Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), has raised concerns about the Nigerian military’s handling of investigations into an alleged plot to overthrow the government, saying the authorities should have apologised to Nigerians after reversing an earlier denial.
The military had disclosed on Monday that some officers would be arraigned before a military judicial panel over an alleged plot, more than three months after it announced the arrest of 16 officers in October 2025 for what it described at the time as acts of indiscipline and breaches of service regulations. It also denied then that the cancellation of the 2025 Independence Day parade was linked to a coup plot.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily on Tuesday, Falana said the latest admission contradicted the earlier position and created the impression that the public had been misled.
“Yesterday, the military authorities ought to have apologised to Nigerians. People in authority must learn to take us seriously as a people,” he said.
He added that reversing such a position without an apology was unacceptable.
“If you had made a statement three months ago that there was no coup plot and, in the course of your investigation, discovered that the matter went beyond indiscipline, you ought to have apologised to the Nigerian people,” he said.
Falana argued that the legal framework for prosecuting the detained officers had also been misunderstood. According to him, a court martial would only apply if the issue was limited to service discipline.
“If you are talking of a coup or an attempt to overthrow an elected government, you either charge them with treason or treasonable felony, and that can only be tried before a Federal or State High Court,” he said.
The senior lawyer further criticised the continued detention of the officers without access to legal counsel, family members and doctors, insisting that such rights were guaranteed under the Constitution. He said up to 42 people were arrested in connection with the matter and urged the authorities to release those who had not been formally indicted.
Falana also questioned the procedure of submitting investigation reports directly to the President, saying such reports should be forwarded to the Attorney General for prosecution where criminal offences are alleged.
He expressed concern about the broader implications of the development, noting that allegations of a coup plot raised questions about political stability and the rule of law. “You cannot detain people indefinitely and deny them their rights. Once there is reasonable suspicion, they must be taken to court and given fair hearing,” he said.
The military has yet to issue a formal response to Falana’s comments, while investigations into the alleged plot are said to be ongoing.