President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has nominated former Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Gwabin Musa (retd.), as Nigeria’s new Minister of Defence.
The nomination was contained in a letter sent to Senate President Godswill Akpabio on Tuesday, November 2, 2025, in which the President sought the confirmation of the retired military chief as successor to Alhaji Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, who resigned on Monday.
General Musa, who will turn 58 on December 25, is a highly decorated officer who served as CDS from 2023 until October 2025 and is a recipient of the Colin Powell Award for Soldiering, which he won in 2012.
Born in Sokoto in 1967, Musa had his early education in the state before attending the College of Advanced Studies, Zaria, where he graduated in 1986. He was admitted into the Nigerian Defence Academy the same year and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in 1991.
He was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Nigerian Army in 1991 and has since held key appointments across formations and operations.
His postings included General Staff Officer 1, Training/Operations, HQ 81 Division; Commanding Officer, 73 Battalion; Assistant Director, Operational Requirements, Army Policy and Plans; and Infantry Representative, Training Team, HQ Nigerian Army Armour Corps.
By 2019, Musa had risen to serve as Deputy Chief of Staff, Training/Operations, at the Infantry Centre and Corps, and subsequently as Commander, Sector 3, Operation Lafiya Dole, and later Commander, Sector 3, Multinational Joint Task Force in the Lake Chad Basin.
In 2021, he was appointed Theatre Commander, Operation Hadin Kai, where he oversaw major counter-terrorism operations in the North-East. He later led the Infantry Corps before being appointed CDS by President Tinubu in 2023.
In his letter to the Senate, President Tinubu expressed confidence in General Musa’s capacity to “further strengthen Nigeria’s security architecture” as Minister of Defence, urging lawmakers to expedite the confirmation process.
