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Failed Coup: ‘N10m Paid To Me Was For Prayers’ – Cleric

Published

3 months ago

May 6, 2026

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An Islamic cleric, Sheikh Bukar Kashim Goni, who was accused of complicity in an alleged plot to overthrow President Bola Tinubu’s administration through a coup d’état, has claimed that over N10 million transferred to his bank account was for prayers.

Sheikh Goni is one of the six defendants facing trial before the Federal High Court in Abuja over the botched coup plot.

Other defendants in the charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/206/2026, which was filed by the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, are retired Major General Mohammed Ibrahim Gana; retired Naval Captain Erasmus Ochegobia Victor; serving Police Inspector Ahmed Ibrahim; and two others Zekeri Umoru and Abdulkadir Sani.

At the resumed proceedings on Tuesday, the court, presided over by Justice Joyce Abdulmalik, viewed video evidence that depicted an interaction the Islamic cleric had with security operatives who investigated the case.

When the investigators confronted the defendant with financial records showing multi-million-naira transfers allegedly linked to the principal suspect, Colonel Mohammed Ma’aji, he immediately denied his involvement in any plot against President Tinubu.

The defendant insisted all funds he received from Col. Ma’aji were strictly for “prayers and charitable purposes.”

Explaining that he relocated to Karu in Abuja after fleeing insurgency in Maiduguri, the defendant told the investigators that his relationship with Ma’aji was based on religious interactions and requests for spiritual support.

According to him, the military officer approached him for prayers over alleged promotion delays and other personal challenges.

Despite his stoic denial of any affiliation with the alleged coup plot, investigators queried his explanation using evidence from his financial records, which allegedly showed transfers to him starting in March 2023—months before the promotion issues he referenced

The investigators equally drew his attention to transactions allegedly running into millions of naira, including a ₦10 million transfer said to have been made in October 2024.

He was further asked to explain how some of his discussions with the primary suspect included references to gaining “access” and acquiring “work tools,” which the investigators said pointed to a broader operation, like the planned coup.

However, Sheikh Goni maintained his position, insisting he had no knowledge of any illegal plan, saying he neither had any involvement in political nor military activities.

In another video viewed in open court, another defendant, Umoru—a staff member of Julius Berger Nigeria attached to the maintenance department of the Presidential Villa—claimed he was “misled” into associating with Col. Ma’aji.

He also denied knowingly participating in any coup plot.

Nevertheless, the defendant admitted receiving several cash payments, including a “Ghana Must Go” bag that allegedly contained ₦8.8 million.

The defendant said he believed the transactions were related to business opportunities.

The court had previously viewed video evidence in which some of the defendants allegedly admitted participating in coded communications, meetings and reconnaissance activities around the Presidential Villa, although they denied involvement in any concrete attempt to overthrow the government.

Trial Justice Abdulmalik adjourned further hearing in the case until May 11, 12, and 13.

The FG, in the charge before the court, alleged that the defendants, sometime in September 2025, conspired to levy war against the state to overawe President Tinubu—an offence punishable under Section 37(2) of the Criminal Code.

It was further alleged that the defendants had prior knowledge of a planned treasonable act involving Col. Ma’aji and others but failed to alert the appropriate authorities.

The FG stated that they rendered assistance to Col. Ma’aji, as shown by their failure to disclose the coup plot to the President or a peace officer.

The defendants were also accused of failing to take preventive steps, having “not used any reasonable endeavours to prevent the commission of the offence.”

Other allegations centred on terrorism-related offences under the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.

The defendants were said to have conspired to commit an act of terrorism in Nigeria.

Upon their arraignment before the court on April 22, the defendants pleaded not guilty to the 13-count charge and were remanded in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) pending determination of the case.

Timipre Sylva — a former governor of Bayelsa State who also served as Minister of State for Petroleum Resources under the late former President Muhammadu Buhari — was also mentioned in the charge.

The former governor is said to be at large after fleeing the country before the alleged coup plot was exposed.

The allegations against the defendants include treason, terrorism, failure to disclose security intelligence, and money laundering in furtherance of terrorist acts.

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2027 election: We’ll all battle to the finishing point, I won’t just surrender -Tinubu tells Atiku, others

Published

2 hours ago

July 29, 2026

EMMANUEL AGAJI

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President Bola Tinubu has said 2027 presidential election is going to be a battle he is ready to fight till the end.

