ALLEGED: NIGERIA FOILS COUP ATTEMPT PLANNED FOR INDEPENDENCE DAY PARADE, OFFICERS IN CUSTODY

A coup attempt aimed at overthrowing President Bola Tinubu was thwarted by Nigerian intelligence agencies, leading to the detention of sixteen senior military officers, top sources have disclosed. The plot, which involved officers from the rank of Captain to Brigadier-General, was uncovered through intelligence gathering by the Defence Intelligence Agency and sister agencies. A senior official of the Defence Intelligence Agency stated, “The 16 officers were planning a coup. The military authorities were just being diplomatic in the statement released by the spokesperson. They have started doing secret meetings on how to overthrow the President and other top government officials. They’re all officers within the rank of Captain to Brigadier-General and are still in detention at DIA as we talk. They were picked recently at their various houses around the country. Their main objective was to overthrow President Tinubu and announce a military government.” The cancellation of the October 1 Independence Day parade was directly linked to the foiled coup, as intelligence indicated the officers planned to strike during the event. Another source revealed, “Yes, they were arrested for planning to stage a coup and take over government. That was the main reason why the Independence Day parade scheduled to hold on Wednesday, October 1 as part of activities marking the country’s 65th Independence Anniversary was cancelled. This was because intelligence reports showed they planned the coup on October 1st during a military parade. So the National Security Adviser and other service chiefs asked the Tinubu-led government to cancel the parade earlier scheduled to mark the day. Their plan was to shoot at the President and other top politicians during the event. The move by the military authorities announcing their arrests was to douse tension.” Officially, the military attributed the detentions to disciplinary issues, with Director of Defence Information Brigadier General Tukur Gusau saying, “The Armed Forces of Nigeria wishes to inform the public that a routine military exercise has resulted in the arrest of sixteen officers over issues of indiscipline and breach of service regulations. Investigations have revealed that their grievances stemmed largely from perceived career stagnation caused by repeated failure in promotion examinations, among other issues.” Despite this, sources insist the arrests are coup-related, highlighting historical context where Nigeria has experienced five successful military coups since 1960, with recent corruption allegations in the military fueling discontent.