Who is Rear Admiral Idi Abbas, the new Chief of Naval Staff?

Who is Rear Admiral Idi Abbas, the new Chief of Naval Staff?

Rear Admiral Idi Abbas (NN/1739)

1. Background: Born on 20 September 1969, Abbas hails from Kano State, Northwest Nigeria.

2. Education: Admitted to the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) as a member of the 40 Regular Course in 1987. Holds a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry/Physics, a Post Graduate Diploma in Management, and Masters’ degrees in International Affairs and Diplomacy, and Political Economy and Development Studies.

3. Career: Commissioned as a Sub-Lieutenant in September 1993, Abbas boasts of three decades experience.
Rear Admiral Abbas’s career includes significant command and staff positions, particularly in maritime operations:
* Operational Roles: Served onboard various Nigerian Navy ships, including NNS ARADU, NNS DAMISA, and NNS AYAM, as a Watch-Keeping Officer. He also commanded the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Victory.
* Command/Staff Roles:
* Flag Officer Commanding (FOC), Central Naval Command, Yenagoa. In this role, he effectively and successfully coordinated anti-crude oil theft and anti-piracy operations in the Niger Delta.
* Commander, Task Group Operation Tsare Teku.
* Chief of Naval Safety and Standards at Naval Headquarters.
* Maritime Guard Commander (MGC) for the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA).
* Naval Assistant to the Deputy Commandant, Armed Forces Command and Staff College (AFCSC), Jaji.

* Senior Research Fellow at the Nigerian Army Heritage Centre, the position he held immediately before his elevation to CNS.
He is respected for his professionalism, strategic leadership, and focus on results.

4. Promotion: He attained the rank of Rear Admiral on 10th September 2020 having satisfied all professional and ethical requirement for such an elevation.