He warned opposition figures, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, that they must defeat him through the ballot box if they hope to unseat him.

The President made the remarks on Tuesday while receiving members of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

Speaking during the meeting, Tinubu said he was prepared for a fair democratic contest and insisted that politics is a competitive process where every contestant has an equal opportunity.

“Those who would take it from me will try. They will try. All is fair in politics, and there is equal opportunity. I won’t offer them a red carpet. I won’t offer them the leash to tie me at home. No, we will wrestle each other to the finishing point. That’s the truth.

That is fair in politics,” the President said. Tinubu also rejected allegations that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is biased, maintaining that the electoral body has remained impartial.

According to him, political opponents questioning the commission’s neutrality are merely expressing fears over their own political prospects.Politics “INEC is neutral. It has never, ever intimidated anybody. If political opponents are crying wolf, then they are afraid of their own shadows and the uncertainty in the company they keep,” he stated.

The President used the meeting to defend the economic reforms introduced by his administration, saying they were beginning to produce positive results despite the initial hardship experienced by Nigerians.

He cited the uninterrupted academic calendar in public universities as one of the administration’s notable achievements, pointing out that the absence of strikes by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) had brought relief to students and their families. “None of your children in university today—and I would say they are all your children because you are Reverend Fathers—can say a four-year course is not four years.

ASUU is not on strike. They are not bringing agony to your homes. Is that not an answer to our prayers? To me, that’s an answer,” Tinubu said. The President acknowledged that his administration inherited significant economic challenges from the government of former President Muhammadu Buhari but insisted that the country had now achieved stability and was on the path to economic recovery. “This government has stabilized, and there is prosperity on the horizon. The quality of life is improving,” he said. “I inherited it. I didn’t run away. I asked for this job. I’m in it.”

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Civil War Row: Plateau Govt Insists Mutfwang Spoke in Spirit of Reconciliation Engagement

Published

2 hours ago

July 29, 2026

EMMANUEL AGAJI

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The Plateau State Government has defended Governor Caleb Manasseh Mutfwang over the controversy surrounding his recent remarks during an engagement with leaders of the Igbo community, insisting that his comments have been misrepresented and taken out of context.
In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Director of Press and Public Affairs to the Governor, Dr. Gyang Bere, the government said Mutfwang’s remarks were made in the spirit of reconciliation, appreciation and national unity, contrary to interpretations suggesting otherwise.

The clarification follows mixed reactions to comments made by the governor during a courtesy visit by leaders of the Igbo community to the Government House in Jos, with critics alleging that he apologised over the role of Plateau indigenes during the Nigerian Civil War.
Responding to the criticism, the government said the governor neither sought to diminish the experiences of any ethnic group nor distort the historical realities of the civil war.

It maintained that Mutfwang’s remarks were intended to acknowledge the resilience, enterprise and contributions of the Igbo community to the economic and social development of Plateau State while encouraging peaceful coexistence among Nigerians.

“The scars of that period remain part of our national history and deserve to be remembered with empathy, honesty and sensitivity,” the statement said, adding that the lessons of the civil war should strengthen national unity rather than reopen old wounds.
The government also highlighted Plateau’s long history of accommodating people from different parts of the country, describing the state as one of Nigeria’s foremost examples of peaceful coexistence.
According to the statement, successive administrations, beginning with Joseph Dechi Gomwalk and later Solomon Lar, laid the foundation for an inclusive society in which the Igbo community has thrived and contributed significantly to commerce, education, healthcare and industry.

The statement further aligned the state’s inclusive tradition with former Head of State Yakubu Gowon’s post-war “No Victor, No Vanquished” policy and the programme of Reconciliation, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction, describing the approach as a globally recognised model for post-conflict healing.

The government said Governor Mutfwang remained committed to preserving that legacy through policies that promote dialogue, reconciliation and peaceful coexistence.

It urged Nigerians to disregard what it described as distorted interpretations of the governor’s remarks, warning that such narratives could inflame ethnic divisions and distract from the broader message of unity and national cohesion.

Reaffirming the administration’s position, the government said Mutfwang believes every Nigerian, regardless of ethnicity, religion or place of origin, deserves dignity, equal opportunity and a sense of belonging, adding that those principles will continue to guide his leadership of Plateau State.