Danjuma instigated the killing of Ironsi, Fajuyi –Joe Achuzia
Sunday, 07 March 2010 00:00 Nigerian Compass
E-mail Print PDF

Beyond being one of the major actors in the Nigerian Civil War, Colonel Joe Achuzia (rtd.) is a very popular figure. In this revealing interview with EMMANUEL AGOZINO, Achuzia, popularly known as the Biafran Hannibal, talks about some of the other actors in the Civil War, including Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu; former President Nnamdi Azikiwe; former military Head of State, General Aguiyi Ironsi; and former Minister of Defence, General Theophilus Danjuma. Excerpts:


You were said to be a man that fought the civil war without rules. While some see that as barbaric others take to you be a hero. Who is Colonel Joe Achuzia?
Well, I don’t know about being great. All I know is that in history, every society passes through one phase or the other. It is only those phases that leave indelible marks on society that make for remembrance. And within the issues of remembrance, people now realise the activities that led to it. As part of these activities, certain persons are usually identified with that cause. It is in the process of this identification that certain names takes prominence, not because they are the best, but because within their activities, they left mark as a signpost for the remembrance of the activities that took place at that time. Fortunately, I seem to be identified in one of these activities. Anybody familiar with Nigeria’s history from independence will easily identify the landmarks, the memorable incidents that stand out in the history of this country. One of those is the three and half years civil war out of which at the end of it, names were bandied about and mine is one of those names. But luckily, I am still alive not only to help correct all the misinterpretation that some people assigned to me, but also let today’s generation know the roles that I played and also refute any false information. For me, these were the things that singled me out. But otherwise, there is nothing that I did. Regarding the allegations that I fought the civil war without rules, others have done even worse.


What will you say about the recent statement credited to General T.Y. Danjuma that late General Aguiyi Ironsi, who was killed as a military Head of State, was a useless man. What is your reaction?
You see, when I read Danjuma’s statement, I felt very sad about it. First, go and do your research and you will realise that what I am going to tell you is the truth. In the 2 Division, [b]it was this Danjuma, then a Captain in the then Nigeria Army, who was responsible for organising the security of General Ironsi. It was his job. So, if Danjuma turns today and tells the world  that he did not know about how Ironsi and Colonel Adekunle Fajuyi were killed in Ibadan, it will be a very big lie. If you want me to put it straight, it was because of the opposition of the unitary system declared by Ironsi that Danjuma organised his elimination along with Colonel Fajuyi in Ibadan. So, Danjuma cannot in all honesty deny that he was not the chief instigator of the killing. [/b]We were all living witness. I was in Lagos when the incident happened. So, I am not telling you a myth or what I did not know. It is this same group who killed Ironsi and Fajuyi in Ibadan that up till today are benefiting from the unitary system that Ironsi set up. Can you imagine. It is out of this same cabal too that the so-called Kaduna Mafia sprang up. I am not saying that it is all Northerners that wanted the total elimination of the Igbo during civil war period. But when we talk in terms of what Danjuma did, I know what I am saying. That is his character. It was just the way he killed Ironsi and Fajuyi that he betrayed the late General I.D. Bisala. He denied Bisala when Bisala needed him the most during the coup that killed  Genral Murtala Mohammed. If he is a soldier, he should have stood his ground as the GOC of the 3 Division. But instead, he did not. Let me say that when we talk in terms of military courage and bravery, rank does not bestow courage on people. I  like Danjuma. But he cannot deny the fact that he was the chief instigator of the murder of Ironsi and Fajuyi. History will continue to hold him responsible for that. When the war ended, he was the go between me and Bisala, especially in Enugu, when I was handing over Biafra to the federal side.

