Exclusive: Civil War, Awo regrets not pulling Yoruba out of Nigeria

By Akinwole Ojo
Late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo in his last days, regretted the fact that a separate Yoruba nation did not emerge during the 1967-70 civil war, confidential sources told Irohinoodua as many faithful this month dedicate weeks of memorial to the icon who passed on May 1987, exactly 30 years ago.
Irohinoodua was informed by a close aide of Chief Awolowo that the former Premier of Western Region expressed deep regrets that he supported the unity of Nigeria instead of allowing the largely Yoruba South West to delink from Nigeria during the civil war.
The mainly Igbo South East had waged a protracted and heroic battle to delink from the then confederation. The 30 month old campaign was aimed at having an independent Biafra nation for the Igbos and their immediate neigbours. Awolowo was in prison as at the time the 1966 coup took place. He was later released and made the Federal Commissioner for Finance and also the Vice Chairman of the Federal Executive Council, (FEC).
In a confidential document sourced by our correspondent, Awo, in early 1987 divulged to a confidant, Chief Micheal Omoleye that his, (Awo) biggest regret was that a sovereign Yoruba nation did not emerge during the Biafra campaign. This may suggest that later political and economic developments in Nigerian post war history constituted a significant disappointment to the late sage.
Chief Omoleye said “ Chief Awolowo was never known to take action after deep thought and to regret it later. On my honour, I state here that the greatest regret of Chief Obafemi Awolowo was that he did not excise the Western Region out of Nigeria just as Endeley of the Cameroon did before the attainment of independence in 1960. Chief Awolowo personally told me this during my private discussion with him shortly before he died. I have kept this issue from the public because I thought our Northern brothers were sincere in their political programmes.”
He said further “What brought up the matter of Awo’s regret was the revelation which I had that Oduduwa might have sent Awolowo to the Yoruba race instead of wanting to rule Nigeria to which the Chief replied: “I never, for once, thought of it that way. But it would have been a different story today if I had concentrated my energy to advance the cause of the Yoruba race. We would have shown them the way even though I might have been labeled a tribal leader.” Chief Omoleye, a journalist and former Editor of Sketch Newspaper said he told him in the private conversation that “it would have been better to be the head of a rat than being the tail of an elephant.” He said Awo later told him that his most profound regret was to have kept the Yoruba nation in the Nigerian fold when he should have worked for the excision of the South West for a sovereign Yoruba nation. Omoleye thought Awo’s decision to share his thoughts with him must have been informed by the expectation that the journalist would make public Awo’s position at least at a point in Nigerian history.
Many scholars however have continued to put the decision of the Yoruba ruling class to support Nigerian unity at the time on their lack of an effective strategic position through which the campaign would have been waged, for instance, the Yoruba military core never for once supported the possible self determination of the Yoruba South West.
Since independence, the country has continued to squelch in the mud of corruption, nepotism, insecurity, arms proliferation, immorality, hunger and starvation of the multitude amidst the lies and deceit of an inherently corrupt political class supported by equally greedy and self-serving middle and intellectual class, pushing the country of 180 million people to one of the poorest in the world.

Too late.