Christopher Musa, Nigeria’s minister of defence, says officers behind the alleged coup plot planned to kill him if he resisted arrest.
Speaking on Channels Television on Sunday, Musa said he was a prime target of the officers involved in the failed plot.
The minister, who was chief of defence staff at the time the plot was allegedly conceived, said the masterminds were fully aware of the consequences of their actions.
“I was also a target,” Musa said. “I was supposed to be arrested, and if I refused, I was supposed to be shot.”
He described the plotters as “unserious individuals”, questioning their judgment and capacity to confront the Nigerian Armed Forces.
“Anybody who goes into a coup knows what they are doing. If you succeed, fine. If you fail, you are ready to face the consequences,” he said.
“But these were just a bunch of very unserious individuals. If you look at the calibre of those involved, I don’t know what got into their heads that they could take on the Armed Forces like that. Even Nigerians would have fought them.”
Background
In October 2025, the federal government announced the cancellation of the parade planned to mark Nigeria’s 65th independence anniversary, triggering speculation about an alleged coup attempt.
The defence headquarters (DHQ) initially dismissed reports linking the cancellation to a coup plot and said the arrest of 16 officers at the time was unrelated to any attempt to overthrow the government.
However, on October 31, 2025, TheCable reported that 16 officers had been arrested earlier in the month over an alleged coup plot, while two others were said to be on the run.
On January 26, the DHQ confirmed that there was indeed a plot to remove President Bola Tinubu from office.
According to the military, the plot—uncovered in late September 2025 through joint intelligence from the army, Department of State Services (DSS) and Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA)—included plans to assassinate Tinubu, Vice-President Kashim Shettima, and other top government officials, as well as arrest senior military commanders.
