BREAKING: Army gives clarification on death of COAS Lt. Gen. Lagbaja

By Ezurike Ugochukwu

The Nigerian Army on Sunday refutes social media accounts making the rounds that the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, has died.

According to the posts, Lagbaja had died of cancer 48 hours ago.

The post read, “The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, has died. Lagbaja died in an undisclosed hospital overseas nearly 48 hrs ago from a stage three Cancer, according to a senior Government official.

“The death of the Chief of Army staff has been kept secret because of intense lobbying by some Generals who want to take the position.

“Lagbaja, born on February 28, 1968, in Ilobu, Osun State, was appointed by President Bola Tinubu in June 2023, as the 27th Chief of Army Staff.”

Though the phone calls put across by Nation Update to the Director, Army Public Relations, Maj. Gen Onyema Nwachukwu, continued to report switched off.

However, reacting to the post on X, the Nigerian Army marked it as fake news.

Some sources at the Army Headquarters have confirmed that the Army Chief was critically ill and out of the country for treatment.

Another source has to say, “COAS is not dead. He is only critically ill at the moment. We should be praying for him at this critical time and not spreading rumors that he has died, it’s unfair. There’s no way news of his death far away this country could be hidden.”

“Take it from me, we have not heard of his death from anyone around him please.”