President Bola Tinubu has approved the promotion of his Aide-de-Camp (ADC), Nurudeen Yusuf, to the rank of brigadier-general, a decision that has reportedly triggered “murmuring and discontent” within the Nigerian Army.
The President’s approval for Mr. Yusuf’s elevation was conveyed in a letter dated December 12, 2025, from the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, to the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Wahid Shaibu.
The promotion has “raised eyebrows within military circles” because Mr. Yusuf was only decorated as a colonel in January of this year, making this his second promotion within a 12-month period.
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Numerous officers, including some of Mr. Yusuf’s coursemates, reportedly expressed frustration over what they termed an “unprecedented fast-tracking of his career,” leading critics to accuse the President of favoritism.
An aggrieved senior officer expressed his shock to PREMIUM TIMES, stating:“This beggars belief and defies all logic. Someone who was just promoted to colonel this year?”
Neither the Presidency nor the Nigerian Army has publicly provided an official explanation for the accelerated promotion.
However, a Presidency source, who spoke anonymously due to lack of authorization, offered context, stating that the President approved the elevation to align Mr. Yusuf’s rank with those of other senior security officials attached to the Presidential Villa.
According to this source, the decision follows similar recent promotions: the Nigeria Police Force in August elevated the President’s Chief Personal Security Officer, Usman Shugaba, from deputy commissioner of police to commissioner of police; and the State Security Services (SSS) recently promoted the President’s Chief Security Officer, Adegboyega Fasasi, to the rank of director.
The source explained that the police and SSS ranks are considered equivalent to a brigadier-general in the Nigerian Army.
Without a corresponding promotion, Mr. Yusuf “would have remained subordinate in rank to his counterparts within the Villa’s security architecture,” a situation that, according to the source, “could undermine esprit de corps among the presidential security team.”
Mr. Yusuf was appointed as Mr. Tinubu’s ADC on May 1, 2023, while holding the rank of lieutenant-colonel.
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This is nonsensical! Absolute rubbish.