[b]
Are you saying you were the one that handed over Biafra to the federal side?
Yes.
But many believe that General Philip Effiong handed over Biafra to General Olusegun Obasanjo. Is that not correct?
No, it is a mistake that many people are not aware of up till today. I was the one who handed over Biafra to Obasanjo and Bisala. Effiong’s  role was going to Lagos to meet General Yakubu Gowon with some of our Biafran officers. And also reading the script which I prepared. I planned it that they should start from 9a.m. announcing that we had sent emissaries to the war fronts to meet Nigerian commanders so that everybody should lay down their weapons. That speech that we prepared was given to Effiong to read because if I should do that, the Nigerian side  will misinterpret it that possibly there was a coup in Biafra. So, to avoid that misinterpretation, we had to ask Effiong to read it. Because when Odumegwu-Ojukwu was leaving, he specifically told Effiong to represent him, while my job was to take care of the Army. I was the person in charge of the Biafran Armed Forces. So, I was  the one that actually handed over Biafra and not Effiong. Again, when the war ended, I was very visible. For instance, all the documents that Danjuma said that Gowon requested that I should sign, I signed them all. These included when Danjuma said that Gown asked that I should prepare a document of what I would like to do.[/b] I did all that and part of that document was what later led to the establishment of PRODA in Enugu. I also reported at the Board of Inquiry headed by the then General Adeyinka Adebayo. There I was told that one of the reasons why I was being detained was for the  protection of my life. But I asked them, ‘Protection against who?’ Well, they said that so many people were against me, especially the way I ended the war. So, for tempers to cool, according to them, I was kept in detention for seven years. But for me, I have always said that I don’t have any regrets over the war. Beside, I owe it as a moral duty to those whom I led through the war, especially with their situation today. They have not been compensated.

That is why we have today the Civil War Veteran, East West Command Association. The purpose is to look after the welfare of those comrades who survived the civil war. But as I am talking to you, up till today, none of them is less than 56 years and nothing has been done to help them. We are taking steps to bring their problem to the attention of the present government. I have written to President Umaru Yar’Adua. I have also written to the Ministry of Defence and to the President of the Senate, David Mark, that on the basis of “no winner no vanquished,” Nigeria owes it a duty to rehabilitate those veterans across the country as done in other parts of the world. The situation can be dangerous in the future if the government continues to exhibit lack of concern. Many people today may not know that those militants in the Niger Delta are all children of the war veterans. The members of the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) are children of the veterans. We don’t want a divided Nigeria again. We as veterans of the war gave a lot for the Nigeria  we have today. All we are asking is that the government should look into the welfare of these veterans. If you look at the present military command in the country, none of them saw the civil war. War is not good. And that is why we have been calling on the government to also take a census of the war veterans on both sides of the war and create a programme in the interest of reconciliation as the Army that fought the war is the Nigerian Army divided against itself based on the side one was standing at the time of the political logjam.


Now, 43 years after, do you think that the issues that caused that war have been resolved?
You see, it sounds naive when one talks about solving the issues that led to that war. There were multitudes of problems and issues that led to the civil war. While some are of the view that the January 1966 coup, led by Major Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu and Major Emmanuel Ifeajuna and the others, were the issues that led to the war. others tell you that the way Ironsi handled the issue of the coup by declaring a unitary system as opposed to the federating system in existence then led to the war. There are others who hold that it is the unbridled and the so-called ambition of appointing military administrators to take the place of political leaders. Also, there are those who say that the mismanagement by Gowon after the second coup, which brought Gowon into power  and led to the balkanization of Nigeria from the regional arrangement into states, caused the war. But whatever the cause, the war has been fought. To me, the greatest problem was the balkanization of Nigeria by Gowon without thinking of the future consequences. He did that to weaken the Igbo. But it turned out to be the root of whatever crisis that Nigeria is facing till today. By trying to take the so-called minorities away from the Igbo, when they  claimed that the Igbo were dominating, he  eventually opened their eyes like Oliver Twist. Whoever gave Gowon that advice gave him a wrong one because from then on the spiral effect brought Nigeria to the 36 states which we now have. The cumulation of all these, I will say, are parts and parcel of what in retrospect led to the  civil war. If Gowon did not create the 12 states, I do not think that the Eastern Region would have declared secession because there is nothing like dialogue. And that was exactly what happened. Gowon should have continuously kept seeking for dailogue.

