BREAKING: Tinubu nominates ex-CDS Christopher Musa as new Defence Minister

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has nominated General Christopher Gwabin Musa as Nigeria’s new Minister of Defence, following the resignation of Mohammed Badaru Abubakar on Monday.

The president communicated the nomination to Senate President Godswill Akpabio in an official letter, describing General Musa as a seasoned military leader with the experience required to strengthen the nation’s defence apparatus.

General Musa, who will turn 58 on December 25, previously served as Chief of Defence Staff from 2023 to October 2025. His military career is widely regarded as distinguished, earning him the prestigious Colin Powell Award for Soldiering in 2012.

Born in Sokoto in 1967, Musa completed both his primary and secondary education in the state before attending the College of Advanced Studies in Zaria. He graduated in 1986 and immediately proceeded to the Nigerian Defence Academy, where he obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in 1991.

Commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in 1991, Musa rose through the ranks with key postings that shaped his reputation. These include General Staff Officer 1, Training and Operations at Headquarters 81 Division; Commanding Officer of the 73 Battalion; Assistant Director of Operational Requirements in the Department of Army Policy and Plans; and Infantry Representative on the Training Team at the Nigerian Army Armour Corps.

His leadership roles expanded significantly from 2019, when he served as Deputy Chief of Staff for Training and Operations at the Infantry Centre and Corps. He was later appointed Commander of Sector 3 under Operation Lafiya Dole and also led Sector 3 of the Multinational Joint Task Force in the Lake Chad region.

In 2021, General Musa became Theatre Commander of Operation Hadin Kai, the military’s flagship counterterrorism mission in the Northeast. He would later head the Nigerian Army Infantry Corps before President Tinubu appointed him Chief of Defence Staff in 2023.

In his message to the Senate, President Tinubu expressed strong confidence in Musa’s capacity to provide strategic leadership at the Ministry of Defence and reinforce national security efforts.