Kenneth Okonkwo Warns Nigerians Against Supporting Military Coup
Veteran Nollywood actor and politician Kenneth Okonkwo has stated firmly that Nigeria has nothing to gain from supporting a military coup, warning that the country’s history shows such interventions only lead to “tears and blood.”
Okonkwo made this known in a statement released on Sunday via his 𝕏 (formerly Twitter) account, where he addressed growing public frustration with the current political situation and recent reports of an attempted coup against President Bola Tinubu.
According to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) chieftain, Nigerians are genuinely yearning for change due to what he described as widespread incompetence, corruption, and lack of empathy by the current leadership. However, he cautioned that turning to the military is not the solution.
He acknowledged that President Tinubu’s administration may be deeply flawed but stressed that military rule has historically worsened Nigeria’s problems rather than solved them.
Okonkwo lamented issues ranging from insecurity and power grid collapses to poor infrastructure, excessive borrowing, rising transportation costs, and what he described as systemic dishonesty by those in power.
Reacting to the confirmation by the Defence Headquarters that some military officers had been arrested over an alleged coup plot, Okonkwo warned against romanticising military takeovers.
He argued that while election rigging is itself a form of “civilian coup,” replacing it with military rule would only move the country “from the frying pan into the fire.”
“When the military conducts a coup, they will say nice things to the people and horrible things about the politicians,” he said.
“But once the politicians are out of the way, they turn their guns against the same civilians they were pretending to save.”
Okonkwo further noted that no Nigerian military regime ever handed over power on the date it promised, adding that while civilian governments have fixed tenures, military regimes do not.
He concluded by stressing that the only sustainable path forward for Nigeria lies in free and fair elections, not coups.
“The era of military dictatorship in Nigeria is over,” he said.
Opinion: A Hard Truth Nigerians Must Confront
Kenneth Okonkwo’s message may be uncomfortable, but it is necessary.
Nigeria is clearly in distress. Rising insecurity, economic hardship, and visible disconnect between leaders and citizens have left many people angry and disillusioned. In moments like this, history shows that desperate populations often begin to see the military as a shortcut to salvation.
But Okonkwo is right to remind Nigerians that anger must not erase memory.
Every military intervention in Nigeria’s past began with promises of discipline, accountability, and national rescue. Almost all ended with repression, prolonged suffering, and delayed democracy. The uniforms changed, but the pain remained.
What makes Okonkwo’s argument powerful is not that he excuses poor governance—he openly condemns it—but that he insists on a solution that does not destroy democracy in the process. His analogy comparing support for coups to approving armed robbery is blunt, yet effective: wrong does not become right because it targets another wrong.
The real challenge Nigeria faces is not choosing between bad civilians and “strong” soldiers, but fixing a broken democratic process. Until elections are truly free and leadership is held accountable, the cycle of disappointment will continue—uniform or no uniform.
Nigeria’s future will not be rescued by tanks on the streets, but by citizens demanding transparency, institutions doing their jobs, and leaders emerging through credible elections.
Change is necessary.
But history is clear: military coups are not the change Nigerians are looking for.
