EXCLUSIVE: Alleged coup mastermind, Ma’aji, once served under ex-minister Timi Sylva as security adviser

Mohammed Ma’aji, a colonel identified by investigators as the coordinator of the alleged plot to overthrow Nigeria’s democracy, once served as security adviser to Timi Sylva during the 2015 Bayelsa State governorship election, Very Nigerian reports.

Investigators recently searched Sylva’s Abuja residences, and his whereabouts remain unknown.

However, his media aide, Julius Bokoru, has dismissed reports linking the former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources to the failed coup, describing Sylva as “an unrepentant and thoroughbred democrat” who has always supported President Bola Tinubu.

Ma’aji, reportedly “very close” to Sylva, coordinated security during the December 5, 2015 election, where Sylva, the APC candidate, polled 86,852 votes but lost to PDP’s Seriake Dickson, who scored 134,998 votes. Sylva previously governed Bayelsa under the PDP between 2007 and 2012, before being denied a second-term ticket.

Investigators are still uncertain if Ma’aji masterminded the failed coup, but he is believed to have played a central role, allegedly recruiting junior officers and providing funds and logistics, fueling speculation that a politician or group of politicians might have sponsored him.

Ma’aji, who served in the Niger Delta for years, has reportedly refused to cooperate with investigators, maintaining silence on the allegations.

However, junior officers under his command have made “significant statements” to the special military investigative panel.

Forensic examinations have been conducted on Ma’aji and his wife, with their Abuja home searched. Investigators have reportedly uncovered extensive details about the couple’s bank accounts and several landed properties.

Born in 1976 to Nupe parents in Niger State, Ma’aji was a member of Regular Course 47 of the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in 2000.

He rose to the rank of colonel in 2017 after completing the Policy, Strategy, and Leadership Course at the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, Plateau State.

He has held several positions, including Commanding Officer of the 19 Battalion in Okitipupa, Ondo State, and later at Koko, headquarters of Warri North LGA, Delta State.

In January 2021, he became the Commanding Officer of Operation Delta Safe following his transfer from the Depot, Nigerian Army, Zaria.

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