President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has forwarded the name of General Christopher Gwabin Musa (rtd), a former Chief of Defence Staff, to the Senate for confirmation as Nigeria’s next Minister of Defence. The nomination reached the upper chamber on Tuesday through a letter addressed to Senate President Godswill Akpabio. The announcement later became public through a statement by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
The move follows the resignation of Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, who stepped down from the cabinet on Monday for health reasons. General Musa, who will turn 58 on December 25, is widely recognised in military circles for his long service as an infantry officer and his leadership in some of the country’s most demanding theatres of operation.
General Musa served as Chief of Defence Staff from 2023 until October 2025 and received the Colin Powell Award for Soldiering in 2012. Born in Sokoto in 1967, he completed his early schooling in the state before advancing to the College of Advanced Studies in Zaria. He joined the Nigerian Defence Academy in 1986 and graduated in 1991 with a Bachelor of Science degree, earning his commission as a Second Lieutenant.
His career spans more than thirty years, marked by a series of operational and command roles across the Nigerian Army. He previously worked as General Staff Officer 1 for Training and Operations at Headquarters 81 Division and served as Commanding Officer of the 73 Battalion. He also held positions in Army Policy and Plans, represented the Infantry on the Nigerian Army Armour Corps training team, and later became Deputy Chief of Staff for Training and Operations at the Infantry Centre and Corps.
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General Musa gained wider national attention through his leadership in the Northeast, where he commanded Sector 3 of Operation Lafiya Dole and later Sector 3 of the Multinational Joint Task Force in the Lake Chad Basin. In 2021, he was appointed Theatre Commander of Operation Hadin Kai, the military’s main counterterrorism mission, before moving on to command the Nigerian Army Infantry Corps. President Tinubu appointed him Chief of Defence Staff in 2023.
In his letter to the Senate, the President noted that General Musa’s background and operational record place him in a strong position to guide the Defence Ministry as the country steps up efforts to reinforce its security system. The Senate is expected to begin screening the nominee in the coming days.
