Promotion of Tinubu’s ADC Suspended Over ‘Bad Precedent’ Concerns

The proposed promotion of Nurudeen Yusuf, aide-de-camp, ADC, to President Bola Tinubu, to the rank of brigadier-general has been reportedly suspended.

The Cable reports that the development followed a last-minute intervention by two former chiefs of army staff.

According to the report, citing a presidential source, the promotion would not happen “anytime soon”.

Recall that Yusuf was scheduled to be decorated as a one-star general on Monday evening through a “special presidential promotion,” but the plan was shelved amid concerns within the military establishment.

Yusuf was decorated as a colonel in January 2025 after his promotion in December 2024.

However, under established military procedure, an officer must serve at least four years as a colonel and attend the National Defence College, NDC, before being considered for promotion.

Approval to bypass the process was conveyed in a letter from the Office of the National Security Adviser, NSA, to the Chief of Army Staff.

Newspot reports that the move generated disquiet within the military, as no brigadier-general has previously served as ADC to a Nigerian President.

Military experts reportedly warned that the promotion would set a “bad precedent”.

Ahead of the planned decoration, the Minister of Defence, Christopher Musa, a retired general, and the Chief of Army Staff, Waidi Shaibu, a lieutenant general, cut short an official visit to Lagos and returned to Abuja.

Sources said the intervention of two former army chiefs persuaded Tinubu to suspend the promotion.