The Military Intelligence Operatives have arrested the Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Samuel Ogbuku, over allegations of co-funding a failed coup against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
According to reports, Ogbuku allegedly transferred a huge sum of money to former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, who is also suspected to be a key financier of the purported failed coup.
Preliminary investigations have revealed that the funds allegedly originated from a recent NDDC contract, specifically a shoreline protection project which is valued at over ₦54 billion, with approximately ₦20 billion disbursed as mobilization fees.
This amount is suspected to be the source of the funds allegedly channeled to Sylva.
Timipriye Sylva, a staunch ally of the immediate-past (now late) President, Muhammadu Buhari, is also a former governor of Bayelsa state. He was the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) during the last gubernatorial election in Bayelsa state but was defeated by the current governor, Douye Diri of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP.
Meanwhile, the military has not yet issued a formal statement confirming Ogbuku’s arrest or detailing the full scope of the investigation
