Discontentment is spreading through th Nigerian Army following a decision by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to unilaterally promote is aide-de-camp, Colonel Nurudeen Yusuf to the rank of Brigadier General (One star general) within a two years period of his presidency.
Colonel Nurudeen Yusuf was a lieutenant colonel in May 2023 and was later promoted colonel in January 2025 alongside his mates in the Army.
The approval to rank of Brigadier General was conveyed in a letter dated 12 December 2025 and addressed to the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, by the National Security Adviser (NSA), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu.
The elevation has drawn attention within military circles because Yusuf was only promoted to the rank of colonel in January 2025, making his latest advancement the second within a 12-month period.
Yusuf was supposed to remain in th rank of colonel for 5 years and can only get the Brigaider Generel rank, after attending the National Defence College course to prepare him for such position.
Several serving officers, including some of his coursemates, were said to have expressed frustration over what they described as an unusually rapid progression.
“This beggars belief and defies all logic,” a senior military officer was quoted as saying. “Someone who was just promoted to colonel this year?
“Officers are really grumbling in the Army over the promotion of Tinubu’s ADC,” one source said, noting concerns about seniority and qualifications.
“So, NA Yusuf, a 52 Regular Course officer who has not attended either the War College or Defence College, is now senior to 50 Regular Course officers who have completed both institutions,” the source added.
Questions were also raised about the officer’s assignment.
“A General doing ADC work is totally unusual,” the source said, adding that the promotion has caused significant unrest. “This is one very unpopular decision that needs to be reversed immediately in the interest of the service because many officers are deeply upset.”
Another source cited historical precedent, stating, “No Nigerian president’s ADC has received such an unprofessional privilege from 1960 to date. This current ADC is unethically holding the kingship of a town while still in uniform. You are eating your cake and still having it. The Commander-in-Chief is being manipulated into making blunders.”
Neither the Presidency nor the Nigerian Army has officially commented on the concerns surrounding the promotion.
However, a source within the Presidency, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to lack of authorisation, said the decision was taken to harmonise Yusuf’s rank with those of other senior security officials attached to the Presidential Villa.
According to the source, the Nigeria Police Force promoted President Tinubu’s Chief Personal Security Officer, Usman Shugaba, from Deputy Commissioner of Police to Commissioner of Police in August, while the Department of State Services (DSS) recently elevated the President’s Chief Security Officer, Adegboyega Fasasi, to the rank of Director.
The source explained that the police and DSS ranks are considered equivalent to the rank of brigadier-general in the Nigerian Army, adding that Yusuf’s promotion was intended to prevent a rank imbalance within the Villa’s security architecture.
“Without a corresponding promotion, he would have remained subordinate in rank to his counterparts, which could affect esprit de corps among the presidential security team,” the source said.
Yusuf was appointed ADC to President Tinubu on 1 May 2023, about four weeks before the President’s inauguration. He held the rank of lieutenant-colonel at the time of his appointment.
