Colonel A.U. Osueke: A Farewell To A Retiring Soldier On A Mission
By Samuel Aruwan
As an official who served in several capacities for almost ten years, including as a member of the State Security Council, I have worked with numerous officers and men of the Armed Forces, Police, Department of State Services, paramilitary agencies, and a wide spectrum of citizens involved in security management. This experience places me in a position to comment on the officers and men with whom we worked in synergy for the peace and security of Kaduna State and beyond.
It is in this light that I am paying tribute to Colonel A.U. Osueke, the outgoing and retiring Commander of Sector 7 of Operation SAFE HAVEN, now Operation ENDURING PEACE—a Defence Headquarters Joint Task Force multi-service operation aimed at restoring peace and order in Plateau State and parts of Bauchi and Kaduna States, who is ceremoniously retiring tomorrow, Friday, 17th October, 2025. Before he took over the reins of the Sector, I had worked harmoniously with previous Commanders as well as Force Commanders, notably Major Generals A.C.C. Agundu, C.C. Okonkwo, D.C. Onyemulu, A.B. Ibrahim, I.S. Ali, and A.E. Abubakar. At Sector 7, these included Colonel F.O. Omata (later Brigadier General), Colonel G.U. Akpan, and Colonels D.C. Nwakonobi and T.M. Opurum (later Brigadier Generals). Colonel Osueke, who is the subject of this piece, succeeded Brigadier General Opurum. All the mentioned Force Commanders and Sector 7 Commanders, along with their men, collaborated immensely with the Kaduna State Government towards ensuring peace and security within the Sector 7 Area of Responsibility. We toiled together in the trenches to stabilize the area and deny criminals freedom of action, aside from the black days we also had.
I was rounding up my tour of duty when Colonel Osueke was transitioning and understudying the outgoing Commander, Brigadier General Opurum, before taking over command on 13th June 2023. At that period, I had already exited government on 29th May 2023 and was focusing on my next direction. But as fate would have it, on 20th June 2023, I was appointed Administrator/Commissioner to head the Kaduna Capital Territory Authority and was also tasked to serve as Overseeing Commissioner of the Ministry of Internal Security and Home Affairs.
This development gave me the opportunity to work with Colonel Osueke until my exit in 2024. Armed with firsthand knowledge of his hard work, sacrifices, and dedication to duty, I can speak authoritatively about our journey that spanned nearly two years. A peek into Colonel Osueke's breakthroughs will reveal the giant strides and operational successes he achieved as he concludes his tour of duty and a successful military career.
Upon assuming command as Commander of Sector 7, Colonel Osueke conducted an immediate and decisive assessment of the security situation in Southern Kaduna. He personally led multiple offensive operations, successfully clearing notorious criminal hideouts in the Rahama Forest, Kwal Mountains, Kigam Forest, Kamarun-Chawai, Godogodo, Dogon Daji Forest, and Ambe General Areas.
His kinetic operations yielded exceptional results, including the neutralization of scores of bandits and the critical discovery of arms that could have been used to deepen criminality. Notably, in a single operation on 17th and 18th August 2023, his troops recovered over 40 arms of different calibres—comprising 18 AK-47 rifles, 10 fabricated pistols, 8 revolvers, one Magnum pump action rifle, and 3 Sub-Machine Guns—as well as military and police uniforms. His sustained efforts in the last quarter of 2023 led to the recovery of over 75 additional arms from gunrunners across the Area of Responsibility. His proactive leadership was further demonstrated on 20th December 2023, when he personally led an operation that intercepted an ammunition courier along the Zango–Damakasuwa road, recovering 188 rounds of 7.62mm (Special) ammunition. These efforts throughout 2023 and their continuation into 2024 significantly crippled the logistical networks of criminal elements, resulting in a massive reduction of arms trafficking in the region.
As the Commander winds up his meritorious service, an outstanding achievement was recorded last week when troops of Operation ENDURING PEACE, in collaboration with troops of Sector 1 Operation FANSAN YAMMA, intercepted two notorious gunrunners at a snap checkpoint on the outskirts of Saminaka in Lere Local Government of Kaduna State, where 1,207 rounds of 7.62mm (Special) ammunition were recovered. The ammunition is believed to be bound for armed groups operating in the North West.
