The controversial plan to decorate Nurudeen Yusuf, aide-de-camp (ADC) to President Bola Tinubu, as a one-star general on Monday evening was shelved at the last minute after an intervention by two former chiefs of army staff, it was understood.
Yusuf, who was only decorated as a colonel last January, was to be promoted to the rank of brigadier-general through “special presidential promotion”.
Under normal process, an officer has to be a colonel for at least four years after which he or she will attend the National Defence College (NDC) before they are considered for promotion.
The approval to bypass the process was conveyed in a letter from the office of the national security adviser (NSA) to the chief of army staff.
The leaked letter was dated December 12, 2025, and was signed by Nuhu Ribadu, the NSA.
In the letter, Ribadu said Yusuf will be retained as the president’s ADC despite the promotion.
No brigadier has ever been ADC to the president of Nigeria, leading to further disquiet within the military establishment.
Ahead of the planned decoration on Monday, the minister of defence, Chris Musa — who is a retired general — and the chief of army staff, Waidi Shaibu, a lieutenant general, had cut short their visit to Lagos state and returned to the federal capital.
However, two highly respected former army chiefs eventually succeeded in persuading Tinubu to shelve the plan because of the dangers to the military establishment, TheCable learnt.
A presidential source told TheCable that the promotion is not going to happen “anytime soon”.
‘CONSEQUENCES OF ILLEGAL PROMOTION IN THE MILITARY’
There had been complaints by military experts that this was going to be a “bad precedent”.
Yusuf had been previously accused of wielding undue influence in the promotion and retention of military officers because of his closeness to the president.
“He got the president to sign a memo for the promotion of officers who were due for retirement after failing three times as specified by their rules. When the president was told of the implications regarding rule, he withdrew the memo but nonetheless asked that the officers be allowed to remain in service, citing the emergency he just declared. They are still in service, I understand,” a military source said
In January 2025, Tinubu decorated Yusuf with the rank of colonel after he was promoted in December 2024
The decoration ceremony took place at the presidential villa, Abuja.
In April 2023, Yusuf, who was then a lieutenant colonel, was appointed as the ADC to Tinubu — a month to the inauguration of Tinubu as president.
Yusuf was crowned as the monarch of Ilemona land in Oyun LGA of Kwara state in July 2024.
However, he is expected to fully assume the traditional role when he retires from the military.