THE new Chief of Defence Staff, Christopher Musa, has promised to ensure that the Nigerian army stops terrorists, bandits and other criminal gangs from disturbing the country’s peace.

Musa, making the promise at the Defence Headquarters, Abuja, on Friday, June 23, when he officially took over from Lucky Irabor, assured that the military’s determination would guarantee the country’s security.

“As the CDS, my promise to Nigeria is that we’ll continue to improve our mandate of sustaining peace and tranquillity in our country. We assure every Nigerian to feel safe that the Armed Forces of Nigeria are up and doing. We are highly professional and will be there for them.

“Nobody should doubt our determination to bring peace to Nigeria. Anybody, especially the criminals, bandits, terrorists, anyone who thinks otherwise, should be ready to face the music,” he said.

He vowed that the military under his command would fight to guarantee the security of Nigeria.

“Issues of welfare have been addressed. But you know we cannot be 100 per cent perfect. We’ll continue from where they stopped. We’ll ensure that our troops, our men, wherever they are, will never be left alone.

“We will ensure we give them what they need, what they require, and we’ll take care of the issue of administration, which is paramount because a soldier that is well fed, well-taken care of will give you the best, so they should not doubt we are here, and we are ready and we are willing to do that,” he said.

President Bola Tinubu appointed Musa as the new Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) on Monday, June 19.

He was the Commandant of the Nigerian Army Infantry Corps, Jaji, Kaduna, until his appointment as CDS.

In 2021, he worked as the Theatre Commander of JTF (NE) Operation HADIN KAI 2021, and was also a senior research fellow at the Nigerian Army Research Centre.

Musa holds a Master’s in Defence Studies from the National Defence University in Beijing, China.

He is a member of the 38th Regular Course of the Nigerian Defence Academy and was commissioned on September 21, 1991, into the Nigerian Army Infantry Corps.