Nasir Ayitogo, Premiumtimes
President Muhammadu Buhari, on Tuesday, appointed new heads of the Army, Air Force and Navy. He also appointed a new Chief of Defence Staff, Lucky Irabor, a major general.
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Chief of Army Staff, Major General Ibrahim Attahiru
Mr Attahiru, a major general, succeeds Tukur Buratai, a lieutenant general.
A native of Kaduna State, Mr Attahiru, was born on August 10, 1966.
Until his recent appointment, he was the General Officer Commanding 82 Division of the Nigerian Army, Enugu.
With service number 8406, he was a member of Regular Course 35 of the Nigerian Defence Academy.
At a time, he was the Theatre Commander of the Operation Lafiya Dole until he was sacked in 2017 for alleged incompetence.
Under his watch, suicide bombings and attacks on military formations were on the rise.
Barely a month after he assumed office, Boko Haram insurgents attacked Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.
Chief of Air Staff, Air Vice Marshall Isiaka Amao
Mr Amao, an air vice marshall, succeeds Abubakar Sadique who resigned from service after spending about 40 years.
The new Air Force Chief was born in Enugu State, South East, Nigeria.
He joined the Nigerian Air Force on January 19, 1984, as a member of 35 NDA Regular Course and was commissioned as Pilot Officer on December 20,1986.
He served at the 99 ACTG Kainji as Trainee/Sqn Pilot from 1993 – 2004, 301 FTS Kaduna as Instructor Pilot/Sqn Pilot from 2004 – 2007, HQ NAF Abuja as Air Assistance to Chief of Air Staff from September 08 – May 10, Nigerian High Commission London as Deputy Defence Adviser from May 10 – August 12.
He also served in the North East as Air Component Commander of operation ZAMAN LAFIYA / LAFIYA DOLE (North East operation) from 13 February 2015 to 16 February 2016.
Other positions he held were Acting Deputy Theatre Commander (Air Ops) for operation LAFIYA DOLE, Director of Policy (DOPOL) at HQ NAF, Abuja, Director of Operations (DOO) at HQ NAF and Director of Training (DOT) at HQ NAF, Abuja.
Until his new appointment, he was the Air Officer Commanding, Tactical Air Command (TAC).
A fighter pilot, the new Air Force Chief is married with three children.
Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Auwal Gambo
Auwal Gambo, a rear admiral, succeeds Ibok Ibas who resigned from service after spending over 35 years.
Formally known as Rear Admiral Awwal Zubairu Gambo, the new Naval Chief is an indigene of Nasarawa Local Government of Kano State.
(PHOTO CREDIT: Twitter @GarShehu)
He joined the Nigerian Navy in September 1984 as a member of Regular Course 36 and was commissioned as a Sub-Lieutenant in September 1988.
An Underwater Warfare specialist with a sub-specialisation in Intelligence, the new Naval Chief also attended Junior Division 48/89 and Senior Course 26 both at AFCSC Jaji.
Other courses attended include the National Defence Course at the South African National Defence College.
Until his recent appointment, he was the Director of Procurement at the Defence Space Administration.