But instead, he was advised to settle the situation the way he did by balkanizing the country. And once you do that, the people’s temper will rise. So, today, Nigeria cannot be at peace because the issues that led to the civil war have not been addressed. What do we have? We say we are practicing democracy, but here in Nigeria today what we have is a democracy of the cabals. It is these few cabals that are ruling the country. They have been doing so since the end of the war. And until the country wakes up to say enough is enough, the situation will continue. Hence, corruption will abound. It is only under the system of cabal leadership that certain people are favoured. And these few who are favoured will continue supporting the existence of the cabal government at the expense of the majority. If you look very well, you will see that many people do not understand what Wole Soyinka is trying to do. Knowing the deception that we call Nigerian democracy today, Soyinka has been doing his best trying to tell Nigerians that they should not allow themselves to be cowed into slavery. Because he is not a back seat General. That is why he comes to the front to tell Nigerians to say no to bad leadership that is going on in this country since after independence. For about two months now, all of us are seeing that what is happening with the leadership of this country.


There has been this controversy over the role Nzeogwu played during the first coup. While Odumegwu-Ojukwu keeps saying that it was Ifeajuna that was the leader of the coup, others say it was Nzeogwu. As one who saw it all, who actually was the leader of that coup?
You see, Nigerians have a way of mismanaging information. One person alone does not carry out a coup in the Army. A coup is a concerted arrangement by a few persons of like minds and ready to participate in overthrowing a system. So, the coup of January 1966 was carried out by a group of Army Majors. You cannot put it on one person. Otherwise, you are simply giving a dog a bad name to hang it. To say Nzeogwu, it means Nzeogwu and his group. Ifeajuna and his group. To be honest to your question, Ifeajuna and Nzeogwu were actually together in the plan and execution of the coup. Consequently, if the coup had succeeded, Nzeogwu or Ifeajuna could not have led the country or even [b]Victor Banjo who was a part of that group. [/b]So, all that is important is that the coup took place and that these names were the leaders of the coup.  Any other person from the side that didn’t  participate at that crucial time is not a part of the coup. Any other information is an after thought. Unfortunately, those that led the 1966 coup and participated, you only have the junior ones left. They were not the primary leaders. As a result, I would advice that the January event should be consigned to its proper place and perspective, that this an aberration that took place at a point in time in Nigerian history. It is not a situation to continue apportioning blames or encomium.


What do you mean by consigning it to its proper place?

I say this because as long as we continue to apportion blame or look at it as an Igbo coup, we will not come out of the morass of the problem posed by the coup. You know that after the coup, it had a wide ripple effect. Because the North felt that it was an Igbo affair and consequently in their usual characteristics way, they descended on the Igbo without first trying to find out exactly what happened. They reacted as a mob without thinking. That mob action  has since then placed Nigeria in jeopardy. The result was finally a coup in which Danjuma and Gowon emerged. Gowon then became the Head of State. But the funny thing about it was that they did not carry out the coup for enhancing the interest of Nigeria. They did it on the basis that they wanted to secede from Nigeria. Hence the word Araba (Let’s divide). It was very clear that even Gowon in his first speech he delivered made it clear that there was no basis for unity. But unfortunately, he took the advice of the  civil service dominated then by the Southerners to advice him that it is not in the interest of the North to pull out of the federation. It was this same people that advised Gowon that the best way to bring the Eastern Region to its knee was to balkanise it. But before he did that, information was also leaking to the Eastern Region Government. And the reaction of the East was no, we are one. If you say you do not want us, we will go on our own by any name. If you look at the situation critically, you will see that the Eastern Region was pushed out. They were being pushed out for purposes of total elimination. That was the beginning of the genocide. Otherwise, there wouldn’t have been the need to cut them off from the sea, air and land or get them landlocked. It was for this purpose that Bakasi was given out to Cameroun so that they will not give space for Biafra to retreat into Cameroun.

You mentioned Banjo. Where do you stand on the trial and execution of Banjo and his group during the war?

Banjo and his group  were tried under military procedure in line with the Biafran laws. I don’t think that it should be a thing for apportioning blames to anybody. They violated the war rules and laws at that time. And they were tried accordingly. Anybody could have fallen into that line. So, it was the laws at that time. And it was approved based on the orders of a military tribunal. So it is not a thing to blame anybody. 


Many people have blamed Odumegwu-Ojukwu for the way Biafra was defeated. Secretary General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Ralph Uweche, recently said that Odumegwu-Ojukwu’s way of leadership was responsible for the collapse of Biafra. Do you agree with this?


Biafra was never defeated nor collapsed. It is not true that Biafra was defeated. That is what many do not know.
Are you saying that Biafra was not defeated by Nigeria?
Yes.


