All Progressives Congress’s chieftain, Former governor of Bayelsa State and ex-Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, has confirmed that military operatives raided his Abuja residence.
Sylva, in a statement by his media aide, Julius Bokoru, also denied involvement in any attempt to topple President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s government.
It was gathered that soldiers had, on Sunday, raided Sylva’s Abuja and Bayelsa residences and arrested his brother.
The managing director of a federal agency located in the South-South was also said to have been arrested and interrogated by security agencies for allegedly transferring funds to Sylva for the purported coup financing.
Penultimate weekend, there were reports that 16 army officers were arrested and detained over an alleged coup attempt which was rumoured to have forced the president to cancel the October 1 Independence Day Anniversary parade.
But the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) dismissed the report as false and malicious, claiming the cancellation of the parade had nothing to do with any alleged coup attempt.
The DHQ had also clarified that the arrest and ongoing investigation of the officers reported in the media was a purely internal process aimed at upholding discipline and professionalism within the ranks, not a politically motivated action.
Sylva’s media aide, while responding to reports linking his principal to the rumoured coup, stated on Wednesday,that some politicians were taking their desperation to a sickening level following his “intimidating political presence and credibility”.
He described the former governor as an unrepentant and thoroughbred democrat, who had shown unwavering support to Tinubu and his administration.
He recalled that Sylva recently mobilised the entire structures of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Bayelsa to unanimously endorse President Tinubu at the APC Bayelsa expanded stakeholders’ meeting.
Bokoru said the security operatives that raided Sylva’s house did not provide any reason for their action.
He confirmed that Sylva and his wife were already out of the country at the time of the raid.
Explaining their absence, Bokoru said Sylva was in the United Kingdom for routine medical checks and would soon be on his way to Malaysia to attend a professional conference.
Bokoru said: “In the past forty-eight hours, I have been inundated with calls from members of the press, political associates, and concerned individuals regarding a circulating report alleging that His Excellency, Chief Timipre Sylva, has ‘fled’ the country in connection with certain purported matters.
“For the avoidance of doubt, it is true that the residence of His Excellency, Chief Timipre Sylva, was recently subjected to a raid by individuals believed to be operatives of the Defence Headquarters. During the said operation, considerable damage was inflicted upon the property.
“Despite sustained efforts, I have been unable to ascertain the reasons or authorisation for this raid. To the best of my knowledge, the officers involved did not provide any categorical explanation for their actions, either at the time or subsequently.
“It is important to state unequivocally that His Excellency, Chief Timipre Sylva, CON, and his esteemed wife, Her Excellency, Alanyingi Sylva, were both outside the country at the time of the incident.
“As at my last communication with His Excellency, he was engaged in a routine medical check-up in the United Kingdom, after which he was scheduled to proceed to Malaysia to attend a professional conference.
“The next development I was made aware of, regrettably, were reports circulating across social media and other platforms concerning the raid on his residence.
“While the Defence Headquarters has already debunked the swirling rumours of a coup in Nigeria, it is important to state emphatically that Chief Timipre Sylva, CON, has no involvement whatsoever, either in planning or in logistics with any such plot.
“Chief Sylva is a thoroughbred democrat, whose entire political journey has been defined by his faith in democratic processes and institutions. From the 1990s, when he was first elected into the Old Rivers State House of Assembly, to his tenure as Governor of Bayelsa State, Sylva has achieved every milestone through transparent, democratic engagement and the will of the people.
