President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has nominated former Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Gwabin Musa, as Nigeria’s new Minister of Defence.
The nomination was contained in a letter the President transmitted to Senate President Godswill Akpabio, according to a statement released on Tuesday afternoon by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
President Tinubu expressed strong confidence in Musa’s capacity to lead the Defence Ministry and reinforce Nigeria’s national security architecture. The appointment comes just days after Mohammed Badaru Abubakar resigned from the position on health grounds.
General Musa, who turns 58 on December 25, previously served as Chief of Defence Staff from 2023 until October 2025, when President Tinubu relieved him of the role. He was sighted at the Presidential Villa on Monday, December 1, where he held a private meeting with the President shortly before Badaru’s resignation was announced.
Born in Sokoto in 1967, Musa completed his primary and secondary education there before attending the College of Advanced Studies, Zaria. He graduated in 1986 and proceeded to the Nigerian Defence Academy, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in 1991.
Commissioned into the Nigerian Army as a Second Lieutenant in 1991, Musa has held several key command and staff positions. They include General Staff Officer 1 Training/Operations at HQ 81 Division; Commanding Officer of 73 Battalion; Assistant Director of Operational Requirements at Army Policy and Plans; and Infantry Representative at the Nigerian Army Armour Corps Training Team.
He also served as Deputy Chief of Staff Training/Operations at the Infantry Centre and Corps in 2019, Commander Sector 3 of Operation Lafiya Dole, and later Commander Sector 3 of the Multinational Joint Task Force in the Lake Chad region.
In 2021, he was appointed Theatre Commander of Operation Hadin Kai before becoming Commander of the Nigerian Army Infantry Corps. President Tinubu appointed him Chief of Defence Staff in 2023, a position he held until late 2025.
General Musa’s nomination awaits Senate confirmation