What explanation do you offer for this?
Yes, I will do. Let me tell you the truth. You journalists must always do your research properly to educate the public. You should also look into the choice of words. You see, I repeat it again: Biafra was not defeated. It was not the Biafran Army that was responsible for the war efforts during the conflict. The efforts were handled by civilian populace. The soldiers were recruited to defend the civilians. The arms were provided by the civilians. In the executive council of Biafra, there were only two military personnel: Odumegwu-Ojukwu as the Head of State and Effiong as the Officer-in-Charge of Defence. The rest were all civilians. Those civilians were the ones who, when Odumegwu-Ojukwu left to attend the crucial meeting in Liberia, came to me and requested that I should stop the war. Today, there are living witnesses to what I am telling you. These include former Enugu State Chief Judge, Justice P.K. Nwokedi. He was one of those who came with Sir Louis Mbanefo and others to request that I take steps to stop the fighting. Initially, I was against it. But then I was reminded and made to understand that it is not my personal war. So, as a soldier, I have to obey the orders and demands of the Biafran Executive Council to stop the war. Another living witness is Obasanjo.

He is still alive. When I sent for him from Owerri, it was to my house he arrived. General Alani Akinrinade was the one I signalled to tell Obasanjo to come to Uga in Orlu Division. He and then Lt. Col. Sam Tumoye were at our headquarters when we discussed how to bring the war to an end. It was from my house that I took Obasanjo to meet Effiong at Igboukwu, which used to be the headquarters of the Biafran Directorate of Military intelligence. General Akinrinade is still alive and can testify to what I am saying. Nobody defeated Biafra. Commonsense will have tell you the truth. If they defeated Biafra, the federal side would have demanded our weapons. In my own case, I asked all my soldiers to go home with their weapons. Those that don’t want it should dump them by the roadside. Some handed them over to us. The truth is this. For a long time because of the laws in the archives of the military, what I am telling you today was kept under cover and secret. The essence is to give Nigeria a chance to formulate a new society where all can live in peace. But unfortunately, what I see now is that the issues that led to that armed struggle is yet to be addressed. And instead of addressing this issue so that Nigeria can have a good future, our leaders are still pursuing selfish interest. It is such that even in their presence, the Niger Delta struggle is rising every day.


[i]How true is it that when people say that former President Nnamdi Azikiwe was against Biafra?
[/i]Going down memory lane, Zik was never a tribal person. He is not an Igbo leader. He only looked at the country from a global point of view. That was why he stepped aside for Dr. Michael Okpara. His presence in Biafra was more accidental than of necessity. We knew what we did and to what length we bent backward for him to stay in Biafra. The only opportunity we allowed him to step out of  Biafra merely brought Biafra into a civil war within itself. This, we had to quickly, on Odumegwu-Ojukwu’s advice, militarily run around with the various administrators of the various local governments to avoid a war between the Zikist and the non-Zikist.

^^^

This is explosive stuff!
I'm still reading and taking notes. I'll be back to make comments . . .

its a known fact. Danjuma killed Ironsi

^^^
So many other things were not known. For instance, many of us still don't understand how Biafra was "defeated". It turns out Biafra was NOT defeated or collapsed. That is a big difference! I have often wondered why Biafra was the only the rebellion that was defeated in Africa (before Unita of course). Others never stopped until they got some of what they were fighting for. Now I understand better.

The topic is not appropriate. It should read "Biafra not defeated" or something closer to that!

May be it should read "how the war was ended".

Biafra was never defeated nor collapsed. It is not true that Biafra was defeated. That is what many do not know.

Are you saying that Biafra was not defeated by Nigeria?

Yes.


