Chief of the Defence Staff ( Nigeria ) - wikipedia Chief of the Defence Staff ( Nigeria ) This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( March 2010 ) The Chief of Defence Staff is the highest ranking military officer of the Nigerian Armed Forces. It is occupied by the most senior commissioned officer appointed by the President, Commander - in - Chief of the Armed Forces of Nigeria. The position was established for the first time under Nigeria 's 1979 constitution. The Chief of Defence Staff reports to the commander - in - Chief with administrative supervision of the Honourable Minister of Defence. It is the duty and responsibility of the CDS to formulate and execute policies, programmes towards the highest attainment of National Security and operational competence of the Armed Forces namely ; the Army, Navy and Air Force. The CDS is assisted by the other Service Chiefs : Chief of Army Staff Chief of Naval Staff Chief Air Staff List of Chief of the Defence Staff No Chief of Defence Staff Took office Left office Time in office Defence branch Akinrinade, Ipoola Alani Lieutenant General Ipoola Alani Akinrinade ( born 1939 ) April 1980 2 October 1981 1 year, 6 months Nigerian Army Jalo, Gibson Lieutenant General Gibson Jalo ( 1939 -- 2000 ) 2 October 1981 31 December 1983 7002820000000000000 ♠ 2 years, 90 days Nigerian Army Bali, Domkat General Domkat Bali ( born 1940 ) 1 January 1984 10 January 1990 7003220100000000000 ♠ 6 years, 9 days Nigerian Army Abacha, Sani General Sani Abacha ( 1943 -- 1998 ) 10 January 1990 17 November 1993 7003140700000000000 ♠ 3 years, 311 days Nigerian Army Diya, Oladipo Lieutenant General Oladipo Diya ( born 1944 ) 17 November 1993 21 December 1997 7003149500000000000 ♠ 4 years, 34 days Nigerian Army 6 Abubakar, Abdulsalami General Abdulsalami Abubakar ( born 1942 ) 21 December 1997 9 June 1998 7002170000000000000 ♠ 170 days Nigerian Army 7 Daggash, Al - Amin Air Marshal Al - Amin Daggash ( born 1943 ) 9 June 1998 29 May 1999 7002354000000000000 ♠ 354 days Nigerian Air Force 8 Ogohi, Ibrahim Admiral Ibrahim Ogohi 29 May 1999 27 June 2003 7003149000000000000 ♠ 4 years, 29 days Nigerian Navy 9 Ogomudia, Alexander General Alexander Ogomudia ( born 1949 ) 27 June 2003 1 June 2006 7003112200000000000 ♠ 3 years, 26 days Nigerian Army 10 Agwai, Martin Luther General Martin Luther Agwai ( born 1948 ) 1 June 2006 25 May 2007 7002358000000000000 ♠ 358 days Nigerian Army 11 Azazi, Owoye Andrew General Owoye Andrew Azazi ( 1953 -- 2012 ) 25 May 2007 20 August 2008 7002484000000000000 ♠ 1 year, 118 days Nigerian Army 12 Dike, Paul Air Chief Marshal Paul Dike 20 August 2008 8 September 2010 7002718000000000000 ♠ 1 year, 353 days Nigerian Air Force 13 Petinrin, Oluseyi Air Chief Marshal Oluseyi Petinrin ( born 1955 ) 8 September 2010 5 October 2012 7002758000000000000 ♠ 2 years, 27 days Nigerian Air Force 14 Ibrahim, Ola Admiral Ola Ibrahim ( born 1955 ) 5 October 2012 16 January 2014 7002468000000000000 ♠ 1 year, 103 days Nigerian Navy 15 Badeh, Alex Sabundu Air Chief Marshal Alex Sabundu Badeh ( born 1957 ) 16 January 2014 13 July 2015 7002543000000000000 ♠ 1 year, 178 days Nigerian Air Force 16 Olonisakin, Abayomi Gabriel General Abayomi Gabriel Olonisakin ( born 1961 ) 13 July 2015 Incumbent 7002961000000000000 ♠ 2 years, 230 days Nigerian Army References Military, law enforcement and intelligence agencies of Nigeria Military Nigerian Armed Forces Nigerian Army Chief of Army Staff Nigerian Navy Chief of Naval Staff Nigerian Air Force Chief of Air Staff Ministry of Defence Defence Minister Chief of the Defence Staff Law enforcement Nigeria Police Force National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Nigerian Mobile Police Economic and Financial Crimes Commission Intelligence State Security Service National Intelligence Agency Defence Intelligence Agency Chief of Defence Intelligence Federal Investigation and Intelligence Bureau Military commander by country Chief of Defence Africa Algeria Angola Benin Botswana Burkina Faso Burundi Cameroon Cape Verde Central African Republic Chad Comoros DR Congo Republic of the Congo Djibouti Egypt Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Ethiopia Gabon Gambia Ghana Guinea Guinea - Bissau Ivory Coast Kenya Lesotho Liberia Libya Madagascar Malawi Mali Mauritania Morocco Mozambique Namibia Niger Nigeria Rwanda São Tomé and Príncipe Senegal Seychelles Sierra Leone Somalia South Africa South Sudan Sudan Swaziland Tanzania Togo Tunisia Uganda Zambia Zimbabwe Former Biafra Bophuthatswana Ciskei Kingdom of Egypt Ethiopian Empire Rhodesia Transkei Venda Zaire Americas Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Bahamas Barbados Belize Bolivia Brazil Canada Chile Colombia Cuba Dominican Republic Ecuador El Salvador Guatemala Guyana Haiti Honduras Jamaica Mexico Nicaragua Paraguay Peru Saint Kitts and Nevis Suriname Trinidad and Tobago United States Uruguay Venezuela Former Confederate States of America Asia Afghanistan Armenia Azerbaijan Bahrain Bangladesh Bhutan Brunei Cambodia PR of China Republic of China ( Taiwan ) East Timor India Indonesia Iran Iraq Israel Japan Jordan Kazakhstan North Korea South Korea Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Lebanon Malaysia Maldives Mongolia Myanmar Nepal Oman Pakistan Philippines Qatar Saudi Arabia Singapore Sri Lanka Syria Tajikistan Thailand Turkmenistan United Arab Emirates Uzbekistan Vietnam Yemen Former Democratic Kampuchea Imperial Japan Mengjiang Manchukuo South Vietnam Europe Albania Austria Belarus Belgium Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria Croatia Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Estonia Finland France Germany Georgia Greece Hungary Iceland Ireland Italy Kosovo Latvia Lithuania Luxembourg Macedonia Malta Moldova Monaco Montenegro Netherlands Norway Poland Portugal Romania Russia Serbia Slovakia Slovenia Spain Sweden Switzerland Turkey Ukraine United Kingdom Vatican Former Austria -- Hungary Independent State of Croatia Czechoslovakia Prussia Imperial Germany Nazi Germany East Germany Ottoman Empire Russian Empire Soviet Union Yugoslavia Oceania Australia Fiji New Zealand Papua New Guinea Tonga Vanuatu Supranational European Union NATO Former Warsaw Pact Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Chief_of_the_Defence_Staff_(Nigeria)&oldid=826586238 '' Categories : Nigerian military appointments Military chiefs of staff Hidden categories : Articles needing additional references from March 2010 All articles needing additional references Talk About Wikipedia Add links This page was last edited on 19 February 2018, at 23 : 27. 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Question: who is the chief of defence staff of nigeria
Answer: General Abayomi Gabriel Olonisakin