@onlytruth

Please do not spread lies, the eastern people that were killed in yoruba land were killed in the coup of July (by Muritala and co) and there was no continuous killing as you have claimed, as for the North, yeah I agree a lot of easterners were killed (both civilian and military), if easterners were to kill anybody in the period you claimed, it should have been northerners and Awolowo did not have a hand in the killings, so why would your peeps kill him. The killings of Easterners in other parts of the country had to do with Ironsi's weakness, the blood thirsty nature of Muritala and co, the coup of January and the attitude of some eastern officers after that coup. If the easterners had killed Awo, do you think your peeps will be able to live in the West?

hercules07:

@onlytruth

Please do not spread lies, the eastern people that were killed in yoruba land were killed in the coup of July (by Muritala and co) and there was no continuous killing as you have claimed, as for the North, yeah I agree a lot of easterners were killed (both civilian and military), if easterners were to kill anybody in the period you claimed, it should have been northerners and Awolowo did not have a hand in the killings, so why would your peeps kill him. The killings of Easterners in other parts of the country had to do with Ironsi's weakness, the blood thirsty nature of Muritala and co, the coup of January and the attitude of some eastern officers after that coup. If the easterners had killed Awo, do you think your peeps will be able to live in the West?

Definitely not for a very long time.

Posted by: Aigbofa

Even under this situation what do you think would have happened if Awo had been murdered in the prison because there was a general riot and ibos were killed.

Think about what you are saying for a minute. There were riots because Hausa and Yoruba millitary and civilian leaders were murdered. But, to cap it all you went after another Yoruba leader who was in prison in your region and you kill that one too.
How probable is that?

You know what they say about hindsight. It is always 20/20.
IMHO, this is one area where I feel that Ojukwu failed (amongst others). The way Eastern Nigeria responded to the non-stop murder of Easterners in other parts of Nigeria was very naive. I'm sure they decided to stick to Igbo values of not harming guests; but they forgot that we were in Nigeria where those values never counted for anything.
At the very least, the Eastern Nigerian government could have instigated reprisal attacks against ALL non-easterners in the east. In such a scenario, Awo couldn't have made it back to Yorubaland.
ALL Easterners ran away from the West, and those he weren't lucky were killed. The least Ojukwu could have done was to reciprocate in kind.

Posted by: hercules07

@onlytruth

[b]Please do not spread lies, the eastern people that were killed in yoruba land were killed in the coup of July (by Muritala and co) and there was no continuous killing as you have claimed, [/b]as for the North, yeah I agree a lot of easterners were killed (both civilian and military), if easterners were to kill anybody in the period you claimed, it should have been northerners and Awolowo did not have a hand in the killings, so why would your peeps kill him. The killings of Easterners in other parts of the country had to do with Ironsi's weakness, the blood thirsty nature of Muritala and co, the coup of January and the attitude of some eastern officers after that coup. If the easterners had killed Awo, do you think your peeps will be able to live in the West?

I never lie. There is no need for it. The day I decide to stop speaking the truth here, I will invent a new username. It is as easy as ABC.
If you say there was no constant killing of Easterners for many months after the July counter coup, then you are either not telling the truth or you are ignorant of what really happened. Pick up a book by an unbiased historian and read.

@Onlytruth

There was killing of Igbos but that was chiefly in the North, the one I am aware of in the West was during the coup and was carried out by elements of northern extraction.

Only God can say, but what about those who said if all Nigerians have education (ON FREE EDUCATION), there will be nobody to be enslaved again,

if una no forget about this shit na there una go die put.

Katsumoto:

It is obvious that a lot of people are putting forward irrelevant opinions without considering the facts. According to the rules of the election and the constitution, to avoid a run-off election a candidate must win 2/3 of the 19 states which is 13 states. Shagari won 12 states but was declared winner winner, against the rules of the election and consitution, because of the argument put forward by Akinjide that Shagari won 2/3rds of the 13th State. OBJ, tha coward that he is, quickly handed over power to Shagari. That election should have gone to a run-off between Awo and Shagari.


