Nigeria, Nov. 1 -- Aso Rock may continue to dismiss rumors of a coup, but the stench of panic hangs thick in the air. First came the sudden cancellation of the Independence Day parade. Then, a flurry of forced retirements and reshuffles swept through the military's top ranks. And now, reports emerge of security operatives storming the Abuja home of Buhari's petroleum minister and hauling his brother into custody.

It's all hauntingly reminiscent of Obasanjo's third term fiasco, in which every denial only confirmed what we already knew. Once again, power mistakes our silence for consent. Nigerians are timid, no doubt, content to watch a handful of rogues decide their fate, but they are not fools. Beneath the quiet endurance lies a people w...