The Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa (retd.), has disclosed that he was among those targeted in an alleged coup plot against President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
Speaking on Sunday Politics, a Channels Television programme, Musa said the plotters planned to arrest him and, if he resisted, shoot him.
“I was also a target. I was meant to be arrested, and if I refused, I was to be shot,” he said.
His revelation comes days after the military announced that some of the 16 officers arrested in October 2025 would be tried over their alleged involvement in the attempted overthrow of the government.
Last October, the Armed Forces confirmed the arrest of the officers for acts of indiscipline and breaches of service regulations. Subsequent investigations, however, linked some of them to plans to destabilise the government.
In a statement issued last week, the Director of Defence Information, Major General Samaila Uba, said those found to have a case to answer would be arraigned before a military judicial panel in line with the Armed Forces Act and other applicable service regulations.
Musa, who is the immediate past Chief of Defence Staff, described those behind the plot as “unserious individuals,” saying they underestimated both the military and Nigerians’ commitment to democracy.
“I don’t know what gave them the confidence to think they could take on the Armed Forces,” he said.
He added that Nigerians would have resisted any attempt to return the country to military rule, noting that citizens had previously fought against dictatorship.
Reports had earlier suggested that several top government officials were pencilled down as targets in the alleged plot. The incident was also linked to the cancellation of the 65th Independence Anniversary parade, while the residence of a former Bayelsa State governor was reportedly searched during the investigation.
Nigeria experienced several military coups between 1966 and 1993 before returning to democratic rule in 1999 and has remained under civilian governance since then.
The alleged coup attempt occurred amid a wave of military takeovers and failed plots in parts of West Africa, including a reported attempt in neighbouring Benin Republic late last year.