What explanation do you offer for this?
Yes, I will do. Let me tell you the truth. You journalists must always do your research properly to educate the public. You should also look into the choice of words. You see, I repeat it again: Biafra was not defeated. It was not the Biafran Army that was responsible for the war efforts during the conflict. The efforts were handled by civilian populace. The soldiers were recruited to defend the civilians. The arms were provided by the civilians. In the executive council of Biafra, there were only two military personnel: Odumegwu-Ojukwu as the Head of State and Effiong as the Officer-in-Charge of Defence. The rest were all civilians. Those civilians were the ones who, when Odumegwu-Ojukwu left to attend the crucial meeting in Liberia, came to me and requested that I should stop the war. [/b]Today, there are living witnesses to what I am telling you. These include former Enugu State Chief Judge, Justice P.K. Nwokedi. He was one of those who came with Sir Louis Mbanefo and others to request that I take steps to stop the fighting. [b]Initially, I was against it. But then I was reminded and made to understand that it is not my personal war. So, as a soldier, I have to obey the orders and demands of the Biafran Executive Council to stop the war. Another living witness is Obasanjo.

He is still alive. When I sent for him from Owerri, it was to my house he arrived. General Alani Akinrinade was the one I signalled to tell Obasanjo to come to Uga in Orlu Division. He and then Lt. Col. Sam Tumoye were at our headquarters when we discussed how to bring the war to an end. It was from my house that I took Obasanjo to meet Effiong at Igboukwu, which used to be the headquarters of the Biafran Directorate of Military intelligence. General Akinrinade is still alive and can testify to what I am saying. Nobody defeated Biafra. Commonsense will have tell you the truth. If they defeated Biafra, the federal side would have demanded our weapons. In my own case, I asked all my soldiers to go home with their weapons. Those that don’t want it should dump them by the roadside. Some handed them over to us. The truth is this. For a long time because of the laws in the archives of the military, what I am telling you today was kept under cover and secret. The essence is to give Nigeria a chance to formulate a new society where all can live in peace.

We also thought that Effiong surrendered to the Nigerian side. NO! It was Achuzia that did! Effiong only put final authority to it as the head of state -in Lagos when he met Gowon. The most dangerous part was to meet the Nigerian side first, and Achuzia did that.
A little difference.

It was this same people that advised Gowon that the best way to bring the Eastern Region to its knee was to balkanise it. But before he did that, information was also leaking to the Eastern Region Government. And the reaction of the East was no, we are one. If you say you do not want us, we will go on our own by any name. If you look at the situation critically, you will see that the Eastern Region was pushed out. They were being pushed out for purposes of total elimination. That was the beginning of the genocide. Otherwise, there wouldn’t have been the need to cut them off from the sea, air and land or get them landlocked. It was for this purpose that Bakasi was given out to Cameroun so that they will not give space for Biafra to retreat into Cameroun.

And we have been on our knees ever since!

@Onlytruth
Do you plan on duplicating the entire article?

^^^
Just commenting on key points. . . Sorry if I appear to be duplicating. . .

@ Onlytruth: Say after me, slooowwllly. . . . "BIAFRA WAS ANNIHILATED!!!!"

bk/babe97:

@ Onlytruth: Say after me, slooowwllly. . . . "BIAFRA WAS ANNIHILATED!!!!"

You are pretty DAFT!
Why talk like that about such a touchy issue?

jumobi1:

You are pretty DAFT!
Why talk like that about such a touchy issue?

Ol'boy please ignore the akata. He is known here for his infantile imbecility. Some Igbo dude impregnated his mum and ran away. Now he thinks through his 'as's'hole. The key is to completely ignore him.

Back to topic. When i was in school, we used to wonder how the war ended and how it was that even Sierra Leonian rebels under "General Mosquito" pinned down the Nigerian army in freetown and basically kept moving anywhere they chose. I later started suspecting that some people simply abandoned the war in Biafra. It never made sense, as Achuzia said. How can you even defeat a rebel army in Africa? Even MEND is outperforming Nigerian army in the creeks, not to talk of a larger and more motivated force. So now, I have also come to understand why Achuzia was kept in detention for 7 years after the war. He knew too much about what happened!

I think Biafra lost because the people were suffering and so the leaders decided to make peace. Why do you think it was abandoned? I think Ojukwu didn't plan well enough to win. He should have thought about the west helping Nigeria. He should have thought about strength in numbers. It's not all about heart and desire.
Eritrea won their fight against Ethiopia and the west though.
The war does proves the Nigeria needs the east because if my wife wants to leave the house for good, why would I fight to keep her unless she is of more value to me than I am to her.

jumobi1:

I think Biafra lost because the people were suffering and so the leaders decided to make peace. Why do you think it was abandoned? I think Ojukwu didn't plan well enough to win. He should have thought about the west helping Nigeria. He should have thought about strength in numbers. It's not all about heart and desire.
Eritrea won their fight against Ethiopia and the west though.
The war does proves the Nigeria needs the east because if my wife wants to leave the house for good, why would I fight to keep her unless she is of more value to me than I am to her.

