January 1966 Coup: Awolowo was our choice— Col. Ben Gbulie

Monday, 11 November 2013 09:56
BY KELECHI-DECA ANYANWU

Col. Ben Gbulie


THE story behind the first coup d' etat in this country which took place in 15 January 1966 is one of the most contentious in Nigeria's history. There are as many versions of that incident as there are different language groups in Nigeria. While many from other sections of the country still see it as an Igbo coup, the Igbos claim otherwise, saying that while many of the core actors are officers of Igbo extraction, there are also Yoruba officers involved while the foot soldiers that did the work are northerners.

An emerging school of thought however is of the view that the very fact that Igbos constitute the majority of the officer corps of the Nigerian Army then, it means that any venture involving officers will have more of them. Till date, most Nigerians of northern extraction maintain that there was an Igbo conspiracy involving both politicians and officers of Igbo extraction with aim to take by the barrel of the gun, what they failed to get through the ballot paper, citing that the young officers who planned that coup had sympathy with Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe of the NCNC, and wanted to take over power.
In this pulsating interview, one of the young officers who took part in that coup, Col. Ben Gbulie opens up on what led to the coup. He maintained that to the best of his knowledge, there was no ethnic based conspiracy, insisting that they were spurred into action by the level of corruption and mediocrity in the system as at that time which he regrettably acknowledged is nothing compared to what is obtainable today. He maintained that the young officers were inspired by the political philosophy of Obafemi Awolowo and that they saw in Awolowo the kind of leader Nigeria needed at that time. And that was why they wanted to take over power and hand it over to Obafemi Awolowo after releasing him from prison because they believed in him. He equally gave inkling on how the term 'Five Majors' came into the Nigerian political lexicon even though there were more than five majors in that coup.
Ben Gbulie joined the Nigerian Army in 1960; he was the first set of cadets at the Nigerian Military Training College (NMTC). He was also among the earliest set of Nigerian officer cadets that went to Sandhurst, and from there he went to Chatham, Kent , also in England where he studied Military Engineering, thereafter he went to the United States at Fort Belvedere, Virginia.
In this interview with KELECHI DECA-ANYANWU, Col. Gbulie took a journey into history and also warns there is need for Nigerians to sit down and talk because the country in travelling in a very dangerous direction because the issues that led to the Biafran War are here with us again; excerpts.


