Nigeria’s defense minister quit as President Bola Tinubu prepares to unveil a plan to deal with a security emergency in the West African nation.
Mohammed Badaru Abubakar resigned with immediate effect and a successor will be announced later this week, Bayo Onanuga, special adviser to the president, said in a statement late Monday. The minister, who had held the post since August 2023, cited health grounds for his departure, Onangua said.
Tinubu last week authorized the recruitment of thousands more security personnel as part of measures to deal with increased instability in Africa’s most populous nation. Almost 400 people, including primary- and secondary-school students, were abducted in late November in a series of attacks that forced the president to cancel a trip to the Group of 20 summit in South Africa, and a European Union-African Union meeting in Angola.
The abductions occurred as Tinubu faces criticism from Nigerians and US President Donald Trump over his handling of the nation’s security, which has deteriorated under his tenure.
The president will elaborate on plans to deal with the crisis “in due course,” Onanuga said.
