Boko Haram: Massive shake-up in the Army

Posted by admin Armed Forces, Boko Haram, General Politics, Top Stories Thursday, February 16th, 2012

A cross section of top military offricers

BY KINGSLEY OMONOBI
Apparently miffed over the ease, with which Boko Haram sect attacked some military formations in the country recently, the Army high command, yesterday did a major stock taking and redeployed 72 Generals including three General Officers Commanding. GOCs, 26 other Major Generals and 43 Brigadiers- General.

The GOCs include those of the First Mechanized Division, Major General Joseph Shoboiki, the GOC Enugu, Major General Sunday Idoko and the Third Armoured Division, Jos, Major General O.O Oshinowo, while the GOC 81 Division, Lagos, Kenneth Minimah retained his position just like his counterpart in Ibadan, Major General MD Mohammed.

The jurisdiction of the GOC of the First Division covers Kaduna, Kebbi, Zamfara Katsina, Kano, Sokoto, all in the north West. While the jurisdiction of the commanding officer of the of the 82 Div covers , the South East and South-South except Edo and Delta states.

The jurisdiction of the GOC, Third Amoured Division cut across the North Central and North East states.
In a statement signed by the Chief of Staff, Army Public Relations, Col. OU Abdul, the movements were meant to reinvigorate the fight against terrorism in the country.

Col. Abdul quoted the Chief of Army Staff, COAS, Lt. General Azubuike Ihejirika as having approved the redeployments.
Also affected in the massive movements were Major General Garba Ayodele Wahab, formerly Director of Operations, DOPs, Army Headquarters, who is the new GOC, First Mechanized Division, Kaduna; Major General Jack Nwaogbo, formerly Commander of the Joint Task Force, JTF, Maiduguri, the headquarters of Boko Haram, is the new GOC, Third Armoured Division, Jos just as the former Commander, JTF, Jos, Plateau State is the new GOC, 82 Division, Enugu.

Others affected are Major General Raphael Isa, formerly the Director, Army Public Relations, who is now the Provost Marshal, Nigeria Army, Major General Etim Bassey; formerly Commander, Corps of Artillery is the Chief of Administration, Army Headquarters; Major General MB Ibrahim is the Commander, Special Task Force, Jos. In the same vein, Maj Gen AT Jibrin and Maj Gen U Buzugbe have been confirmed as Director of Military Intelligence, DMI, and Military Secretary, Army, respectively.
The new Commander of the Nigerian Army, Peace Keeping Centre, NAPKC, Jaji, is Maj Gen JS Zaruwa; Maj. Gen AS Agha-Okoro who until now was at the Department of Army Training and Operations, DATOPS, Army Headquarters is now the Director Legal Services, DLS.
Maj Gen Joseph Shoboiki, formerly GOC, Kaduna has been moved to Defence Headquarters as Director of Policy while Maj Gen Sunday Idoko is leaving the 82 Division to become the Chief of Logistics, COLOG, at the Army Headquarters.
Other new appointments include the Commander

Three Brigade, Brig Gen Ishiaku I Abbah; Commander 31 Brigade, Brig Gen Ilouga; Commander 21 Brigade, Brig Gen RO Bamigboye while the Chief of Staff at the 81 Division, Brig Gen C.O Okoro, is now Sector Commander, Nigerian Contingent of the United Nations Mission in Liberia, UNMIL, just as Brig Gen MA Koleoso was appointed the Sector Commander/Nigerian Contingent for the United Nations Mission in Dafur, UNAMID.

-Vanguardwp_posts