[b]Do you need another history lesson? Were there any NNDP members in the Western House in 1962? In fact was there a party called NNDP? The brouhaha in the Western house was caused by NCNC members such as TOS Benson, Oke (who threw the first chair) and Ebubedike (who broke the mase). The breaking of the house, was particularly significant because it meant that Akintola couldn't be impeached.[/b]You should have told us the name of the Igbo officials who were involved. What are there names? Don't they have names?

Gowon released Awo from prison. Ironsi was in power for 6 months; are you suggesting that it takes more to effect the release of a prisoner? The facts of the matter are that Awo was released from prison when Gowon was Head of State. Ironsi was already dead and there was no way he could have effected Awo's release from the dead. Even if Ironsi gave the order; Gowon could have still ignored it if he wanted.

A person has, at least, to understand the history from mainstream rather than ethnically and myopic standard. There was a party named NNDP in 1962. In fact, NNDP had existed in Lagos under the leadership of Marculey before the year, 1962. UPP, IPP and would-be members of NNDP were in the western regional house of assembly as AG or NCNC.

The scenario you described is very misleading. Those members who caused breach of peace on the floor of legislative house in western region did so within the rim of personal merit not as directives from party central committee. Akintola was a very likable politician in Nigeria at era in discuss. He was loved across the board. I believed certain behaviors displayed by politicians at the floor of western regional house of assembly were personal.

The legal and political precedents which followed Akintola’s removal as the premier of western region suggested Awo and AG grips on power in western region had hopelessly gone south. I guess impeachment should be based on law not breaking of an object. During the court battles, western regional house of assembly engaged in amendment of law retroactively and the majority of the members were the so-called politicians from AG.

you should recall that Awo ruled as leader of the the Yoruba geopolitical zone which was one of the three recognised geopolitical zones in Nigeria at that time. He was the Premier of the Western Region of Nigeria from October 1, 1954 until December 15, 1959. Nonetheless, his accomplishments dwarf the combined achievements of the last five heads of government Nigeria has had. you should understand that you can not excuse his towering influence in the advancement of the yoruba people as a weakness for nationalism. His influence was greatly felt in the Yoruba land because it was the region under which he had jurisdiction. His impact is still being felt and multiplied in the land as at today. He exercised his ingeniousness in affecting the whole of Nigeria by masterminding the end of the Nigerian civil war when he was a federal minister under General Yakubu Gowon. If he had been given the chance to serve Nigeria and not rigged out at the federal elections, this great man would have transformed the entire country called Nigeria, and who knows, we might not be where we are now as a nation. We probably will be the true giant of Africa where are destiny lies.

noblemuk:

you should recall that Awo ruled as leader of the the Yoruba geopolitical zone which was one of the three recognised geopolitical zones in Nigeria at that time. He was the Premier of the Western Region of Nigeria from October 1, 1954 until December 15, 1959. Nonetheless, his accomplishments dwarf the combined achievements of the last five heads of government Nigeria has had. you should understand that you can not excuse his towering influence in the advancement of the yoruba people as a weakness for nationalism. His influence was greatly felt in the Yoruba land because it was the region under which he had jurisdiction. His impact is still being felt and multiplied in the land as at today. He exercised his ingeniousness in affecting the whole of Nigeria by masterminding the end of the Nigerian civil war when he was a federal minister under General Yakubu Gowon. If he had been given the chance to serve Nigeria and not rigged out at the federal elections, this great man would have transformed the entire country called Nigeria, and who knows, we might not be where we are now as a nation. We probably will be the true giant of Africa where are destiny lies.

