COUP PLOTTERS PLANNED TO ARREST, SHOOT ME — DEFENCE MINISTER. (PHOTO).

 Coup Plotters Planned To Arrest, Shoot Me — Defence Minister

The Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa (retd.), has revealed that he was one of those marked for arrest by officers accused of plotting to overthrow President Bola Tinubu, adding that he was to be shot if he resisted.

Musa made the disclosure on Sunday during an interview on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, a few days after the military announced that 16 officers arrested in October 2025 would be tried over an alleged coup plot.

The former Chief of Defence Staff said he later became aware that his name was included among the targets identified by the suspected plotters.

“I was also a target. I was meant to be arrested, and if I refused, I was to be shot,” he said.

Musa noted that involvement in a coup often comes with an acceptance of grave consequences, but described the alleged plotters as unserious and misguided.

“Anyone who attempts a coup knows the risks involved. You either succeed or face the consequences,” he said.

"But these individuals clearly did not understand what they were getting into.”

He added that the plot stood no chance of success, stressing that even without military intervention, Nigerians would have resisted any attempt to return the country to military rule.

“If you look at the calibre of those involved, it’s difficult to understand how they thought they could take on the armed forces. Nigerians themselves would have opposed them, having fought for democracy for so long,” Musa said.

In October, the military announced the arrest of 16 officers for acts of indiscipline and breaches of service regulations.

However, authorities later said further investigations linked some of them to an alleged attempt to overthrow the government, describing the actions as a violation of the ethics and professional standards of the Armed Forces of Nigeria.

The Director of Defence Information, Maj. Gen. Samaila Uba, said officers found to have a case to answer would be tried by a military judicial panel in line with the Armed Forces Act and other relevant regulations, assuring that due process would be observed.