MAJ GEN CG MUSA: A PATRIOT AND TRUSTED GENERAL FOR A RENEWED HOPE IN NIGERIA NATIONAL SECURITY
According to Lt Gen Faruk Yahaya, the immediate past Chief of Army Staff of the Nigerian Army, he posited,
“ Trust built on good character is the bedrock for effective leadership which is geared towards achieving results”. – Lt Gen F Yahaya
As we affirmed in one of our write ups, that to be a great leader, you must be a good follower. This assertion is coming to live with the appointment of Maj Gen CG Musa as the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS); which makes him the commander of the Nigerian Armed Forces, so to say. This unique, gentle, visionary, firm, fair, caring, honest, creative, innovative, loyal, compassionate, trustworthy, effective, efficient and most importantly, God-fearing General of the Nigerian Army Infantry Corps is a very good choice for this very elevated and unique position of the CDS. Gen CG Musa has built trust along all poles and across services, amongst his peers, contemporaries, subordinates, friends, civilians and even in the international community. He has been a good follower to his bosses, leaders and commanders. He is also a God fearing perfect gentleman with unique and uncommon good character.
Hence, getting to the peak of his career (As he will soon be decorated with the rank of a Four Star General) is not a day job but years of prayers, sleepless nights, hard work, ups and downs, investment in his followers and leaders, creativity and innovations with unique successes.
We are not holding brief for the new CDS, in fact, if this write up came earlier before the appointment, it could have been misunderstood to mean a propaganda. However, the new CDS, as his close allies and subordinates described him; does not influence things in his favour, he allows God to direct his path to the right route. This is one of the principles that has helped him in his career. We are guaranteed that the same way his appointment as CDS came.
General CG Musa is a true war commander, defender and patriot. He has always being one of the hopes in the gloom that enveloped our Nation when insecurity reigned supreme. His patriotism, resolve, commitment and obligation to end the scourge of Boko Haram and Islamic State of the West African Province is unequalled.
There have been these assertions from all quarters about the ability of eagle eyed, Mr President, President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu on hand picking technocrats, strategists and right combination of teams to achieve his aims and objectives of governance. The appointment of CG Musa is actually putting the right peg in the right hole. Appointment of Gen Musa has shown that Bola Ahmed Tinubu led administration made the right decision in bringing him on board as the Chief of Defence Staff.
Are you looking for a general who can take the bull by the horns? Gen Musa is the Answer.
Are you looking for the Man who can consolidate on the achievements of the outgone Chiefs of Defence Staff and bring to bear new innovations and creativity in combating security challenges facing our great nation? General Musa is the answer.
Are you looking for a patriot, who is ready to die for a renewed hope in securing the country, who is ready to fight agents of distraction and unpatriotic elements who compromise the Nation’s collective goodness for selfish interest?? General Musa is the answer.
Do you want an accountable, incorruptible general who will spend the common wealth allocated to him in the right direction?? General Musa is the answer.
Are you in search of a general who takes the welfare of his troops with highest priority? It is Gen Musa.
We wont bore you with praise singing, because, it wont end. In summary, Gen CG Musa is a good man and God fearing.
As a young officer at 192 Battalion, he started as a platoon commander but was appointed the Intelligence officer thereafter. As we gathered, it is customary in the Army at Battalion levels to appoint an officer to be in charge of the security of the barracks. The Commanding officer of such Battalion don’t just use any officer but an intelligent, hardworking, efficient and a proactive officer who would be on top of the game of securing the facility. So, it was not a mistake that his boss appointed him for such sensitive task.
Also, as an Operations Officer at Nigerian Battalion 8, United Nations Mission in Sieria Leone where he served 2001 – 2002. He was in charge of the operational activities of the battalion. Meaning, he would be in charge of planning, monitoring, deployment and withdrawal of troops during operations. Operations officer as we gathered, is also a very sensitive appointment. It takes a very proactive officer to be given such a task, especially in the then war torn Sierra leonne.
General Musa is a doyen of operational matters. He has learnt through the lines and paid his dues on operational matters. He was the General Staff Officer 1 Training/Operations at HQ 81 Division, an appointment which delegated the responsibility of managing operational issues in 81 Division Nigerian Army covering Lagos and Ogun states. He has been a Commanding Officer of 73 Bn, an Assistant Director Operational Requirement at Department of Army Policy and Plans – 2009 – 2011 where he must have monitored and advised on operational requirements and possibly assessed the procurement of arsenals and other items for same purpose. He was also the Deputy Chief of Staff Training/Operations at HQ Infantry Centre and Corps, an appointment which would have given him the opportunity to monitor and advise on operational matters both in the corps and all over Nigerian Army where the infantry have their battalions, brigades and divisions.
No wonder he performed creditably well in his days in the theatre as first; Commander Sector 3 Operation LAFIYA DOLE and Multinational Joint Task Force in the Lake Tchad Region and thereafter as the Theatre commander. Even the blind can see that he has rid the theatre in the North East of almost all the terrorists making life difficult for our people in that region. He also restored trust in leadership amongst troops, prioritise troops welfare, ensure staff discipline through synergy and promotion of inter-agency cooperation in the theatre.
Before the assumption of Gen CG Musa as the theatre commander, the North east had series of insecurity incidences. In as much as previous commanders were also on top of the situation, people, especially in the North East, lost their source of livelihood; mayhem was being unleashed by the deadly religious sect, Boko Haram, and the citizens were dismayed and lost touch with peace. It was a horrifying tale. He was however able to bring solutions to all these puzzles that beclouded the nation and terrorist were seen surrendering in drones. Was it a magic? Anyways, maybe not, because General Musa, as we gathered is a God fearing man who believes in the power of prayers and hard work. He is an expert in psychological operations which he used to boost the troops morale to fight and win and to resolve in degrading the enemy. He prays and follow up with decisive actions. Hence, his huge achievements.
Recalling his days as the Commandant Depot Nigerian Army, General Musa worked on the psyche of recruits and boosted their self-esteem while undergoing a rigorous training. He made them very important and see themselves as the hope of the nation. His welfare package for recruits which include their well nourished food were second to none.
In fact, we gathered that Gen Musa was eating from the recruits’ pot, meaning, he eats what they eat, drink what they drink, and sometimes, join them in their dining room; which he furnished, to eat. He changed the perception of trainers to training and trainees. He boosted the welfare of troops in all ramifications which led to the effective training of recruits. He created a near perfect environment for training and drastically improved on the infrastructure of the Institution. He was said to be of the opinion that the environment where you build people will have effect on their perception about life and their future. Gen Musa took the rebuilding of Depot Nigerian Army personal, he invested his time, thoughts, huge resources in making Depot what it is today. “The transformation in Depot started from Gen Musa”, our source said. Hence, the nation should be expecting a very significant turnaround in the nation’s security outlook.
President Bola Tinubu who appointed him to lead the renewed hope in the Armed Forces must have known or heard that he has all the leadership capacity and acumen to flourish in the new assignment; he knew there is need for discipline to be brought to the fore. He knew he needs a real patriotic military general with highest standard of discipline and integrity to lead the change mantra in the defence sector. Apparently, he made no mistake handing over the mantle of leadership to him.
One Nigerian soldier interviewed said, “Because of General Musa, our boss, there is this fire in me right now, I am highly motivated right now, I am ready for a crackdown on these enemies of progress in our nation and I will overcome by the grace of God.” We say amen to his prayers. We at secured Naija also joins others to congratulate the new CDS.
OOA writes from Lagos.
