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Lieutenant General Onyeabor Azubuike Ihejirika: Nigeria’s First Igbo Chief of Army Staff and Counter-Terrorism Reformer

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Lieutenant General Onyeabor Azubuike Ihejirika, CFR (b. February 13, 1956), is a retired Nigerian Army officer who served as the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) from September 2010 to January 2014.

His tenure marked a decisive moment in Nigeria’s fight against Boko Haram, as he spearheaded reforms that reshaped the Army’s counter-terrorism strategy and infrastructure.

He also holds historical significance as the first Igbo officer to be appointed Chief of Army Staff since the Nigerian Civil War (1967–1970)—a development that carried deep symbolic weight in the country’s post-war reconciliation.

Early Life and Military Career

Born in Isuikwuato, Abia State, Ihejirika excelled in academics and graduated from Williams Memorial High School in 1975.

He joined the Nigerian Defence Academy and was commissioned into the Army Engineers Corps as a second lieutenant in December 1977.

He expanded his expertise with a BSc in Quantity Surveying from Ahmadu Bello University, and attended the Armed Forces Command and Staff College, Jaji, as well as the National War College, Nigeria.

Over his military career, he held several critical positions, including:

Commander, 41 Division Engineers

Acting General Officer Commanding (GOC), 1 Division

GOC, 81 Division

Principal Staff Officer at Defence and Army Headquarters

Directing Staff, Command and Staff College

These posts prepared him for the challenges he would later face as Nigeria’s Army Chief.

Tenure as Chief of Army Staff

Appointed in 2010 by President Goodluck Jonathan, Ihejirika assumed command at the height of Boko Haram’s insurgency.

His leadership was defined by reforms and operational strategies that targeted Nigeria’s evolving security threats.

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Expansion of Army Deployment

He established new army brigades in the North-East, increasing the military’s footprint in the region most affected by Boko Haram.

Building Counter-Terrorism Capacity

Ihejirika created specialized schools for counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency, professionalizing the Army’s response to asymmetric warfare.

Strengthening Doctrine and Discipline

He cautioned soldiers against collusion with insurgents and introduced reforms in training, barracks infrastructure, and special unit formation.

These measures aimed to improve morale, effectiveness, and loyalty within the ranks.

Public Accountability

In 2012, he publicly reported that Boko Haram had killed more than 3,000 Nigerians since 2009, underscoring the scale of the crisis and the need for new military doctrines.

Controversy and Exoneration

In 2014, Australian hostage negotiator Stephen Davis alleged that Ihejirika, alongside former Borno governor Ali Modu Sheriff, had funded Boko Haram. Ihejirika strongly denied the accusations and filed a N100 billion defamation suit.

The State Security Service (SSS) later cleared his name. Spokesperson Marilyn Ogar described the allegations as “wicked and uncharitable,” praising Ihejirika’s counter-insurgency efforts (Daily Trust, 2014).

Legacy and Recognition

After his retirement in January 2014, Ihejirika was honored in his community with the chieftaincy title “Dike Abia” (Warrior of Abia). His legacy rests on:

Strengthening Nigeria’s military structures during the insurgency.

Building specialized counter-terrorism institutions and training.

Serving as a historic symbol of national unity as the first Igbo Army Chief post-civil war.

Today, he remains an important voice in discussions on Nigerian military reform, counter-terrorism policy, and national service.

Sources
Daily Trust – SSS exoneration and related commentary

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Women Who Love and Listen to Their Pastors More Than Their Husbands Should Be the Pastor’s Second Wife

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This statement may sound funny, provocative, or even offensive, but it raises an important question about priorities in marriage and religion.

A pastor is a spiritual leader, but he is not supposed to replace a woman’s husband. If a married woman consistently values her pastor’s opinions above her husband’s, obeys her pastor while dismissing her husband, or shows greater loyalty and admiration toward her pastor than toward her spouse, then something may be seriously wrong with the balance in that marriage.

Marriage requires communication, mutual respect, trust, and understanding. A pastor can provide spiritual guidance, but that guidance should not become a reason for a husband and wife to lose respect for each other.

