The latest twist in Nigeria’s alleged coup scare has pushed an old and uncomfortable name back into the national spotlight. Brigadier General Nicholas Ashinze was once a central figure in the DasukiGate corruption saga. He is now Director of Fusion at the Defence Intelligence Agency. Sources cast him as a key actor in the internal probe. This probe is said to have uncovered an alleged plot against President Bola Tinubu.
That alone has raised serious questions about judgement and neutrality. It has also questioned the credibility of a process already clouded by secrecy. Shifting official narratives and public distrust further contribute to these concerns.
What makes the matter more explosive is the military’s own inconsistent public posture. In October 2025, the Defence Headquarters announced the arrests of 16 officers linked to indiscipline. These arrests were due to breaches of service regulations. Meanwhile, the defence spokesman at the time called the coup talk false and misleading.
By 26 January 2026, the same military reported the findings of its investigation. It identified officers alleged to have plotted to overthrow the government. These officers would face a military judicial panel.
Reuters reported that the inquiry had found “firm cases” against several officers. Channels Television quoted the new statement as saying the findings included allegations of plotting to overthrow the government.
That reversal matters because the case has never been just about discipline. From the beginning, SaharaReporters alleged that the officers were detained over a coup plot. The military insisted it was a routine internal matter. They linked it to promotion failures and career frustration.
Later, the same military moved from outright denial. They formally acknowledged that allegations of plotting to topple the government were part of the findings.
In a country where the line between security investigation and political narrative can be dangerously thin, that shift is significant. It is more than a semantic correction. It goes to the heart of whether the public is being told the full truth.
Ashinze’s past makes the optics even worse. He was detained. Authorities prosecuted him in connection with DasukiGate. This is the sprawling arms procurement scandal. It is linked to the diversion of billions of naira meant for Nigeria’s war against Boko Haram.
Court records from 2017 show that a Federal High Court in Abuja suspended his trial. The judge criticized the EFCC for what he called a media trial. He said the agency should not try a defendant in court and in the press at the same time.
The ICIR reported that Ashinze had been Dasuki’s aide. Vanguard recorded the judge’s rebuke. The rebuke addressed that the EFCC had misled the public about the case.
That history is why his reported presence at the centre of the current probe has generated so much unease. In June 2023, ThisDay reported that Ashinze moved from the Department of Civil Military Cooperation. He assumed the role of Director of Fusion at the DIA.
In simple terms, that places him inside the intelligence ecosystem. This ecosystem is now being accused of handling a matter. This matter may determine the fate of fellow officers and possibly the reputation of the presidency itself.
Even if no unlawful conduct is ever proven against him in the present matter, it is legitimate to question whether someone with such a controversial past should sit so close to the process.
The human cost is also becoming impossible to ignore. The PUNCH reported that a pro-democracy group has urged the government to consider the health and welfare of the detained officers. Some officers were falling seriously ill. Relatives had been denied access.
SaharaReporters went further, alleging that at least five detainees fell ill. Two detainees collapsed. Some were moved from DIA custody to an underground military cell in Abuja. Sources described the cell as dark and poorly ventilated.
Families, according to the same report, said they had not been allowed to see the men. They have been left in the dark over their whereabouts and wellbeing. Even at the level of allegation, those claims demand independent scrutiny.
Then there is the political cloud hanging over Timipre Sylva. Channels Television reported that soldiers allegedly raided his Maitama residence in Abuja. The raid was over an alleged link to the investigation. SaharaReporters later said Sylva confirmed that troops visited his home. He denied involvement and called attempts to tie him to the matter politically motivated.
The allegation that a former minister and ex-governor may have been dragged into a military probe deepens the suspicion. This is no routine disciplinary case. Instead, it is a far wider struggle involving power, access, and influence inside and outside the barracks.
The public list of officers released later by the media adds another layer of unease.
Vanguard and Legit.ng both reported the Defence Headquarters has identified 16 officers for court martial. The officers include Brigadier General Musa Abubakar Sadiq, Colonel M. A. Ma’aji, Lieutenant Colonel S. Bappah and Squadron Leader S. B. Adamu.
BusinessDay also reported that Sadiq had earlier been detained in 2024 over separate allegations.
The problem is not merely the names themselves. The official story has changed from indiscipline to allegations of attempted overthrow. There has been no detailed public disclosure of the evidence. There is no disclosure of the chain of command or the exact basis on which some officers are being described as conspirators.
For many Nigerians, the deeper fear is that the probe may be repeating an old pattern. In this pattern, military discipline, intelligence gathering, and political management become blurred.
History has shown how easily coup rumours can be weaponised, exaggerated or used to justify sweeping action. That is why transparency now matters more than theatrics.
The armed forces may have the right to discipline their personnel. However, they also have a duty to respect due process. They must allow access to counsel and family members. Additionally, they should avoid turning a sensitive national-security matter into a mystery that feeds speculation.
The credibility of the probe will be judged by the quality of the evidence. It will also be determined by the fairness of the process, not by the loudness of the allegations.
One lesson from the DasukiGate era still stands out. When institutions blur the line between investigation and accusation, they damage their own authority.
That was the essence of Justice Gabriel Kolawole’s warning in 2017. A defendant should not be tried in court and in the media at the same time. That warning now echoes through the Tinubu coup probe.
If the state has proof, it should present it through lawful channels. If it does not, then the public deserves an honest explanation. They should not receive a fog of leaks, denials, and selective disclosures.
Until that happens, the Ashinze factor will remain a symbol of the larger crisis around trust in Nigeria’s security architecture.
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