Colonel Osueke's achievements were not only in kinetic lines of operation; he also carefully directed various non-kinetic operations to complement combat efforts. He used the soft approach to de-escalate tension in the Southern Kaduna general area. Worthy of note is his use of non-kinetic operations to avert a near chaotic situation when a place of worship was attacked. The burning of part of the worship place and killing of a seminarian, which almost resulted in a breakdown of law and order, was averted by his timely intervention. The Commander arrived promptly at the scene, deployed his troops, and constructively engaged relevant stakeholders in the area.
Similarly, a prime example of his effectiveness is found in a specific, intelligence-driven operation we coordinated jointly. Following the killing of some citizens by criminals, a human intelligence source reached me with information about a location where the perpetrators were based. I immediately conducted post-intelligence verification and confirmed the reliability of the tip. After I relayed the intelligence to Colonel Osueke, he immediately swung into action with his troops, handling the situation professionally—the rest is history and a story for another day.
Furthermore, under his steadfast leadership, strategic routes in Southern Kaduna—including Kaduna–Samaru, Zango Urban–Saminaka, Jos–Manchiok, Abuja–Kubacha, and Keffi–Kafanchan—were secured and kept open for commuters through dominant aggressive fighting patrols, roadblocks, and snap checkpoints. He also pioneered a successful template for the resettlement of displaced communities, a model worthy of study for recovery and resilience initiatives.
Colonel Osueke, like his predecessors in Sector 7, has done much to deserve commendation from all in view of the sacrifices he made for national security. The immediate community he served celebrated him during the 2024 Southern Kaduna Festival organized by Southern Kaduna Community Development Associations, Southern Kaduna Leadership Council, and Southern Kaduna Peoples Union.
Colonel Osueke attended the prestigious Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), where he was commissioned as a member of Short Service Course 31 on 29th June 2002 into the Nigerian Army Artillery Corps. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from the University of Abuja and a Master's degree in International Relations and Defence Studies from the Nigerian Defence Academy. He also obtained an Advanced Diploma in Safety and Security Management from the University of Lagos. He is a Certified Member of the Nigerian Institute of Management (MNIM) and a Fellow of the Nigerian Institute of Security. Since his commission into the Nigerian Army, the senior officer has risen to the rank of Colonel.
During his meritorious service, he has attended several military and civil courses. Prominent among these are: United Nations Training the Trainer Course, Nyala, South West Darfur, Sudan; Armed Forces Command and Staff College Course; African Partnership Station Targeting Course; Battery Commanders Course; and Regimental Commanders Course. Colonel Osueke has also held several Command, Staff, and Instructional appointments, including: United Nations Staff Officer as Military Assistant Sector South Darfur; Company Commander, African Union/United Nations Hybrid Mission in Darfur, Sudan; Senior Instructor Air Defence, Nigerian Army School of Artillery; Staff Officer Grade 1 Training and Operation, Headquarters Nigerian Army Corps of Artillery; Artillery Liaison Officer, Headquarters Theatre Command North East Operation HADIN KAI; and Chief of Staff, 35 Artillery Brigade. Prior to his current appointment as Commander of Sector 7, he was the Commanding Officer of 323 Artillery Regiment, Akure, Ondo State.
He is a commander with an excellent record of service, which has earned him numerous honours, awards, and decorations. These include the African Union Medal, United Nations Medal, General Operations Medal, Operation LAFIYA DOLE Medal, Operation HADIN KAI Medal, Command Medal, Field Service Star Medal, and Meritorious Service Star Medal.
I join well-wishers in extending warmest congratulations to Colonel A.U. Osueke on the occasion of his retirement from the Armed Forces of Nigeria, and the Nigerian Army in particular. We celebrate a truly stellar and outstanding military career, defined by unwavering dedication, exceptional professionalism, and meritorious service to the Federal Republic of Nigeria for over two decades. His contributions have left an indelible mark, and the nation is proud of his service. We wish him the very best in this new and well-deserved chapter of his life.
Aruwan writes from Zaria, Kaduna State.
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