President Asiwaju 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 addressed to Senate President Godswill Akpabio, in which President Tinubu requested the Senate’s confirmation of the retired military chief. General Musa is expected to replace Alhaji Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, who resigned from the cabinet on Monday.
General Musa, who turns 58 on December 25, is a career military officer who rose to become Chief of Defence Staff, serving from 2023 until October 2025. He is a recipient of the prestigious Colin Powell Award for Soldiering, which he received in 2012.
Born in Sokoto in 1967, Musa completed his primary and secondary education in the state before attending the College of Advanced Studies in Zaria. He later enrolled in the Nigerian Defence Academy in 1986 and graduated in 1991 with a Bachelor of Science degree. He was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant the same year.
Over the course of his military career, General Musa held several significant command and staff appointments, including General Staff Officer 1, Training and Operations at Headquarters 81 Division; Commanding Officer of 73 Battalion; and Assistant Director, Operational Requirements, Army Policy and Plans.
He has also served as Deputy Chief of Staff for Training and Operations at the Infantry Centre and Corps, Commander of Sector 3 under Operation Lafiya Dole, and Commander of Sector 3 of the Multinational Joint Task Force in the Lake Chad region.
In 2021, he was appointed Theatre Commander of Operation Hadin Kai, later becoming Commander of the Nigerian Army Infantry Corps before his elevation to Chief of Defence Staff in 2023.
In the nomination letter, President Tinubu expressed confidence in General Musa’s capacity to steer the Ministry of Defence and strengthen Nigeria’s security framework.
The announcement was signed by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy.
