June 30, (THEWILL) – The Nigerian Military, on Friday, pulled out of service, the immediate past Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), retired Gen. Lucky Irabor, following the change of leadership of the Armed Forces of Nigeria by President Bola Tinubu.
Tinubu had, on June 17, approved the appointment of new service chiefs, marking the retirement of the erstwhile chiefs from the service of the armed forces.
Pulling Out Parade is a traditional military ceremony to mark officers’ retirement from service, which involves review of parade by the retiring senior officer, March past by troops and pull out of the retired officer by top Generals.
In his valedictory speech at a colourful event held at the Mogadishu Cantonment in Abuja, on Friday, Gen. Irabor thanked God for a successful career that saw him through the ranks and reaching the peak as the Chief of Defence Staff.
He expressed satisfaction with his service in the military, saying that he is leaving the armed forces today bigger and stronger than he met it.
The former defence chief appealed to citizens not to engage in acts that can undermine the Nigerian military, saying that the military stands as a beacon of hope, unity and stability that must be protected.
According to Irabor, the debts the country owes to men and women, who serve in the armed forces, cannot be paid fully.
He expressed optimism in the ability of his successor to beat the records set so far in the armed forces.
In attendance at the event are senior military officers, former Chiefs of Defense Staff, the former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, and the Governor of Delta State, Sheriff Oborevwori.
Born October 5, 1965, Irabor, a member of regular course 34 of the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), is from Ika South LGA of Delta State.
The Delta State-born General gained admission into the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) in Kaduna as a member of the 34 Regular Course in 1983 and was commissioned a second lieutenant on June 28, 1986, into the Signal Corps of the Nigerian Army.
The ex-CDS is a trained Engineer from Obafemi Awolowo University and holds Master’s Degrees from the University of Ghana, Accra, and Bangladesh University of Professionals, Dhaka.
He is an Alumnus of the Ghana Armed Forces Staff College Ghana, the National Defence College Bangladesh and Harvard Kennedy School of Government Executive Programme, USA.
Irabor was appointed as the 17th Chief of Defence Staff by the immediate past President, Muhammadu Buhari, on January 26, 2021.
