The Nigerian Army on Sunday refuted reports circulating that the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, has passed away.
Several reports, originating from a social media post by a Nigerian journalist, announced the death of the Army chief, which quickly went viral.
The journalist claimed that Lagbaja had died of cancer 48 hours earlier.
The post read: “The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, has died. Lagbaja died in an undisclosed hospital overseas nearly 48 hours ago from stage three cancer, according to a senior government official.
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“The death of the Chief of Army Staff has been kept secret due to intense lobbying by some generals who wish to take the position.
“Lagbaja, born on 28 February 1968 in Ilobu, Osun State, was appointed by President Bola Tinubu in June 2023 as the 27th Chief of Army Staff.”
In response to the post on X, the Nigerian Army labelled it as fake news.