President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has nominated General Christopher Gwabin Musa as Nigeria’s new Minister of Defence, selecting the highly decorated former Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) to lead the nation’s security architecture.
The announcement was made via a Statehouse press release issued by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy on Tuesday.
The nomination follows the resignation of Alhaji Mohammed Badaru Abubakar on Monday. President Tinubu conveyed General Musa’s nomination in a letter addressed to the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio.
General Musa, who will turn 58 on December 25, is a distinguished soldier who served as the Chief of Defence Staff from 2023 until his retirement in October 2025. His exemplary service was internationally recognized when he won the Colin Powell Award for Soldiering in 2012.
In his formal communication to the National Assembly, President Tinubu expressed his belief in the General’s capacity to handle the critical role. The President expressed confidence in General Musa’s ability to lead the Ministry of Defence and further strengthen Nigeria’s security architecture.
General Musa’s military background spans decades of strategic and operational command. Born in Sokoto in 1967, he completed his education in Zaria before enrolling at the Nigerian Defence Academy in 1986. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree upon graduation in 1991, the same year he was commissioned into the Nigerian Army as a Second Lieutenant.
His extensive appointments include key roles such as General Staff Officer 1, Training/Operations at HQ 81 Division; Commanding Officer, 73 Battalion; and Assistant Director, Operational Requirements, Department of Army Policy and Plans.
In 2019, he served as Deputy Chief of Staff, Training/Operations, Headquarters Infantry Centre and Corps, before assuming field command as Commander, Sector 3, Operation Lafiya Dole, and Commander, Sector 3 Multinational Joint Task Force in the Lake Chad Region. In 2021, General Musa was appointed Theatre Commander, Operation Hadin Kai, before becoming Commander of the Nigerian Army Infantry Corps, a post he held just before his appointment as Chief of Defence Staff by President Tinubu in 2023.
The nomination is now before the Senate for screening and confirmation.