At the same time, husbands should not expect their wives to obey them blindly. Both husband and wife should seek God’s wisdom, communicate openly, and make decisions with love and respect.

So perhaps the real question is not whether such a woman should become the pastor’s “second wife,” but why has the pastor become more important in her marriage than her own husband?

Put God first. Respect your spouse. And never allow a spiritual leader to become a substitute for your marriage partner.

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See also  PHOTOS: The issue of Deborah Samuel Yakubu is one of the most tragic and controversial religious-related incidents in recent Nigerian history.
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Why is it only in Africa that we hear so much about “generational curses”?

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This is a question worth asking—not to insult African traditions or dismiss anyone’s beliefs, but to encourage honest reflection.

Across Africa, it is common to hear people explain repeated family problems as a “generational curse.” When poverty, broken relationships, addiction, failure, sickness, family conflict or misfortune appears to repeat from one generation to another, some people immediately conclude that an ancestor, spiritual force or past wrongdoing is responsible.

But is every repeated family problem truly a curse?

If a child grows up in poverty, has limited access to quality education, receives little financial support and then struggles as an adult, is that necessarily a spiritual curse—or could it be the result of circumstances that have been passed from one generation to another?

If children grow up watching violence, substance abuse, unhealthy relationships or constant conflict, they may unknowingly repeat those patterns. That does not necessarily mean they are cursed. Sometimes behaviour is inherited through environment, not through supernatural forces.

And Africa is certainly not the only place where people believe in supernatural explanations for suffering or misfortune. Different societies around the world have their own concepts of inherited wrongdoing, family misfortune, ancestral consequences, fate and spiritual punishment.

So perhaps the more important question is not:

“Who cursed my family?”

But:

“What pattern has been passed down to me, and what can I do to stop passing it to the next generation?”

We should be careful not to use the idea of a curse to discourage people from taking action. A family facing poverty may need education, opportunity and financial planning. A family experiencing repeated conflict may need healthier communication. A person struggling with addiction may need professional support and a strong recovery environment. Communities facing injustice may need better institutions, accountability and opportunity.

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Faith and spirituality are deeply meaningful to many people, and everyone has the right to hold their beliefs. But faith should not prevent us from examining the practical causes of our problems.

We cannot change the past, but we can change what we pass forward.

Instead of teaching our children that they are victims of an unavoidable family curse, let us also teach them knowledge, discipline, emotional strength, financial responsibility, education, healthy relationships and the courage to break destructive patterns.

Maybe the greatest “curse” is not something mysterious placed upon a family.

Maybe sometimes it is simply a problem that nobody stopped long enough to understand and change.

And the greatest inheritance we can give the next generation is not fear of a curse—but the knowledge and courage to build a better future.

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You are very proud to speak big English, but yet you cannot speak your own language?

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There is nothing wrong with speaking English fluently. In fact, being able to communicate confidently in different languages is a valuable skill. But we should ask ourselves a deeper question: while learning to speak the language of another culture, are we slowly losing the language that connects us to our own roots?

Your mother tongue is more than just words. It carries the stories of your ancestors, the wisdom of your grandparents, the jokes that only your people understand, the traditional greetings, the names, the songs, the history and the identity of your community.

Imagine being able to speak perfect English, but struggling to have a simple conversation with your own grandmother because you do not understand the language she grew up speaking. Imagine your children knowing foreign languages but being unable to understand the language of their own heritage.

That should make us pause.

Speaking English does not make you more intelligent, and speaking your indigenous language does not make you less educated. One is a communication skill; the other can be a connection to your heritage. We should not have to choose between being educated and preserving our identity.

Learn English. Speak it confidently. Learn French, Dutch, Spanish or any other language that opens doors for you.

But don’t let the pursuit of foreign languages close the door to your own.

Teach your children your language. Speak it at home. Ask your parents and grandparents to teach you the words you never learned. If you have forgotten it, it is never too late to start again.

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Because when a language disappears from a family, something precious disappears with it.

Be proud of your education. Be proud of your ability to speak English. But also be proud of where you come from.

Your language is not something to be ashamed of. It is a part of your story. Preserve it before the next generation only knows it as something their ancestors once spoke.

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