The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant-General Taoreed Lagbaja, has expressed his commiserations on behalf of officers, soldiers and civilian staff of the Nigerian Army to the family, relations and friends of the deceased Major General Aderonke Kale (rtd) CFR.

Brigadier-General Onyema Nwachukwu, Director of Army Public Relations, in a statement, described her demise as a great loss to the Army and the military community as a whole.

According to the statement, her legacies in selfless service to Nigeria and humanity will remain indelible in the hearts of many.

Lagbaja prayed for the repose of her soul and the fortitude for the family to bear the irreplaceable loss.

“General Aderonke Kale, renowned for reshaping the face of women and gender mainstreaming in the Nigerian military, was born into a family of professionals; her father was a pharmacist, and her mother a teacher.

“She had her primary education in Lagos and Zaria, and had her post-primary education in St. Anne’s School, Ibadan, and Abeokuta Grammar School, respectively. She opted to study Medicine and successfully gained admission into the University College, which later became the University of Ibadan. After graduating as a medical doctor, she proceeded to the University of London to specialize in Psychiatry.

“General Kale worked briefly in Britain and returned to Nigeria in the year 1971 to join the Nigerian Army in 1972.

“Her competence as a psychiatrist was recognized in 1973 when she qualified as a Consultant Psychiatrist, and in 1982, she became Chief Consultant. In the course of her service from 1980 to 1985, her management acumen came to bear in her career when she became the Commanding Officer of the Military Hospital Ibadan.

“She thus had the distinction of being the first woman to command a military hospital in Nigeria. In 1985 to 1987, she performed the same feat in the Military Hospital, Enugu, and from 1989 to 1990 in the Military Hospital, Benin. With such vital experience, she was elevated to the position of Deputy Commandant, Nigerian Army Medical Corps and School in 1991 till 1994,” the statement read.

According to the statement, in 1994, she became the first female officer to be promoted to Major General in the Nigerian Army and the West African sub-region.

“She finally attained the peak of her career, when she became the Commandant of the Nigerian Army Medical Corps. First time in the history of the Nigerian Army, that a female officer was entrusted with the crucial responsibility of health care for all Nigerian Army personnel and their families,” it added.