You have killed the thread. True words

noblemuk:

you should recall that Awo ruled as leader of the the Yoruba geopolitical zone which was one of the three recognised geopolitical zones in Nigeria at that time. He was the Premier of the Western Region of Nigeria from October 1, 1954 until December 15, 1959. Nonetheless, his accomplishments dwarf the combined achievements of the last five heads of government Nigeria has had. you should understand that you can not excuse his towering influence in the advancement of the yoruba people as a weakness for nationalism. His influence was greatly felt in the Yoruba land because it was the region under which he had jurisdiction. His impact is still being felt and multiplied in the land as at today. He exercised his ingeniousness in affecting the whole of Nigeria by masterminding the end of the Nigerian civil war when he was a federal minister under General Yakubu Gowon. If he had been given the chance to serve Nigeria and not rigged out at the federal elections, this great man would have transformed the entire country called Nigeria, and who knows, we might not be where we are now as a nation. We probably will be the true giant of Africa where are destiny lies.

The only place that would have been great if Nigeria made the mistake of having Awo as president is nowhere but Yorubaland.

Awo was too bigoted to rule in a multi-ethnic society like Nigeria without favouring his own people, even if it led to the detriment of others.

mbatuku1:

The only place that would have been great if Nigeria made the mistake of having Awo as president is nowhere but Yorubaland.

Awo was too bigoted to rule in a multi-ethnic society like Nigeria without favouring his own people, even if it led to the detriment of others.

what did he do that suggested he would do such ?

hiiii

alj_harem:

what did he do that suggested he would do such ?

The ethnic cleansing he carried out in the civil service and the subsequent replacement of the vacant spaces with yorubas was an indication of what he would have done on a larger scale if he became president. Remember he never believed in Nigeria and had no interest in other groups.

The indigenisation policy of giving more Nigerians ownership of foreign-controlled industries he carried out between 1970-74 also favoured only yorubas. By the end of 1972, Nigeria's industrial sector was fully in the hands of yorubas, all through the antics of Awo.

see

alj_harem:

what did he do that suggested he would do such ?

You seemed to have forgotten what instigated the people of old Mid-western region to agitate for a region out of Awolowo’s waet.

noblemuk:

you should recall that Awo ruled as leader of the the Yoruba geopolitical zone which was one of the three recognised geopolitical zones in Nigeria at that time. He was the Premier of the Western Region of Nigeria from October 1, 1954 until December 15, 1959. Nonetheless, his accomplishments dwarf the combined achievements of the last five heads of government Nigeria has had. you should understand that you can not excuse his towering influence in the advancement of the yoruba people as a weakness for nationalism. His influence was greatly felt in the Yoruba land because it was the region under which he had jurisdiction. His impact is still being felt and multiplied in the land as at today. He exercised his ingeniousness in affecting the whole of Nigeria by masterminding the end of the Nigerian civil war when he was a federal minister under General Yakubu Gowon. If he had been given the chance to serve Nigeria and not rigged out at the federal elections, this great man would have transformed the entire country called Nigeria, and who knows, we might not be where we are now as a nation. We probably will be the true giant of Africa where are destiny lies.

The above post falls into the class of nonsensical insinuations mostly pulled from places Sun does not reach and points to the reasons why Nigeria shall remain in a dilapidated shape. You are right Awo was premier for western region from 1954 to 1959. Even if Awo was a socio-politico-economic magician, first grader would be hardly convinced Awo accomplished all these empty praises heaped on him by delusional flock of tribal irredentists in such a short time.

I recall feel-happy and self-promoting drunks had already attributed the development of Lagos to Awo too.

The archaic appearance of Ibadan tells all the stories a person needs to know about Awolowo and his loudmouthed followers.

Dede1:



The above post falls into the class of nonsensical insinuations mostly pulled from places Sun does not reach and points to the reasons why Nigeria shall remain in a dilapidated shape. You are right Awo was premier for western region from 1954 to 1959. Even if Awo was a socio-politico-economic magician, first grader would be hardly convinced Awo accomplished all these empty praises heaped on him by delusional flock of tribal irredentists in such a short time.

I recall feel-happy and self-promoting drunks had already attributed the development of Lagos to Awo too.

The archaic appearance of Ibadan tells all the stories a person needs to know about Awolowo and his loudmouthed followers.

