President Bola Tinubu has nominated former Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) Christopher Musa to serve as Nigeria’s next Minister of Defence. The nomination was communicated via a letter to Senate President Godswill Akpabio on Tuesday. Musa is to replace Mohammed Badaru, who resigned just a day earlier, citing health reasons.
In a statement from the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, Tinubu expressed his confidence that Musa will strengthen the country’s security architecture. The statement noted that Musa, aged 58, led as CDS from 2023 until October 2025, and is a past recipient of the Colin Powell Award for Soldiering (2012).
Born in Sokoto in 1967, Musa completed his early education there before attending the College of Advanced Studies in Zaria; he later joined the Nigerian Defence Academy in 1986, graduating in 1991 with a Bachelor of Science degree and commissioning into the Nigerian Army as a Second Lieutenant.
Throughout his distinguished military career, he has held key positions including Commanding Officer of 73 Battalion, operational roles in HQ 81 Division, and strategic assignments in training, planning and operations. Between 2019 and 2021, he commanded operations in conflict-torn zones, including leading Sector 3 of Operation Lafiya Dole and the Multinational Joint Task Force in the Lake Chad region. He later served as Theatre Commander for Operation Hadin Kai and as Commander of the Nigerian Army Infantry Corps before his appointment as CDS.