Your point is well taken. No doubt the leadership of Biafra didn't plan well, but I'm really more interested in HOW the war ended, because a lot of misinformation is going on.
You rightly pointed out Eritrea's case -just my point! You can still get what you fought for, and that is why I'm interested in HOW the war ended. I know for a fact that there were many in Biafra who wanted to continue the war (as Achuzia admitted to in this interview). Many wanted a pure guerrilla movement to fight the war for ever, and I think they might have been right considering what Nigeria turned out to be after Biafran surrender. So, I think some people abandoned that war carelessly.

jumobi1:

I think Biafra lost because the people were suffering and so the leaders decided to make peace. Why do you think it was abandoned? I think Ojukwu didn't plan well enough to win. He should have thought about the west helping Nigeria. He should have thought about strength in numbers. It's not all about heart and desire.
Eritrea won their fight against Ethiopia and the west though.
The war does proves the Nigeria needs the east because if my wife wants to leave the house for good, why would I fight to keep her unless she is of more value to me than I am to her.

Pls lets soft pedal on this issue at this delicate time.remember that the then east war east-south-south but there is strenth in our diversity.every part is very important

We should have kept fighting till the last man. There should have been continued agitation until we got our own sovereign stare. I know some of my Biafran comrades would not agree with me, but this would have been the only way to break us out of the contraption. Our Biafran soldiers should have stayed in the bush to fight the Nigerian army with guerrilla warfare. They may have captured our important towns, but the forest should have been our home like our forefathers.

Whenever I hear war stories, so much emotion just swell up in me. Long Live Biafra!

^^^^^

talk is cheap

danjuma and gowon are murderers.fajuyi is one man i will always respect.may his soul continue to rest in perfect peace

Joe Achuzia is a hero any day.
He is an Igbo chieftain.
He is a braveman.
May he live long, amen.

There is more to the Biafran war than meet the eyez

All these ghosts from the past. They had their chance to end the impending madness but they failed, now It's time for a new batch of warriors to arise and finish what could not be corrected at first try. Many of these guys were younger than many people right now on NL so i don't think There's a problem of immaturity in this matter.
We're all old enough to chart a new course while making reference to the mistakes of these guys so it doesn't repeat itself.

Achuzia saying that Biafra was not defeated does not change the facts. He was not defeated yet he was incarcerated for 7 years.

edoyad:

All these ghosts from the past. They had their chance to end the impending madness but they failed, now It's time for a new batch of warriors to arise and finish what could not be corrected at first try. Many of these guys were younger than many people right now on NL so i don't think There's a problem of immaturity in this matter.
We're all old enough to chart a new course while making reference to the mistakes of these guys so it doesn't repeat itself.

Your middle belt heros are not painted as roses but as murderers in this interview, ko? I understand your reaction.

Katsumoto:

Achuzia saying that Biafra was not defeated does not change the facts. He was not defeated yet he was incarcerated for 7 years.

The civilians instructed us to stop the war = We surrendered ;  no matter how one attempts to distort it.  The war should have been stopped much sooner, with 3,000 women and children starving to death daily, only senseless leaders would not have promptly surrendered.

This Joe Achuzia of a guy, is a brave man who did not run away and was subsequently jailed for 7 years. I suppose it was the fear of this kind of treatment that caused Ojukwu to flee.

@ ndchuks Thank heavens one of you is around.
TY Danjuma is the devil responsible the death of Ironsi as OP claims, but guess what ? The dinosaur is staunchly behind Jonathan and though i'm suspicious of his motives i know when push comes to shove the hausa happy hour is over. Even traitors/ignoramuses like him who benefitted from the looting of the old arrangement are beginning to wake up to reality of the times.

edoyad:

@ ndchuks Thank heavens one of you is around.
TY Danjuma is the devil responsible the death of Ironsi as OP claims, but guess what ? The dinosaur is staunchly behind Jonathan and though i'm suspicious of his motives i know when push comes to shove the hausa happy hour is over. Even traitors/ignoramuses like him who benefitted from the looting of the old arrangement are beginning to wake up to reality of the times.

