Tinubu nominates Christopher Musa as new defence minister
President Bola Tinubu has nominated General Christopher Gwabin Musa as the new minister of defence.
In a letter sent to Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Tinubu asked the upper chamber to confirm Musa as replacement for Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, who resigned on Monday.
Musa, who turns 58 on December 25, is a career infantry officer and former chief of defence staff (CDS). He served as CDS from 2023 until October 2025 and received the Colin Powell Award for Soldiering 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 graduated in 1986 and proceeded to the Nigerian Defence Academy the same year, earning a Bachelor of Science degree on commissioning as a second lieutenant in 1991.
Since joining the army, Musa has held several command and staff positions, including general staff officer 1 (training and operations) at 81 Division; commanding officer, 73 Battalion; assistant director, operational requirements, Department of Army Policy and Plans; and infantry representative on the training team of the Nigerian Army Armour Corps.
In 2019, he served as deputy chief of staff (training and operations) at the Infantry Centre and Corps, and later as commander of Sector 3, Operation Lafiya Dole, as well as Sector 3 of 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.
In his letter to the Senate, Tinubu said he was confident that Musa would strengthen Nigeria’s defence architecture and bring his experience to bear in leading the ministry.