Thank you. They are very fast to forget that the rusty town of Ibadan was where Awo's office was located. A city not even fit for animals to live, talk less of humans.

And some i-diots are wishing he was their president!

Dede1:



A person has, at least, to understand the history from mainstream rather than ethnically and myopic standard. There was a party named NNDP in 1962. In fact, NNDP had existed in Lagos under the leadership of Marculey before the year, 1962. UPP, IPP and would-be members of NNDP were in the western regional house of assembly as AG or NCNC.

The scenario you described is very misleading. Those members who caused breach of peace on the floor of legislative house in western region did so within the rim of personal merit not as directives from party central committee. Akintola was a very likable politician in Nigeria at era in discuss. He was loved across the board. I believed certain behaviors displayed by politicians at the floor of western regional house of assembly were personal.

The legal and political precedents which followed Akintola’s removal as the premier of western region suggested Awo and AG grips on power in western region had hopelessly gone south. I guess impeachment should be based on law not breaking of an object. During the court battles, western regional house of assembly engaged in amendment of law retroactively and the majority of the members were the so-called politicians from AG.       

Akintola was so loved by NCNC members that they decided to constitute themselves into an illegality so as to prevent the removal of a man who had lost the support of his party? Stop being disingenuous; NCNC members became involved because of Zik and Okpara. Why did Okpara, even though it wasn't his place, refuse to recognise the government of Adegbenro after Adegbenro was elected Premier of the West?

The only relevant retroactive amendment of the law was the one made by Balewa which robbed Adegbenro of victory from the Privy council.

Dede1:



The above post falls into the class of nonsensical insinuations mostly pulled from places Sun does not reach and points to the reasons why Nigeria shall remain in a dilapidated shape. You are right Awo was premier for western region from 1954 to 1959. Even if Awo was a socio-politico-economic magician, first grader would be hardly convinced Awo accomplished all these empty praises heaped on him by delusional flock of tribal irredentists in such a short time.

I recall feel-happy and self-promoting drunks had already attributed the development of Lagos to Awo too.

The archaic appearance of Ibadan tells all the stories a person needs to know about Awolowo and his loudmouthed followers.

Do you even know the meaning of 'to fall into dis-repair'?

With regards to your comment about praises, why can't you let those who want to praise the man be?

mbatuku1:

The ethnic cleansing he carried out in the civil service and the subsequent replacement of the vacant spaces with yorubas was an indication of what he would have done on a larger scale if he became president. Remember he never believed in Nigeria and had no interest in other groups.

The indigenisation policy of giving more Nigerians ownership of foreign-controlled industries he carried out between 1970-74 also favoured only yorubas. By the end of 1972, Nigeria's industrial sector was fully in the hands of yorubas, all through the antics of Awo.

Some of you are so influenced by your jaundiced hatred that you refuse to confirm facts before forming an opinion. Was Awo in Government between 1970 and 1974? If you agree that he wasn't, do you care to enlighten us on how Awo implemented your phantom policy?

Katsumoto:

Some of you are so influenced by your jaundiced hatred that you refuse to confirm facts before forming an opinion. Was Awo in Government between 1970 and 1974? If you agree that he wasn't, do you care to enlighten us on how Awo implemented your phantom policy?

You can choose to believe what you want, but it's public knowledge that Awo was a key originator of government policies during the period and quite a number of times he saw to it that they were kick-started at least.

mbatuku1:

You can choose to believe what you want, but it's public knowledge that Awo was a key originator of government policies during the period and quite a number of times he saw to it that they were kick-started at least.

That is just beer parlour talk. For all intents and purposes, Awo left Government in 1971; to put the formulation and implementation of phantom policies between 1970 and 1974 to him is just plain ridiculous. If you have any books or literature to share which supports your position, please share for our benefit.

Whilst the Internet may provide anonymity for posters; it shouldn't encourage posters to make an ar.se of themselves.