The most important thing to note is that the ignoramuses, as you put it, who benefitted from the looting of Nigeria are the real enemies and as I've told you countless of times, they hail from every geopolitical region of Nigeria. They are not limited to one tribe or the other . In my humble opinion, your statement about hausa happy hour, is too tribalistic and naive. Let's all hope the happy hour of the thieving elite who hail from all geopolitical regions, is over or will be over soon.

ndu_chucks:

The most important thing to note is that the ignoramuses, as you put it, who benefitted from the looting of Nigeria are the real enemies and as I've told you countless of times, they hail from every geopolitical region of Nigeria. They are not limited to one tribe or the other . In my humble opinion, your statement about hausa happy hour, is too tribalistic and naive. Let's all hope the happy hour of the thieving elite who hail from all geopolitical regions, is over or will be over soon.

Ndu_Chuks
You are right about the above but let us not ignore certain facts. Nigeria finds itself in this predicament because there are thieves in all nooks and crannies in all parts of the country. However, the Northern elite has been able to frustrate the ambitions of genuine leaders from the south by continually keeping the Northern people uneducated so as to use them as pawns in various uprisings and engaging non-progressive people from the South. The day that a majority of the Northern people become educated, enlightened, and independent like their Southern counterparts, Nigeria will be the better for it.

But as long as unqualified and often uneducated people from the North continue to lord over better qualified candidates from the South in all spheres of government (military included), Nigeria will remain as it is or may even descend into chaos. So before you lay the blame on crooks who come from all over Nigeria, try to put into consideration the severe imbalances in the nation.

Katsumoto:

Ndu_Chuks
You are right about the above but let us not ignore certain facts. Nigeria finds itself in this predicament because there are thieves in all nooks and crannies in all parts of the country. However, the Northern elite has been able to frustrate the ambitions of genuine leaders from the south by continually keeping the Northern people uneducated so as to use them as pawns in various uprisings and engaging non-progressive people from the South. The day that a majority of the Northern people become educated, enlightened, and independent like their Southern counterparts, Nigeria will be the better for it.

But as long as unqualified and often uneducated people from the North continue to lord over better qualified candidates from the South in all spheres of government (military included), Nigeria will remain as it is or may even descend into chaos. So before you lay the blame on crooks who come from all over Nigeria, try to put into consideration the severe imbalances in the nation.

I'm glad you do not disagree with my statement. Let me also point out that I have not ignored the issues you raised.  One thing to note however is that, in the scenario you mentioned above where you allege that the Northern elite has been able to frustrate the ambitions of genuine leaders, there have always been elites from West/East/ and South who assisted and enabled the frustration of the said ambitions. The Northern elite has never been able to carryout any "political coup" without the active participation of their non Northern counterparts.

I also fully agree with you that there are several imbalances in the nation that need to be addressed very urgently. The point I was making is that to see Northerners, Easterners, Westerners, or Southerners as the sole cause of our problems is quite naive and myopic.

Finally I'll rephrase your statement above as follows: "The day that a majority of the Nigerians become educated, enlightened, and independent like their Southern counterparts, Nigeria will be the better for it.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't believe that the majority of any region in Nigeria is educated.

^ @nduchuks do i need to say more ? While There's corruption everywhere no where is it committed to brazenly evil by the leaders than up north. Some of the states in question are by far worse than Burundi but all the leadership does is continually exploit there hoards of illiterates who think they're living by to" allah's" will

edoyad:

^ @nduchuks do i need to say more ? While There's corruption everywhere no where is it committed to brazenly evil by the leaders than up north. Some of the states in question are by far worse than Burundi but all the leadership does is continually exploit there hoards of illiterates who think they're living by to" allah's" will

You are obsessed with the North and very quick to disown one of your own esteemed leaders, Danjuma, by calling him a traitor. I'm sure you will soon call Gowon and Gomwalk traitors once an old Biafran general informs us that your leaders and your people slaughtered defenseless Igbos while they were fleeing agression and returning to the East. Let's see the next middle belter you'll call a traitor in the next few days. olodo

@ poster
why change the subject ?