President Bola Tinubu has nominated former Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, as Nigeria’s new Minister of Defence. The nomination was formally communicated to Senate President Godswill Akpabio in a letter sent on Tuesday.
Musa’s appointment comes a day after Mohammed Badaru resigned from the position, citing health concerns. In his correspondence to the Senate, Tinubu expressed confidence in Musa’s ability to strengthen Nigeria’s defence architecture at a time of heightened security challenges.
The development was confirmed in a statement released by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
According to the statement, Musa, 58, served as Chief of Defence Staff from 2023 until October 2025 and earned the prestigious Colin Powell Award for Soldiering in 2012. Born in Sokoto in 1967, he attended primary and secondary school in the state before proceeding to the College of Advanced Studies, Zaria. He graduated in 1986 and joined the Nigerian Defence Academy the same year, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in 1991.
Commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in 1991, Musa has held several key military appointments, including:
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General Staff Officer 1, Training and Operations, HQ 81 Division
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Commanding Officer, 73 Battalion
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Assistant Director, Operational Requirements, Department of Army Policy and Plans
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Infantry Representative, Training Team, HQ Nigerian Army Armour Corps
In 2019, he served as Deputy Chief of Staff, Training and Operations at the Infantry Centre and Corps and later commanded Sector 3 of both Operation Lafiya Dole and the Multinational Joint Task Force in the Lake Chad region.
He was appointed Theatre Commander of Operation Hadin Kai in 2021 and subsequently became Commander of the Nigerian Army Infantry Corps before Tinubu named him Chief of Defence Staff in 2023.
It was earlier reported that Badaru, who was appointed on August 21, 2023, cited ill health in his resignation letter. President Tinubu has accepted the resignation and thanked him for his service.
Onanuga’s statement noted that the President is expected to formally brief the Senate on Musa’s appointment later this week. Badaru’s exit follows his recent criticism over comments in a BBC Hausa interview, where he said certain terrorists could not be targeted because forest hideouts were too thick for bombs to penetrate.
The resignation also comes amid Tinubu’s declaration of a national security emergency, with further details expected in the coming days.
