FG Plans Sylva’s Extradition As EFCC Declares Him Wanted

…Noose Tightens on Ex–Bayelsa Governor, Whose Whereabouts Remain Unknown

By Yinka Giwa

A quiet but calculated move appears underway within Nigeria’s power corridors as the Federal Government subtly prepares the ground for the extradition of former Bayelsa State Governor and ex-Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva.

Although officialdom remains tight-lipped about it, multiple security and diplomatic sources suggest that Sylva, fingered in an alleged coup plot against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, is now the target of a covert operation aimed at bringing him back to the country to face justice. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) yesterday gave that effort its first public face when it declared him wanted for “conspiracy and dishonest conversion” of $14.8 million in public funds.

The EFCC, in a statement signed by its spokesman, Dele Oyewole, announced that the former governor was wanted “in connection with an alleged case of conspiracy and dishonest conversion of $14,859,257, part of funds injected by the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) into Atlantic International Refinery and Petrochemical Limited for the construction of a refinery.” The declaration was made pursuant to a November 6, 2025 warrant issued by the Lagos State High Court.

But beyond the official anti-corruption narrative, high-level sources told KTH Daily that the move is part of a carefully managed security response to a still-unacknowledged coup scare that recently rocked the Tinubu administration. “There was a plot, and some senior military officers are already in custody,” one top security source insisted. “However, the government cannot publicly admit that, because it would shake investor confidence, rattle the markets, and raise doubts about the stability of the administration.”

Sylva, once seen as a key stakeholder of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, has been linked, albeit unofficially, to the alleged financing of the coup plan reportedly under investigation by the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA). His Maitama residence in Abuja was allegedly raided last week by operatives believed to be from the Directorate of State Services, DSS, and the Nigerian Army, while his Bayelsa home was also searched, and a relative, identified as Paga, reportedly taken into custody.

Although Defence Headquarters continues to deny any knowledge of a coup plot, multiple insiders confirm that senior officers from the Army, Navy, and Air Force are currently being held incommunicado at a DIA facility in Abuja.

Meanwhile, a “gale of denials” continues to swirl around Sylva’s name. His spokesperson, Julius Bokoru, described the coup allegations as “false and malicious,” insisting that the ex-governor has “no link to any subversive activity.” According to Bokoru, Sylva and his wife are “in the United Kingdom for routine medical check-ups” and are scheduled to attend a professional conference in Malaysia.

“Chief Sylva’s political journey has been defined by faith in democratic processes and institutions,” Bokoru maintained. “He is a thoroughbred democrat who has achieved every milestone through transparent engagement and the will of the people.”

Yet, as denials pour in from his camp and allies—including the Sylva Staunch Supporters (Powered by CPO) and associates of Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) Managing Director, Dr. Samuel Ogbuku—Sylva himself has remained conspicuously silent.

Security analysts believe that silence may be strategic. Unconfirmed reports suggest he has fled to a South American country, possibly Argentina, where he is said to be seeking temporary refuge.

“The EFCC declaration is not just about corruption—it’s the first procedural step in an extradition process,” said a senior intelligence source familiar with the matter. “It’s a way to get him back without declaring to the world that Nigeria just crushed a coup attempt.”

Within Abuja’s inner circles, the matter has become one of high-stakes containment: how to pursue justice and neutralize a potential national security threat without triggering panic or international blowback.

As the government plays its cards close to its chest, the former Bayelsa governor remains at large, his whereabouts shrouded in speculation—and his name now the centerpiece of a scandal that could redraw political lines within Bayelsa APC and the Niger Delta’s power calculus.

For now, observers maintain that the EFCC’s red notice marks a public escalation of what is, by all accounts, a deeper and more dangerous political drama playing out beneath Nigeria’s calm democratic surface.