Nigeria’s Minister of Defence, Christopher Musa, has said military officers arrested over an alleged coup plot were fully aware of the consequences of their actions, adding that the government would nonetheless guarantee them a fair trial and welfare support for their families.
Musa made the remarks in an interview with Turkish broadcaster TRT World, where he addressed the circumstances surrounding the arrest of 16 officers, including a brigadier general and a colonel, in October 2025.
According to the Defence Headquarters (DHQ), the officers were initially detained for acts of indiscipline and breaches of service regulations. However, the military on January 26 confirmed that the arrests were connected to a foiled plot aimed at overthrowing President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
The DHQ disclosed that the alleged conspiracy was uncovered in late September 2025 through joint intelligence operations involving the Nigerian Army, the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA).
Military authorities further alleged that the plot included plans to assassinate President Tinubu, Vice-President Kashim Shettima and other top government officials, as well as to detain senior military commanders.
Musa said the accused officers would be granted full access to legal representation of their choice and would be subjected to due process throughout the judicial proceedings.
“They must have made up their minds when they decided to do this and must have considered their families,” the defence minister said, while stressing that the seriousness of the allegations would not override the rule of law.
He also assured that the federal government was taking steps to support the families of the detained officers, noting that their wives and children would not be abandoned during the trial process.
Despite these assurances, Musa emphasized that the officers were fully conscious of the repercussions of their alleged actions.
“The perpetrators already know the repercussions of their action, and I’m sure they are ready to face the wrath,” he said.