Katsumoto:

That is just beer parlour talk. For all intents and purposes, Awo left Government in 1971; to put the formulation and implementation of phantom policies between 1970 and 1974 to him is just plain ridiculous. If you have any books or literature to share which supports your position, please share for our benefit.

Whilst the Internet may provide anonymity for posters; it shouldn't encourage posters to make an ar.se of themselves.

I stated 1970-74 as being the time period of the development plan. If you read through my earlier posts carefully, you'll see that I mentioned that by the end of 1972,(about the time Awo left) Nigeria's economy was already ethnically cleansed to be solely in the hands of the yorubas.

I have a couple of sources to back up my claims of Awo favouring yorubas, but they were all written by Igbo scholars(some elements of bias might have crept into the argument). I'll refrain from posting until I find one written by a non-Igbo.

Like I said earlier, I'll rely at the moment on public knowledge of events.

Though Awo left abruptly in 1971, Gowon had earlier laid out his 9-point agenda that that included indigenisation program of which Awo was the vice-chairman of the federal executive council. We all know that Awo was the most learned member of the cabinet. Considering his position and his antecedents of instituting govt policies, Awo was the brain behind that 9-point, especially the ones bothering on economic issues.

So it's funny when you asked me if Awo was part of Gowon's goverment. That's a very redundant question.

This question is better rephrased "Why do Nigerians look for every excuse to vote for idiots who lack vision and are underserving of leadership positions when there are better options available?" 

@Ayowumle:
There is no point in trying to rationalise an irrational situation! Logic and common sense doesn't apply to most things that happens in Nigeria, your question is like asking why MKO Abiola could not become Nigeria's president despite his fame and popularity? My advice to you as per your question is to ask President Obasanjo and his then northern friends.

mbatuku1:

I stated 1970-74 as being the time period of the development plan. If you read through my earlier posts carefully, you'll see that I mentioned that by the end of 1972,(about the time Awo left) Nigeria's economy was already ethnically cleansed to be solely in the hands of the yorubas.

I have a couple of sources to back up my claims of Awo favouring yorubas, but they were all written by Igbo scholars(some elements of bias might have crept into the argument). I'll refrain from posting until I find one written by a non-Igbo.

Like I said earlier, I'll rely at the moment on public knowledge of events.

Though Awo left abruptly in 1971, Gowon had earlier laid out his 9-point agenda that that included indigenisation program of which Awo was the vice-chairman of the federal executive council. We all know that Awo was the most learned member of the cabinet. Considering his position and his antecedents of instituting govt policies, Awo was the brain behind that 9-point, especially the ones bothering on economic issues.

So it's funny when you asked me if Awo was part of Gowon's goverment. That's a very redundant question.

Public knowledge is usually naive and ignorant. The rest of your post is mere conjecture.

I never asked you whether Awo was in Gowon's government; you alluded to Awo directing government policy between 1970 and 1974 and merely exposed your bias or ignorance since Awo resigned from Gowon's govt. in 1971.

duduspace:

This question is better rephrased "Why do Nigerians look for every excuse to vote for idiots who lack vision and are underserving of leadership positions when there are better options available?" 

You dey mind them?

As part of my initial response to this topic, I posted this interview(below). So far, people have argued about how Awolowo got transferred to the prison in the East, and how/who released him from prison. No one has disputed that the Igbo went out of their way to ensure his comfort and that of his family during his trying period. Not only did MI Okpara and others persuade an Igbo man to vacate his house so that Awolowo could stay there at night, instead of in the prison, his wife was put on a minister's salary and given allowances by the Eastern Nigerian government. These are gestures only extended to a friend in need, and with that in mind, why do people balk at the idea that the Igbo worked to have Awolowo transferred out of prison in the north to the East?
    How about the corruption and incredible greed on display, on Awolowo's part, in demanding two million pounds bribe to offer assistance to a people just emerging from a war in which they lost all they owned? How do we reconcile how the Igbo treated Awolowo in his time of need, to his attitude towards the Igbo during and after the war?

