Suraj Alao Abdurrahman, was a Nigerian Army general who served as the Command Officer in Charge of the Armed Forces of Liberia, with former Liberian president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf the Commander-in-Chief. According to then-President Sirleaf Johnson, “General Suraj Abdurrahman’s exceptional dedication to service endeared him to Liberians, and we honored him with the Distinguished Service Order which is Liberia’s highest military honor, and then, the national honor of Knight Commander in the Humane Order of African Redemption in 2009 and 2014 respectively. He was an exceedingly exceptional gentlemen officer whose contributions lifted Armed Forces of Liberia to professional greatness and emplace our military amongst UN peacekeepers”.
History
Abdurrahman was born in Kaduna where he had his primary education at LEA Primary School, before proceeding to Keffi Government College for his secondary education. He graduated with division 1 distinction in the West African Senior School Certificate Examination in 1972. He thereafter proceeded to the School of Basic Studies of the Ahmadu Bello University in Zaria until July 1973 when he was admitted into the Nigeria Defence Academy in Kaduna as a member of the 14th regular Combatant Course. In 1975, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant into the Nigeria Army Corps of Engineers. Abdurrahman held multiple commands, instructor and staff appointments in the course of his career both locally and internationally. In January 2007, he became the Chief of Policy and Plans for the Nigerian Army. It was from that post that he was appointed the Chief of Staff, Armed Forces of Liberia. He effectively commanded the AFL from 6 June 2007 to 11 Feb 2014, when he handed over to a Liberian Officer. In the course of his Service, General Abdurrahman attended various military and civil courses. He was an alumnus of the Nigerian Army School of Military Engineers. Nigerian Armed Forces Command and Staff College as well as the National War College where he graduated with distinction. The General returned to the Ahmadu Bello University Zaria for his BSc: in 1979 and M.Sc. in 1981, capping it with a Ph.D. from the Herriot-Wyatt University in Edinburgh In 1985.
Personal life
He was survived by his wife, Fatima Wali- Abdurrahman and his four sons, Surajudeen, Abduljabbar, Abdulaziz and Abdulmalik.
