Late Lieutenant General Ibrahim Attahiru was in 2017 sacked as Nigeria’s military commander leading the fight against the Boko-Haram insurgency for alleged incompetence and failure to capture the then leader of the sect, Abubakar Shekau.
The insurgents have been raining terror in different parts of the country, particularly in the North East region, since 2014, killing in hundreds and displacing people in thousands.But Attahiru, who was the made the Theatre Commander of the Operation Lafiya Dole in May 2017, was recalled seven months after because of the rise in suicide bombings and attacks on military formations under his watch.
He was then replaced with another general, Nicholas Rogers. However, in what appears to signal a new twist to Nigeria’s fight against insurgency, Shekau, the Boko Haram leader reportedly died in an invasion of his camp by Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) on Wednesday.
Two days after Shekau’s death, Attahiru, who had barely spent five months as the Chief of Army Staff, died in a plane crash alongside ten others including top military officers and crew members. They were travelling on a Nigerian Air Force Beechcraft King Air 350 on an official visit to Kaduna state, where they were billed to attend the Passing out Parade of some new officers on Saturday.
Although many Nigerians have posited that there is more to what meets the eye, the Nigerian authorities said it has commenced a full-scale investigation to ascertain the cause of the crash.
The fallen soldier who wanted to annihilate Boko Haram
The military commander, upon his assumption to the office of COAS, did not allow his past record of failure to haunt him. In fact, earlier in April, he reiterated the commitment of the army to the total annihilation of Boko Haram from Nigeria.
Attahiru said that Boko Haram had been defeated in many encounters and would continue to be defeated until they are totally annihilated from Nigeria.
“We will take on Boko Haram decisively, and we are committed to the focus of the operations which is the total annihilation of Boko Haram from Nigeria,” Attahiru said.
The COAS who was visiting the headquarters of Operation Lafiya Dole in Maiduguri for the fifth time since his appointment four months ago, said that the regular visit was to boost the morale of the troops, reassure them and listen to any issues affecting them.
Like many others, he called for proper funding of the military
The late Lieutenant General did not pretend that all was well in the Nigerian army as he also joined the calls for proper funding as a solution to the prevailing security threats.
“To curb and finally defeat these threats, the Nigerian army requires equipment, weapons, armour fighting vehicles, platforms and various combat enablers.”
“I urge you to as a matter of urgency, consider these critical needs as you legislate and appropriate funds.
“I will be counting on your support, so that we can efficiently perform our constitutional roles and defeat all our threats,” he said when members of the Senate Committee on Army, led by its Chairman, Sen. Ali Ndume, paid an oversight visit to the Army Headquarters in April.
According to him, Nigeria is faced with a lot of security challenges that includes insurgency in the North East, banditry in the North West and part of North Central.
His life in brief
The military commander was born on 10 August 1966 in Doka, Kaduna North Local Government Area, Kaduna State. The graduate of the Nigerian Defence Academy, Armed Forces Command and Staff College and Nigerian Army School of Infantry commenced cadets training in January 1984 and was commissioned into the rank of Second Lieutenant in December 1986 as an Infantry Officer.
He held a Masters degree in Strategic Management and Policy Studies from the Nigerian Defence Academy. Others include, Masters of Science in Human Resources Management and Development from Salford University in the United Kingdom and Graduate Diploma in International Studies from the University of Nairobi, Kenya.
Asides from attaining the highest office in the Army, he had several honors and awards.
He was a highly decorated officer with UNAMSIL Medal, ECOMOG Medal, Forces Service Star, Meritorious Service Star, Distinguish Service Star, Grand Service Star, Corp Medal of Honour, Command medal, Field Command Medal, and Field Command Medal of Honour.