Interview:

A member of Nigeria's first republic Federal cabinet, Chief Mbazuluike Amaechi have accused the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo of ingratitude to the Igbos immediately after the Nigerian civil war.

In an interview granted to a Nigerian national weekly, "The Nation On Sunday" and monitored by chidi opara reports, Chief Amaechi recounted how Igbo leaders immediately after the civil war sent a delegation to Chief Awolowo, who was the Minister of Finance and Vice-chairman of the Federal Executive Council, to help the Igbos recover their landed properties seized by the Federal government in Port Harcourt and other major townships.

The reason for sending the delegation, according to the 81-year-old first republic Minister of Aviation was that when Chief Awolowo was sent to prison in Calabar, which was part of Eastern Nigeria by the Federal administration of Alhaji Abubakar Tafawa Balewa in 1962, the Eastern Nigerian government led by Dr. M.I Okpara, an Igbo, in collaboration with other Igbo leaders persuaded an Igbo landed property owner to vacate his property near the Calabar prisons for the imprisoned politician. Chief Awolowo, according to Chief Amaechi stayed in the prison in daytime and in the property at night, The ex-zikist also revealed that the Eastern Nigerian government placed Chief Awolowo's wife on a Minister's salary, allowances and other benefits.

"So we thought he would remember these things, a delegation was sent to him because he was in charge of Finance and Vice-chairman of the Federal Executive Council", Chief Amaechi told the weekly. The former anti-colonial activist continued, "he said, you know I am a lawyer. I have a chamber at Apapa. If you want me to help you in the matter, go and pay a sum of two million pounds into my chamber at Apapa and bring the receipt to me". "And the Igbos who were given only twenty pounds, where would they collect and assemble two million pounds at that time in 1970?", the elder statesman queried.

Chief Mbazuluike Amaechi revealed further that in frustration, the delegation left. He described Chief Obafemi Awolowo's action as "the height of ingratitude to a people who gave him succour at his crisis period."

Katsumoto:

Public knowledge is usually naive and ignorant. The rest of your post is mere conjecture.

I never asked you whether Awo was in Gowon's government; you alluded to Awo directing government policy between 1970 and 1974 and merely exposed your bias or ignorance since Awo resigned from Gowon's govt. in 1971.

You dey mind them?

There is nothing naive or conjectural about the things I said, except you want us to believe so. Why didn't you dispute a single fact if they were mere conjectures according to you?

Can you honest deny the fact that Awo was a prominent member of Gowon's federal executive council that formulated the 9-point agenda, in which the indigenisation programme was one of them?

You even denied in your posts that Awo wasn't in government between 1970-74. Now you are shifting the goal posts that he resigned in 1971. Is 1971 not part of the period. This was a quote from you below:

Katsumoto:

Was Awo in Government between 1970 and 1974?

@Kc3000:
please can you tell me how Awolowo offended the Igbos? don't you think it's high time the igbos take reponsibility for the death and starvation of millions of their children by taking them to a war that common sense should have told them they can never win?
Part of the causation of the civil war started when Major Kaduna (an Igbo officer) killed all the northern and south western leaders in the bloodiest and most senseless coup till date, which eventually led to series of civil unrest between the hausas and igbos through 1966-67, can you remember?
I think trying to lay blames on awolowo is a bit ridiculous.

[size=18pt]Awolowo lost because Zoning did not begin at 2007 but 1979. OBJ felt it would have being a miscarraiage of Justice to pass the power to a Yoruba MAN after his shot-gun tenure in 1979. .Zoning unfortunately is fully ingrained in OBJ's DNA[/size]

