935–2018)	August 1990	September 1993	3 years, 1 month	[citation needed]
12		Gusau, AliyuLieutenant general Aliyu Mohammed Gusau DSS, rcds (born 1943)	September 1993	November 1993	2 months	[citation needed]
13		Alli, ChrisMajor general Chris Alli CRG, DSS, ndc, psc(+) (1944–2023)	November 1993	August 1994	9 months	[citation needed]
14		Kazir, AlwaliMajor general Alwali Kazir DSS, Usawc, psc(+) (born 1947)	August 1994	March 1996	1 year, 7 months	[citation needed]
15		Bamaiyi, IshayaLieutenant general Ishaya Bamaiyi DSS, Usawc, psc(+) (born 1949)	March 1996	May 1999	3 years, 2 months	[citation needed]
16		Malu, VictorLieutenant general Victor Malu DSS, mni, fwc, psc (1947–2017)	May 1999	April 2001	1 year, 11 months	[citation needed]
17		Ogomudia, AlexanderLieutenant general Alexander Ogomudia (born 1949) Later Chief of Defence Staff	April 2001	June 2003	2 years, 2 months	[citation needed]
18		Agwai, MartinLieutenant general Martin Luther Agwai (born 1948) Later Chief of Defence Staff	June 2003	June 2006	3 years	[citation needed]
19		Azazi, OwoyeLieutenant general Owoye Andrew Azazi (1952–2012) Later Chief of Defence Staff	1 June 2006	May 2007	11 months	[citation needed]
20		Yusuf, LukaLieutenant general Luka Yusuf CFR, GSS, GPP, DSO, psc(+), fwc, Msc (1952–2009)	June 2007	August 2008	1 year, 3 months	[citation needed]
21		Dambazau, AbdulrahmanLieutenant general Abdulrahman Dambazau CFR, GSS, psc, ndc, fwc(+) (born 1954)	August 2008	September 2010	2 years, 1 month	[citation needed]
22		Ihejirika, AzubuikeLieutenant general Azubuike Ihejirika CFR, GSS, psc(+), fwc, fniqs (born 1956)	September 2010	January 2014	3 years, 4 months	[7]
23		Minimah, KennethLieutenant general Kenneth Minimah GSS, psc(+), fwc (born 1959)	January 2014	July 2015	1 year, 6 months	https://punchng.com/tinubu-promotes-acting-coas-oluyede-to-lieutenant-general/
24		Buratai, TukurLieutenant general Tukur Yusuf Buratai NAM, GSS, psc(+), ndc (BD) (born 1960)	16 July 2015	28 January 2021	5 years, 6 months	[8]
25		Attahiru, IbrahimLieutenant general Ibrahim Attahiru (1966–2021)	28 January 2021	21 May 2021 †	3 months	[9][10]
26		Yahaya, FarukLieutenant general Faruk Yahaya (born 1966)	27 May 2021	23 June 2023	2 years	[11][12]
27		Lagbaja, TaoreedLieutenant general Taoreed Lagbaja (1968–2024)	23 June 2023	5 November 2024 †	1 year, 4 months	[13]
28		Oluyede, OlufemiLieutenant general Olufemi Oluyede (born 1968)	30 October 2024	Incumbent	6 months	[14]

Source: ^[15]

See also

• Nigerian Army Day