Actor Daniel Etim‑Effiong Recounts How His Father Was Sentenced To Death Over The 1985 Vatsa Coup Plot.

Nollywood actor Daniel Etim‑Effiong has shared the painful story of how his father, Lt. Col. Moses Effiong, was swept up in the 1985 coup conspiracy against the military government of Gen. Ibrahim Babangida.


Daniel explained that his father was close friends with an officer involved in the Mamman Vatsa‑led plot to overthrow Babangida. The friend confided in him about the plan. When the coup attempt was uncovered, the friend was arrested — and during interrogation, he mentioned Lt. Col. Effiong’s name.

That single mention changed the family’s life.

Lt. Col. Effiong was arrested, tried before a military tribunal, and convicted of concealment of treason for failing to report what he had been told. He was sentenced to death by firing squad. Daniel was only one year old at the time.

The sentence was later commuted to life imprisonment, and he eventually spent eight years behind bars before being released in 1993.
In 2020, he received a full presidential pardon from President Muhammadu Buhari, restoring his rank, benefits, and clearing his name decades after the ordeal.
Daniel also revealed the emotional toll the situation took on their family. His mother died in a road accident while travelling to visit her husband in prison when Daniel was just four years old. After the arrest, the family was also evicted from the barracks, leaving them to rebuild their lives under harsh circumstances.