@Lanrefemi Sorry I never saw your response to my post. The Igbo do not lay blame on Awolowo for what led to the civil war, we only give him his due as an enemy of the Igbo. For this simple reason; only someone that wishes the absolute worst for the Igbo would have advocated for the federal government to block all food aids going to the starving Igbo children during the war, as Awolowo did. That kind of wickedness, to me, ranks up there with the characteristics of the HITLER's and MUSSOLINI's of the world. It is impossible to imagine that Zik would have taken such an inhumane stance if the Yoruba found themselves in a similar situation.
     It was more agonizing b'cos the Igbo had seen Awolowo as a friend. As I posited above, Dr. Okpara, the eastern premier,  reached out to help him during the wild-wild west era, and while he was in prison for treason, Okpara and other Igbo leaders did everything to make him comfortable, including providing him a living quarters outside the prison, and paying salaries and allowances to his wife from the Eastern Nigerian government.
     Speaking of the senseless coup of Jan 1966 that you alluded to, I've never been one to admire Ifeajuna, Nzeogwu, Ademoyega etc. no matter how brilliant or principled they were. This overzealous lot set the prelude for everything that transpired till the civil war. On the kind of mission that they set out to accomplish, one must either absolutely succeed or die in the process. They did neither.  However, people like to discount the fact that there were Igbo and Yoruba actors in this coup, and that one of their major objectives was to install Awolowo as the president of Nigeria. Ademoyega(a principal actor in the coup), Ojukwu, Obasanjo(a bossom friend of Nzeogwu) to name a few, have all confirmed this objective of the coup plotters. Apparently, Awolowo must have talked a good game, because many of the young officers in the military at the time looked up to him as a principled man that could lead Nigeria in the right direction. Many Igbos were disappointed, and still are, when the true colors of Awolowo emerged during the war.
   No sensible Igbo person blames Awolowo for the war, nor blames the Yoruba for not getting involved,. . . as you noted, it was not their fight. In fact, I read somewhere of a Col. Olurin that resigned from the Army rather than fight the Igbo. On the other hand, no one can fault the Yoruba that were in the Army for fighting in the war, as they were only executing their duties as soldiers. Since the war ended, I regret to note that it has mostly been Yorubas that have taken the unwise decision to antagonize the Igbo about the events of the war, and during Obasanjo's civilian regime, it was pretty much government policy to do so. Obj himself, as a sitting president, on more than one occasion expressed his disdain for a section of the country he was supposed to be leading, a serving minister(some adelaja character) without provocation insulted Ndigbo, and was not even reprimanded. When another Yoruba, serving as Nigeria's Ambassador to the U.S did the same, he was summarily recalled and relieved of his post by Yar'adua. Ndigbo have never seen the Yoruba as enemies, but some Yorubas are effectively changing this notion.

@kc3000, I think you are been unnecessary sentimental about the role of Awo in the war.
That the objective of the coup was to install Awo as the president is highly debatable and i guess this should be left for another day.
There is nothing pleasant in war because it inflicts sufferings on a number of innocent people. However, the main aim of fighting a war is for one group to defeat the other group. The concept of "morality and and or wrong and right" is non existent between warring parties.
For a party at war to defeat the other party, you have to make use of strategies.
On the part of the Igbos, in order for them to have an edge in the war, they grew sophisticated in their weaponry. For the Nigerian govt to prevent Eastern region from seceding, they needed to come up with a strategy that went beyond weaponry.
From your post, you said the Igbos never had anything against Yorubas soldiers that were deployed against the Igbos during the war because according to you "they were doing their duties".

If i then take you by your word, I could only deduce one fact. This is CONTRADICTION. You contradicted yourself and the only reason why this happened to you is because you let your emotions overcome the need for objectivity. Because as the soldiers whose aim is to defend the sovereignty of Nigeria, Awo (a Federal Minister) has as his responsibility the interest of Federal Republic of Nigeria. As the Igbos were trying to secede, do you think that was in the interest of the Federal Govt? If you were Awo and your duty was to protect the interest of the govt under whom you serve, would you not think of a way of stopping the secession?

IF YOU WOULD, THEN WHY BLAME AWO?
HE WAS ONLY DOING JOB.

I will be happy to read your reply anyway. I like the way you present your points however debatable they appear.