By Yusuf Danjuma Yunusa

This newspaper gathered that Nigeria has had five past Ministers of Defense who have military backgrounds before the recently appointed General Christopher Musa, making them six.

Below are the profiles of the past five Ministers:

1.General Theophilus Danjuma

Theophilus Yakubu Danjuma GCON FSS psc (born 9 December 1938) is a Nigerian politician and retired lieutenant general who played a key role in post-independence military and political events in Nigeria. Danjuma amassed an enormous fortune through shipping and petroleum.

He was Chief of Army Staff from July 1975 to October 1978. He was also Minister of Defence under President Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration from 1999 to 2003.

2.General Godwin Abbe

Godwin Osagie Abbe (10 January 1949 – 21 December 2024) was a Nigerian Army Major General who served as minister of defence from 2009 to 2010. He also served as minister of interior from 2007 to 2009.

Godwin Abbe joined the military in 1967 as a private, was commissioned second lieutenant in July 1968, and was promoted colonel in 1986. He served during the Nigerian Civil War. He earned a postgraduate diploma in International Relations from Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife.

He was military governor of Akwa Ibom State 1988–1990) and Rivers State (1990–1991).

3.General Aliyu Gusau

Aliyu Mohammed Gusau (born 18 May 1943) is a Nigerian general and statesman. He has held several high level national security, military and intelligence offices, and has participated in several military coups, playing a central role in founding the Fourth Nigerian Republic.

He was most recently the Minister of Defence who had served as National Security Adviser to three presidents–Ibrahim Babangida(1993), Olusegun Obasanjo (1999-2006), Goodluck Jonathan (2010). Gusau was also the Chief of Army Staff during Ernest Shonekan and briefly Sani Abacha’s regime, headed different intelligence agencies, and was commandant of the Nigerian Defence Academy.

The army added his birthplace to his name, making “Aliyu Mohammed Gusau”, to distinguish him from another General, Aliyu Mohammed. Although Aliyu does not himself use Gusau in his name, it has been widely adopted by the media.

In 1964, he enrolled as an officer cadet at the Nigerian Defence Academy and was commissioned three years into the Nigerian Army as a second lieutenant. In 1967, he fought during the Nigerian Civil War.

4.General Bashir Salihi

Bashir Salihi Magashi CFR CON (born 1 October 1949) is a retired Nigerian Army major general who served as the defence minister of Nigeria from 2019 to 2023. He served as governor of Sokoto State from August 1990 to January 1992 during the military regime of General Ibrahim Babangida, and as commandant of the Nigerian Defence Academy from 1998 to 1999.

Magashi was admitted to the Nigerian Defence Academy in 1968 and commissioned into the Nigerian Army in 1971 as a member of the 5th Regular Combatant Course. He also attended the Ahmadu Bello University in Zaria, where he obtained an advanced diploma in public administration, LL.B. Honors and a call to the Nigerian Bar with a BL Hons in 1984.

He started his career as a platoon commander and later became company commander at the historic and elite 6 infantry Battalion of the Nigerian Army. Magashi was later deployed as adjutant 1st Guards Battalion and later commander of The 4 Guards battalion in Epe Lagos; He was also commander, 93 Mechanized Battalion and commander, 192 Mechanized Battalion.

5.General Mansur Dan Ali

Mansur Muhammad Dan Ali(born 25 August 1959) is a retired Nigerian Army brigadier general and former Minister of Defence of Nigeria appointed by President Muhammadu Buhari in November 2015.

Dan-Ali was born on August 25, 1959, in Zamfara State. He attended Birnin Magaji Town Primary School (1966 -1972) for his elementary education and Government Secondary School, Shinkafi (1972-1977) for his secondary education. He received his Higher National Diploma (HND) in Photogrammetric and Surveying from Kaduna Polytechnic (1977-1982) and possesses a master’s degrees in Public Policy and Administration (MPPA) from Bayero University Kano (2004-2005) and a master’s degree in Security Studies from the Bangladesh University of Professionals (2009).

Dan Ali was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Nigerian Army in 1984 through the Short Service Commission at the Nigerian Defence Academy.