General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

Christopher Gwabin Musa (born 25 December 1967) is a

Nigerian Army The Nigerian Army (NA) is the land force of the Nigerian Armed Forces. It is the largest component of the Nigerian Armed Forces. The President of Nigeria is the Commander-in-Chief of the Nigerian Army, and its professional head is the Chie ...

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

who is the 18th Chief of Defence Staff of Nigeria. He was appointed by President

Bola Tinubu Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Adekunle Tinubu (born 29 March 1952) is a Nigerian politician serving as the 16th and current president of Nigeria since 2023. He previously served as the governor of Lagos State from 1999 to 2007, and senator for Lagos ...

on 19 June 2023.

Early life and education

Musa was born on 25 December 1967 in

Sokoto Sokoto (Hausa language, Hausa: ; Fulfulde, Fula: , ''Leydi Sokoto'') is one of the 36 states of Nigeria, located in the extreme northwest of the country. It is bounded by Niger, Republic of the Niger to the north and west for 363 km (226 m ...

, in the defunct North-Western State (now in

Sokoto State Sokoto ( Hausa: ; Fula: , ''Leydi Sokoto'') is one of the 36 states of Nigeria, located in the extreme northwest of the country. It is bounded by Republic of the Niger to the north and west for 363 km (226 miles), and the states of Zamf ...

), Nigeria. He hails from

Zangon Kataf Zangon Kataf (, also Katab, Cuttub), is a Local Government Areas of Nigeria, Local Government Area in Southern Kaduna, southern Kaduna State, Nigeria. Its headquarters is in the town of Zonkwa. It is also a name of a town in the Atyap Chiefdom, ch ...

, Southern

Kaduna State Kaduna (, جىِهَر كَدُنا; مدينة كدونا; , ; ) is a States of Nigeria, state in the northwest geopolitical zone of Nigeria. The state capital is its namesake, the city of Kaduna (city), Kaduna, which was the List of Nigerian ...

, Nigeria. In 1974, Musa attended Marafa Danbaba Primary School Sokoto, and left to Model Primary School Dorowa Road Sokoto in 1978 where he remained until 1980. He then underwent vocational training in Gaummi, Sokoto, between 1980 and 1981. In 1981, he was enrolled into Federal Government College, Sokoto, completing his O' levels in 1985. He was part of the National Cadet Corps while enrolled there. He was admitted to the College of Advanced Studies,

Zaria Zaria is a List of Nigerian cities by population, metropolitan city in Nigeria, located at present time within four local government areas in Kaduna State. It serves as the capital of the Zazzau Emirate Council and is one of the original sev ...

, and was there until 1986. In 1986, Musa was enrolled into the

Nigerian Defence Academy The Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) is a military university based in Kaduna, Nigeria, that trains officer cadets for commissioning into one of the three services of the Nigerian Armed Forces: the Army, the Navy, and the Air Force. The duration ...

, where he obtained a Bachelor of Science (Hons) on graduation in 1991 and got commissioned into the

as a 2nd Lieutenant. In September 1991, he enrolled as a member of the 38th Regular Course 21 in the Nigerian Defence Academy and underwent a Mechanical Transportation Officers Course in 1992. In 1993, Musa went through the Young Officers Course in Infantry, the Regimental Signal Officers Course in 1998, and 2000, a Junior Course at the

Armed Forces Command and Staff College, Jaji The Armed Forces Command and Staff College, Jaji is a training facility for the Nigerian Armed Forces, including the army, air force and navy. It is near the village of Jaji, Nigeria, about northeast of Kaduna in the Igabi Local Government Area ...

. Between 2004 and 2005, he went through a Senior Course at the Armed Forces Command and Staff College Jaji. Between 2007 and 2008, he earned an Advanced Diploma in Security Management from

University of Lagos The University of Lagos (UNILAG) is a Public university, public research university located in Lagos, Nigeria, which was founded in 1962. UNILAG is one of the education in Nigeria#First generation universities, first generation universities in ...

. Between 2012 and 2013, Musa obtained an Advanced Diploma in Defence and Strategies Course, and a Masters of Science (Military Science), International College of Defence Studies, National Defence University (ICDS-NDU), Changping,

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. In 2017, Musa went through a Combined Joint Land Component Commander's Course on Leadership,

US Army War College The United States Army War College (USAWC) is a U.S. Army staff college in Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, with a Carlisle postal address, on the 500-acre (2 km2) campus of the historic Carlisle Barracks. It provides graduate-level instru ...

Career

Musa was the General Staff Officer 1, Training/Operations at HQ 81 Division. He also held the positions of Commanding Officer 73 Battalion, Assistant Director Operational Requirements at Department of Army Policy and Plans, Infantry Representative/Member Training Team at HQ Nigerian Army Armour Corps. In 2019, he was also the Deputy Chief, Staff Training/Operations, headquarters Infantry Centre and Corps, Commander Sector 3 Operation Lafiya Dole, Commander Sector 3

Multinational Joint Task Force The Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) is a combined multinational formation, comprising units, mostly military, from Benin, Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria. It is headquartered in N'Djamena and is mandated to bring an end to the Boko Har ...

in the Lake Chad Region. In 2021, Musa was the Theatre Commander, Operation Hadin Kai. His last position before his appointment as Chief of Defence Staff was Commander, Nigerian Army Infantry Corps.

Awards and accolades

In 2022, Musa won the

Colin Powell Colin Luther Powell ( ; – ) was an Americans, American diplomat, and army officer who was the 65th United States secretary of state from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African-American to hold the office. He was the 15th National Security ...

Meritorious Award for Soldiering. In 2022, the African Youths Initiative For Good Governance and Peace honored him with the Nelson Mandela Exemplary Leadership Award, for his outstanding contributions to peacekeeping, and protection of the Nation’s territorial integrity. Still, in December 2022, during the 2nd edition of the Africa-Dubai Investment Business Summit held in Dubai, he was awarded the Fellowship of the Institute of Leadership Assessment and Development. On 23 November 2023, Musa was honored as the Lifetime Achievement Award Recipient of the Year, by the Nigeria Service Awards panel of jury, after he came first place during the online nominations period. Other awards and accolades received by Musa include the National Honour of the Officer of the Order of the Federal Republic (OFR), the Nigerian Army Medal, the Grand Service Star, the Chief of Army Staff Commendation Award, and the Field Command Medal of Honour. On 31 December 2023, the Agwatyap’s Buffet was organised by the Atyap Chiefdom in his honor. In the occasion, he was honored with the title ''Tswung Atyap'', meaning "Pillar of Atyap", by HH Sir Dominic Yahaya.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Musa, Christopher Gwabin 1967 births People from Kaduna State People from Sokoto State Nigerian Defence Academy alumni Living people Atyap people Chiefs of Defence Staff (Nigeria) Nigerian generals University of Lagos alumni PLA National Defence University alumni People from Southern Kaduna