The Acting Chief of Army Staff, Olufemi Oluyede, is currently appearing before the House of Representatives Committees on Defence and Army for screening as the substantive COAS.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
President Bola Tinubu appointed Mr Oluyede as the acting army chief on 30 October following the illness of Taoreed Lagbaja.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mr Lagbaja, a lieutenant general, however, died on 5 November.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mr Oluyede, accompanied by the Chief of Defence Staff, Chris Musa, and other top military officials, told the lawmakers that he enjoys \u201cboxing and badminton\u201d while reading his profile to the members of the committee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI enjoy boxing and badminton,\u201d Mr Oluyede, a lieutenant general, said. The Co-Chairman of the Committee, Babajimi Benson, responded jokingly, \u201cYou said you like boxing; I hope you won\u2019t box people here?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mr Oluyede was asked two questions regarding an air wing for the Nigerian Army and cooperation among the different branches of the military.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe air support need of the army is tactical, where the air support must be available, while the Air Force, being the main player in that sector, gives the strategic support,\u201d Mr Oluyede said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His use of very few words to answer the questions prompted the chairman of the committee to describe him as a man of \u201cfew words.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After answering the two questions, the committee went into an executive session to continue the screening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Earlier, Mr Benson, in his opening remarks, said the screening was not about the qualifications of the nominee but rather to establish \u201ccollaborative efforts\u201d to tackle Nigeria\u2019s security challenges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe task before us today is not only to assess the qualifications and vision of the nominee for Chief of Army Staff but also to establish a collaborative roadmap for tackling Nigeria\u2019s security challenges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAs a partner in the pursuit of a secure and prosperous Nigeria, this House remains steadfast in its commitment to legislative oversight and support for the armed forces,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The screening was ongoing at the time of filing this report.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"