Major General Abdullahi Sarki Mukhtar

Former National Security Advisor

Date of Birth: 05/07/1949

Education: Kofar Kudu Primary School, Kano, 1957-60; Gwale Senior Primary School, Kano, 1961-62; Provincial Secondary School, Kano, 1963-67; Nigerian Defence Academy, Kaduna, 1968-71; Nigerian Law School, Lagos, 1980-81; Command and Staff College, Jaji, 1982-83.

Career: Second Lieutenant, Nigerian Army, 1971; Acting Commander, 19 Infantry Battalion, Omoku, 1971-73; Brigade Major, Brigade of Guards, NA, 1975-76; Cadets Brigade Commander, Nigerian Defence Academy, Kaduna, 1984-87; Military Governor, Katsina State, 1987-88; Military Governor, Kaduna State, 1988-90; National Security Advisor, 2006-10.

Commentary: Abdullahi Mukhtar was a very well respected officer, notably for standing up to dictator General Sani Abacha in 1995 on the treatment of coup plotters. He was also vocal against the detentions of Olusegun Obasanjo and the older Umaru Yar’Adua, which endeared him to future president Obasanjo. In September 2009, it was made public that Mukhtar denied former minister Malam Nasiru El- Rufai’s application for a new passport in London. In March 2010, he was sacked as security chief by the then Acting President Goodluck Jonathan.