President Bola Tinubu is poised to select a new Minister of Defence this week following the surprise resignation of the incumbent minister, Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, who resigned from the cabinet on health concerns.
Mohammed Badaru’s resignation, which is effective immediately, was sent to the President in a letter dated December 1.
The development was confirmed in a statement made Monday evening by Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
“In a letter dated December 1, sent to President Bola Tinubu, Abubakar said he was quitting on health grounds,” the statement read.
“President Tinubu has accepted the resignation and thanked Abubakar for his services to the nation.
“President Tinubu will likely inform the Senate of Badaru’s successor later this week,” it added, indicating that the process to replace the minister is already underway.
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Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, 63, served as a two-term governor of Jigawa State from 2015 to 2023 before his appointment as Minister of Defence on August 21, 2023.
His departure coincides with a delicate time for the administration, as President Tinubu recently had to proclaim a national security emergency due to growing insecurity.
The President had outlined new measures including the recruitment of 20,000 additional police officers, deployment of forest guards, and heightened protection for schools, churches and mosques in sensitive neighbourhoods.
