IN PHOTOS: Lagbaja, the army chief ‘who led from the front’

November 7, 2024 9:37 am

Lagbaja steps out from an amoured tank during his maiden visit to army engineering depot in Kaduna

From his days as a junior officer to the days he led a brigade, a division, and then the entire army, Lagbaja had always led from the front. He didn’t sit back and send his soldiers to the frontline; the gallant infantry officer called the shots right from the battlefield.

Having led several battles on the field, Lagbaja breathed his last on November 5 after battling an undisclosed ailment.

Lagbaja, who was appointed chief of army staff (COAS) by President Bola Tinubu on June 19, 2023, was 56.

He was the 23rd chief of army staff.

“His distinguished military career began when he enrolled in the Nigerian Defence Academy in 1987,” Bayo Onanuga, special adviser on information and strategy to the president, said in a statement on Wednesday.

“On September 19, 1992, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Nigerian Infantry Corps as a member of the 39th Regular Course.

“Throughout his service, Lt. General Lagbaja demonstrated exceptional leadership and commitment, serving as a platoon commander in the 93 Battalion and the 72 Special Forces Battalion.”