The Nigerian Army has postponed the ruling of the General Court Martial handling the alleged coup case against some military officers for the fourth time.
NaijaOnPoint gathered that the ruling, which was expected on Wednesday, September 30, 2026, will now be delivered on Monday, October 5, according to a fresh notice issued to members of the court and other parties involved in the proceedings.
The new date means the court will now have to wait several more days before determining whether statements obtained from some of the accused officers can be admitted as evidence in the ongoing trial.
The notice issued by the Army stated: “The GCM sitting earlier adjourned to Wednesday, 30 September, 2026, has now been postponed to Monday, 5 October 2026.”
The sitting is expected to begin at 10am at the Scorpion Officers’ Mess in Asokoro, Abuja.
The notice was signed by Major MU Ardo, the Liaison Officer.
The Army did not give a reason for the latest postponement. It only expressed regret over the inconvenience caused by the change.
“Any inconvenience caused is highly regretted,” the notice added.
The latest development further extends a case that has attracted attention because of the allegations against serving military personnel and the disputed statements being relied upon by the prosecution.
The officers are accused of being involved in an alleged plan to overthrow the administration of President Bola Tinubu. They have been undergoing proceedings before a General Court Martial as the military investigates the allegations.
The allegations stem from investigations that began after security authorities uncovered what they described as a plot to remove the government in 2025.
The wider investigation has produced separate legal proceedings involving military officers, retired personnel and civilians.
Some of the civilian and retired suspects are being prosecuted before the Federal High Court in Abuja, while serving military personnel are facing proceedings before the military tribunal.
The General Court Martial is presided over by Air Vice Marshal H. I. Alhaji.
Its proceedings are taking place at the Scorpion Officers’ Mess in Asokoro, where the court has been hearing evidence from both the prosecution and defence.
The immediate issue before the court is not yet the final determination of the alleged coup allegations.
Instead, the tribunal is expected to rule on whether statements attributed to some of the accused officers were obtained voluntarily and can therefore be used as evidence.
The dispute over the statements led to a trial-within-a-trial.
Defence lawyers challenged the prosecution’s attempt to tender the statements, arguing that the circumstances under which they were obtained raised serious questions about their reliability and admissibility.
The defence maintained that some of the accused officers were not allowed to have lawyers or witnesses of their choice present when their statements were taken.
They also questioned the absence of video recordings showing the officers making the statements.
The lawyers argued that the circumstances surrounding the statements should be properly examined before the documents are admitted and relied upon by the prosecution.
The accused officers have also made allegations concerning their treatment while in detention.
Some of them told the court that they were subjected to intimidation and pressure during interrogation.
Others alleged that they were made to reproduce statements that had already been prepared by investigators.
One of the soldiers who testified in the proceedings was Corporal Momoh Audu.
Audu told the court that he had been detained for months and alleged that he was pressured to copy a prepared statement connecting him with the alleged coup plot.
He also alleged that he was held in an underground facility and questioned about his relationship with Colonel Mohammed Alhassan Ma’aji, who is one of the officers accused in the wider investigation.
During his testimony, Audu disputed the claim that he was closely attached to Ma’aji.
“I am not attached to anyone. I was not a driver to anyone. I was never working with Maaji,” he told the court.
He further alleged that investigators made promises concerning his release while trying to obtain information from him.
“They said this is the final one for the sake of myself and I would be released. And they said I could be used as prosecution witness,” he said.
Audu said he declined to testify against another person over matters he claimed not to know.
“I declined and said, ‘God forbid I testify for what I don’t know.’ I wrote based on the promises made to me,” he stated.
The defence has relied on such testimonies in challenging the prosecution’s position on the statements.
The prosecution, however, has presented evidence seeking to establish that the statements were voluntarily made and should be admitted by the court.
The question of admissibility has therefore become an important stage in the military trial because the statements form part of the evidence the prosecution intends to rely upon against the accused officers.
The ruling was initially expected on September 23 but was subsequently moved. It was later fixed for September 30 before the latest postponement to October 5. The repeated adjournments have now pushed the ruling further into October.
The court will consequently have to determine the issue when it resumes next Monday.
The decision could influence the direction of the proceedings, particularly if the contested statements are admitted or rejected.
The alleged coup investigation has been the subject of several developments since the arrests began in September 2025.
Colonel Mohammed Alhassan Ma’aji has been identified in investigation documents as one of the central figures in the alleged plot.
Earlier reports on the case indicated that investigators examined alleged plans involving military personnel, logistics, vehicles, weapons and possible targets.
In a related development, NaijaOnPoint had earlier reported that a Nigerian Army corporal told the court he was forced to copy a prepared statement allegedly linking him to the coup investigation.
His testimony became part of the defence’s challenge to the circumstances under which statements attributed to the accused officers were obtained.
This article first appeared on NaijaOnPoint: https://politicsnigeria.com/2026/09/30/army-postpones-coup-trial-ruling-against-soldiers-for-fourth-time/
… Army Postpones Coup Trial Ruling Against Soldiers for Fourth Time Read More on … NaijaOnPoint.
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