In a rare and exclusive interview, Major Seun Fadipe (retd), former Chief Security Officer to the late Lt-Gen Oladipo Diya, has revealed startling details about the 1997 coup plot against the late military Head of State, Gen Sani Abacha. The coup, which has been described as both real and phantom, was a meticulously planned operation that aimed to abduct Abacha and force him to resign, much like the ousting of Chief Ernest Shonekan in 1993.
Major Fadipe, who was deeply involved in the plot, shared his firsthand account of the events that unfolded during that tumultuous period, during an exclusive interview with Sun newspaper. According to him, the coup was not a phantom operation but a real attempt to overthrow Abacha, orchestrated by some of the highest-ranking military officers of the time.
“The 1997 coup was real,” Fadipe stated emphatically. “It was not a phantom operation. The plan was to abduct Abacha and force him to resign, just like they did with Shonekan. The service chiefs and GOCs were all involved.”
Fadipe’s revelations shed light on the intricate details of the plot, which was set to be executed during a Chief of Army Staff Conference in Enugu. The plan was to abduct Abacha as he traveled to Enugu, but the operation was aborted when Abacha unexpectedly returned to Abuja. “The Head of State was supposed to be in Enugu, but he came back to the villa. That’s when I knew something was wrong,” Fadipe recalled.
The coup plot was allegedly led by Lt-Gen Oladipo Diya, who was then the Chief of General Staff and second-in-command to Abacha. Diya, along with other high-ranking officers, including Gen Ishaya Bamaiyi, the Chief of Army Staff, and Gen Tajudeen Olanrewaju, had grown disillusioned with Abacha’s rule and his plans to transmute into a civilian president.
Fadipe, who was Diya’s security officer, found himself in a precarious position when Diya confided in him about the plot. “My boss told me that if Abacha had traveled to Enugu, he would have been abducted, and there would have been a change of power,” Fadipe revealed. “I knew I was in trouble the moment he told me. I was already complicit.”
The plot, however, was not without its flaws. Fadipe recounted how Gen Adisa, a key figure in the plot, had criticized the plan as “watery” and lacking substance. “General Adisa told Bamaiyi that the plan was flawed and would not work. He said there would be too many casualties, and Nigerians would not support it,” Fadipe said.
Despite the criticisms, the plotters pressed on, with Fadipe playing a crucial role in the operation. His task was to neutralize Major Hamza Al-Mustapha, Abacha’s Chief Security Officer, who was seen as a major obstacle to the coup’s success. “I had already set in motion how to pick Mustapha. He was a smart person, and he knew something was going on,” Fadipe revealed.
However, the plot was eventually exposed, and the plotters were arrested. Fadipe, who was deeply loyal to Diya, chose not to betray his boss, even when faced with the possibility of death. “I wouldn’t betray my boss for anything. He confided in me, so I wouldn’t betray him,” Fadipe said.
The failed coup led to the arrest and trial of several high-ranking military officers, including Diya, Bamaiyi, and Olanrewaju. Fadipe himself was implicated in the plot but was spared the death penalty. “The tribunal chairman told me that I should have reported my boss. But I couldn’t do that. I was loyal to him,” Fadipe said.
In retrospect, Fadipe believes that the coup was part of a larger plan for Nigeria, one that was ultimately thwarted by divine intervention. “A prophetess told me that the coup would fail, and that it was part of God’s plan for Nigeria. She said nobody would die, but six of us would go down. And that’s exactly what happened,” Fadipe revealed.
The 1997 coup plot remains one of the most controversial episodes in Nigeria’s military history. Fadipe’s account provides a rare glimpse into the inner workings of the plot and the loyalty that bound him to his boss, even in the face of certain death.
