President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has nominated former Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Gwabin Musa (rtd), as Nigeria’s new Minister of Defence, barely 24 hours after the resignation of Mohammed Badaru Abubakar.
The President formally communicated the nomination to Senate President Godswill Akpabio on Tuesday, according to a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
General Musa, 58, is expected to succeed Badaru, who stepped down on Monday citing health reasons.
A career infantry officer, Musa served as Chief of Defence Staff from 2023 until October 2025. He is a recipient of the prestigious Colin Powell Award for Soldiering (2012). Born in Sokoto in 1967, he completed his primary and secondary education in the state before proceeding to the College of Advanced Studies, Zaria. He enlisted in the Nigerian Defence Academy in 1986 and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1991.
Commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in 1991, Musa rose through the ranks with deployments across training, operations, and counterterrorism theatres.
His key appointments include General Staff Officer 1, Training/Operations at HQ 81 Division; Commanding Officer, 73 Battalion; Assistant Director in the Army Policy and Plans Department; and Infantry Representative at the Nigerian Army Armour Corps training team.
Between 2019 and 2021, he held strategic command roles such as Deputy Chief of Staff (Training/Operations) at the Infantry Centre and Corps; Commander, Sector 3 of Operation Lafiya Dole; and Commander, Sector 3 of the Multinational Joint Task Force in the Lake Chad Basin.
In 2021, Musa became Theatre Commander of Operation Hadin Kai, later assuming command of the Nigerian Army Infantry Corps before his appointment as Chief of Defence Staff in 2023.
In his letter to the Senate, President Tinubu expressed confidence in Musa’s capacity to strengthen Nigeria’s defence posture and provide continuity as the administration advances its newly declared national security emergency.
The Senate is expected to begin the confirmation process in the coming days.
