Abuja, 2 December 2025 – President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has nominated General Christopher Gwabin Musa, the immediate past Chief of Defence Staff, as Nigeria’s new Minister of Defence.
In a letter read on the floor of the Senate on Tuesday by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, the President requested the upper chamber’s confirmation of General Musa to replace Alhaji Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, who tendered his resignation on Monday.
General Musa, 58, served as Chief of Defence Staff from June 2023 until October 2025. A highly decorated officer, he is a recipient of the prestigious Colin Powell Award for Soldiering, conferred in 2012.
Born on 25 December 1967 in Sokoto, General Musa began his military career after completing secondary education at the College of Advanced Studies in Zaria in 1986. He gained admission to the Nigerian Defence Academy that same year and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Nigerian Army Infantry Corps in 1991, holding a Bachelor of Science degree.
His career highlights include commanding the 73 Battalion, serving as Assistant Director of Operational Requirements at Army Headquarters, and acting as Infantry Representative on the Training Team at the Nigerian Army Armour Corps.
In the North-East theatre, General Musa held several critical appointments: Deputy Chief of Staff (Training/Operations) at Headquarters Infantry Corps, Commander of Sector 3 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, leading counter-insurgency efforts against Boko Haram, before rising to Commander Infantry Corps and subsequently Chief of Defence Staff.
In his letter to the Senate, President Tinubu expressed full confidence in General Musa’s “wealth of experience, professionalism and leadership” to head the Ministry of Defence and further bolster Nigeria’s security architecture at a time of evolving national and regional threats.
The nomination is expected to be taken up by the Senate Committee on Defence for screening in the coming days.
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