BY UCHECHI OKPORIE
Nigeria’s armed forces disrupted a planned coup at an early stage through a joint security monitoring operation, the country’s Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa, has said.
Speaking on Channels Television on Sunday night, General Musa explained that the plot was initiated by a senior military officer who was reportedly disgruntled after failing a promotion examination to the rank of brigadier-general and later drew other officers into the plan.
Rumours of a coup attempt first emerged in October last year, but the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) initially denied that any such plot existed.
However, last month, the military confirmed that an attempted coup had indeed been uncovered and said 16 officers had been indicted and would face court-martial.
General Musa, who was in office when the plot was detected, said the military deliberately avoided making an early public confirmation in order to allow investigators to identify all those involved and prevent the wrongful arrest of innocent personnel.
“It was important to conduct a thorough investigation before acknowledging the existence of any coup plot,” he said.
According to him, security agencies closely monitored the suspected officers over time in order to gather sufficient evidence and dismantle the plan before it could be carried out.
General Musa said investigations showed that the planning began before President Bola Tinubu assumed office in 2023, dismissing claims that the alleged plot was a response to the current administration.
“These plans were hatched even before the president took office, once it was clear he had won the election,” he said.
He described the group behind the plan as lacking seriousness and said they had underestimated both Nigeria’s democratic system and the cohesion of the country’s armed forces.
The minister added that the plot, if executed, could have resulted in significant violence, but was successfully neutralised before reaching the operational stage.
He also disclosed that he was listed among those to be arrested or targeted by the plotters.
Authorities say the accused officers will now face trial before a military court.
