Why Badaru Was Forced Out… And Why Matawalle May Be the Next to Fall: Inside the Defence Ministry Shake-Up

By Sunday Oladapo

A deep, carefully concealed struggle for control of Nigeria’s defence architecture has finally burst to the surface — and what appears on the outside as a routine cabinet “adjustment” is, in fact, the result of months of internal battles, intelligence concerns, and quiet pressure from powerful foreign partners.

Multiple high-level sources across the Presidency, the military, and the diplomatic community have disclosed to this newspaper that Defence Minister Mohammed Badaru Abubakar did not resign. Instead, he was tactically instructed to step aside by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to clear the runway for a more forceful, experienced, and internationally trusted leadership under former Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa.

The move was said to be necessary after successive security assessments revealed “dangerous lapses” in coordination, slow decision cycles, and a ministry increasingly viewed as too fragmented to confront the escalating threats facing the country.

A Presidency Losing Patience

Inside the Villa, frustration had been brewing for months.

Senior administration officials describe a Defence Ministry where crucial intelligence reports were “stacking up without prompt action,” procurement decisions lagged behind military demands, and communication between the minister and the top brass was often bogged down by bureaucratic gaps.

One official familiar with the review put it bluntly:

“The President believed the ministry needed urgent restructuring. There was a growing sense that Nigeria was running out of time.”

General Musa’s anticipated appointment is widely viewed as Tinubu’s attempt to inject operational discipline into a ministry that has struggled to keep pace with the security realities on the ground.

The Meteored Pressure From Washington

But the real shockwave is the second half of the developing story.

According to multiple diplomatic and defence sources, the United States military and intelligence community—under President Donald Trump’s revived hard-line global security posture—has quietly expressed serious concerns about Nigeria’s current defence leadership.

Investigators were told that:

U.S. intelligence officers allegedly faced difficulty establishing reliable channels of information flow within the ministry.

Certain international partners reportedly complained of “inconsistencies” in intelligence cooperation.

A classified assessment circulating among U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) operatives allegedly questioned Nigeria’s defence ministry’s “predictability and internal coherence.”

These concerns, sources say, have contributed significantly to the growing pressure behind the scenes to reconfigure the ministry’s leadership—starting with the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle.

The Matawalle Question: A Storm That Has Never Fully Disappeared

Even before joining the cabinet, Matawalle had long been dogged by public allegations from political rivals and activists who claim he maintained relationships with certain armed elements during his years in Zamfara politics. He has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, but the persistence of the allegations has left a lingering cloud of suspicion.

Within the intelligence community, several officers confided that these lingering controversies have become a “strategic risk” in managing international partnerships.

One senior intelligence source told our reporters:

“Washington is very sensitive to perception. Even unproven allegations can complicate cooperation. The Americans want absolute clarity in the chain of trust.”

For the Tinubu administration — already navigating delicate geopolitical partnerships — the mounting international discomfort has become increasingly difficult to ignore.

Behind the Curtain: A Coordinated Reset

Highly placed insiders say the ongoing shake-up is not isolated. It is part of a broad security reset that includes:

A tighter defence command structure

Faster decision-making cycles

A new intelligence-sharing framework with foreign allies

A push for stronger operational oversight directly from the Villa

General Musa’s potential return as minister is seen as central to this strategy. His tenure as CDS earned credibility with Western and African security partners — something the President reportedly views as crucial for the next phase of Nigeria’s counterterrorism efforts.

Is Matawalle Next? All Signs Point to “Yes.”

Multiple officials inside the ministry and the Villa independently indicated that the minister of state is now operating “on borrowed time.” Some describe his removal as “a matter of weeks — maybe days.”

Two separate military insiders emphasized the same point:

“This shake-up is not halfway done. Badaru’s exit is only the first page.”

The Larger Question: Will This Reset Work?

The real test will be whether this internal restructuring translates into improved field results — safer roads, fewer abductions, better air surveillance, and stronger collaboration with international partners.

For now, what is clear is this:
Nigeria’s defence leadership is being rewritten in real time — and the next chapter may be even more dramatic than the last.