A new report by TheCable has revealed that Colonel Mohammed Ma’aji, identified by investigators as the coordinator of the alleged plot to overthrow Nigeria’s democratic government, previously served as security adviser to Timipre Sylva during the 2015 Bayelsa State governorship election.
Recall that security operatives recently raided Sylva’s residences in Abuja, with reports indicating that the former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources has remained unreachable since then.
Reacting to the incident, Julius Bokoru, Sylva’s Special Assistant on Media and Public Affairs, dismissed reports linking his principal to the alleged coup attempt.
According to Bokoru, Sylva is “an unrepentant and thoroughbred democrat” who has consistently supported President Bola Tinubu and his administration.
Ma’aji, reportedly “very close” to Sylva, served as his security coordinator during the December 5, 2015 Bayelsa governorship election.
In that election, Sylva, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, secured 86,852 votes but lost to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Seriake Dickson, who polled 134,998 votes. Sylva had earlier governed Bayelsa State from 2007 to 2012 under the PDP.
His initial election was annulled in 2008, but he won the rerun and completed one term before being denied the PDP ticket for re-election, which went to Dickson instead.
Ma’aji Remains Silent
TheCable reported that investigators are still working to determine whether Colonel Mohammed Ma’aji masterminded the alleged coup plot, though available evidence suggests he played a key coordinating role.
His primary task, sources claim, was to recruit junior officers into the plot. Ma’aji is also accused of providing financial and logistical support, prompting suspicions that he may have been funded by influential political figures.
Having served extensively in the oil-rich Niger Delta, Ma’aji is said to be well-connected and financially stable.
According to the report, he has refused to cooperate with investigators, maintaining silence despite mounting evidence.
Meanwhile, junior officers believed to have worked with him have already given detailed statements before the special military investigative panel.
Investigators also carried out forensic checks on Ma’aji and his wife, in addition to searching their Abuja residence.
Security operatives reportedly discovered extensive financial and property records, including details of multiple bank accounts and several landed assets linked to the couple — findings described by military insiders as a “trove of valuable information.”
Who Is Mohammed Ma’aji?
Details about Colonel Mohammed Ma’aji remain limited. An army officer from Niger State, he was born in 1976 to Nupe parents. Ma’aji attended the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) as part of Regular Course 47 and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in 2000.
He rose steadily through the ranks, attaining the position of Colonel in 2017 after completing the Policy, Strategy and Leadership Course (PSLC) at the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, Plateau State.
He previously commanded the 19 Battalion in Okitipupa, Ondo State, before being posted to Koko, headquarters of Warri North Local Government Area, Delta State, in 2017.
In January 2021, Ma’aji was transferred from the Nigerian Army Depot in Zaria to serve as Commanding Officer of Operation Delta Safe, a major joint military task force in the Niger Delta.
The alleged coup plot has shocked many Nigerians after decades of peaceful democratic transitions. Observers warn that had the attempt succeeded, it could have plunged the country back into the dark era of military rule.