Many say that the issues that led to the Civil War are still here with us. To what extent is this a sign that as a country, Nigeria has learnt nothing from its history?
I took part in the Coup of 1966 and that was because of this kind of situation we found ourselves today as a country. There were problems in the country then. One of the major issues was corruption, but if you take a look at the level of corruption in the country today, it is not just twice or thrice but it is more than a million fold compared to what was happening then that we were unhappy about. For instance, I know our people, those who took part in the January 1966 coup accused the politicians then of driving Mercedes Benz 200 cars, but today what kind of cars are they driving they won't even think of a Mercedes Benz 2000, they are driving cars far more expensive ones than that, Lexus, BMW etc. Today, they have helicopters and even private jets, this goes to show you that the level of corruption in the country are not dealt with sufficiently, today, people talk about plea bargains which is the order of the day. But this is not the fault of those who have committed the offences, it is the fault of those who should take actions against them but chose to look the other way and do nothing. This is the tragedy of the entire situation. And infact, it is the tragedy of victory if I may borrow from Alabi Isama's book title.
At the Oputa Panel, you made several suppositions that many believed were based on some of the injustices that have ravaged Nigeria till date. What is your take about that Panel and how relevant are the issues that came up at that panel?
All those issues raised at the Oputa Panel were as relevant today as they were then. But the tragedy of that Panel is that the Report has not been published till tomorrow. The same people who set up Oputa Panel also suppressed the findings of the Panel. This is a pity. I have wept for this country because it is going forward and backward, it is one step forward three steps backward. But what do you expect when you have imbeciles in power, people who ordinarily would not have access to power. People that can best be described as mediocre and they are in power, ruling us and stealing the country's money, it is a big shame when you look at the quality of leadership we have today. I wish the Oputa Panel Report was published so that people will get to know most of the burning issues in this country. In South Africa, they had the Truth and Reconciliation Commission that at least resulted in some positive changes, but here, it was mere cosmetic effort, the panel was set up to fail. And the toxin continues to derail the system.
There has been this controversy about the Five Majors that led the January 1966 coup. Why this fixation on Five Majors when Seven Majors were involved in that operation. How did the number 'five' stuck?
I caused the confusion through my Book The Five Major. But in real sense, it did not originate from me, it was the BBC of London that first used that term. On the morning of the January 1966 Coup, the BBC came up with a story that five Nigerian Igbo Majors carried out a coup in Nigeria, so I took up the title Five Majors because it was catchy. But in that book, I did explain that there was nothing like Five Majors, they were more than five majors, they were eight of them, but one of them turned tail, instead of joining the coup, he went to the barracks and slept, then in the morning he joined the reactionary group led by Ironsi against us, but he was part of the coup initially. On the majors, they were as follows, the three key people who masterminded the coup were Nzeogwu, Ifeajuna and Adegboyega. If you read Adegboyega's book 'Why We Struck' he wrote that the coup was conceived in 1961, it was to take place in 1961 but as a result of some of the goings on in the country, it was being shuffled from time to time. Apart from this first three, you have majors Anuforo, Onwunatuegwu, Chukwuka, Don Okafor, Obienu, so that makes them eight. There were others who were never arrested because of the make-up of the panel that investigated the Coup. The Panel were made up of northerners, Ironsi played into the hands of northerners because he handed the entire investigation to them. He made Gowon the Army Chief and it was M.D. Yusuf who was in charge of the Police. So all these helped them to twist facts to suit their claim that it was an Igbo coup. Although 60% of the officer corps of the armed forces were of Igbo extraction, that did not make the Coup an Igbo Coup.
It is noteworthy to say that people have not analysed the situation in perspective. It was Awolowo who would have benefitted from that coup. Even the northerners were well aware of this fact but as soon as it failed, the Yorubas chorused that it was an Igbo coup. It was in a sense Awolowo's coup, he was to gain from it, we shared same values with him, he has tried one before but it failed. We were to liberate him from Calabar prison and make him Prime Minister, we liked him, we liked his policies and his administrative skill. The major problem of Nigeria was mediocrity but Awolowo could not be described as a mediocre, that was why we wanted him to lead. But when it failed, Nigerians behaved true to type and everyone joined the winners while the losers were castigated and thrown into prison. It is a shame.
You dedicated your book to Major Chukwuma Nzeogwu. How close were you to him and what sort of person was he?
He was my friend, he was my leader, a great leader, I was in the north with him, I was at NMTC he was at Military School Zaria, and I am of the view that he was my idea of an ideal leader. He was selfless, generous and cared for people. The very fact that he could burn his neck for others distinguished him from the rest. He was an extraordinary human being, he did things ordinary people dare not try, I admired him a lot, though he was not the only person I dedicated my book to, he had an awesome personality.
How close where you to him?

http://www.nationaldailyng.com/latest/january-1966-coup-awolowo-was-our-choice%E2%80%94-col-ben-gbulie

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We were in the same mess, I can write another book on him, but his brother has already done that, his brother, a professor in the United States wrote about him. To start with, Nzeogwu has an infectious personality, a first class soldier, a ex-Sandhurst, and Intelligence Officer, oh my good Lord, he was good, he was against injustice and he was ready to do whatever is necessary to right any wrong. He is that kind of person that stands up for other people. He was a great man.
Is it true that Prime Minister Tafawa Balewa, Brigadier Maimalari and even MD Yusuf had prior knowledge of the January 1966 coup, if so why didn't they take precautions?
Most Nigerian leaders had prior knowledge of the January 1966 coup, period! Let me start with Tafawa Balewa, he not only had prior knowledge of it, he equally refused the offer made him by the British High Commissioner to take refuge on a British ship moored off the high seas in Lagos. If he didn't know why did he refuse the offer. On Ahmadu Bello, he knew, even Akintola had to go to Kaduna to warn him on the need to take precautions but he refused, but Akintola said that before anybody will kill him, he will first kill someone, that was why he opened fire on Nwobosi and co that went for him at Ibadan, he opened fire and shot Egbiko in the head, (by the way Egbiko died recently after a brief illness), also Ademulegun knew, he was the Brigade Commander in the North, he knew. But they were all fatalistic about it, no one wanted to do anything, Ahmadu Bello was telling people where he should be buried if he dies, read any book because our people don't read, that is why these information are not coming out, it is all there in the books. Even Ironsi called a meeting of senior Army Officers warning them about the coup, even Ademulegun called us to a meeting in Kaduna and told us that a new political party was springing up in Nigeria and they were going to have a meeting in Kano with the aim to use the army to destabilise the country, he warned that if anybody knows anything, he should be informed so they all knew about it, they knew.
But how come no one took any action to stop it?
Timing was important, they simply did not know when we will strike because even Nzeogwu and the rest of us do not know when to strike because they were waiting for the right time. Moreso, Ahmadu Bello was out of the country for Hajj, so it was a mater of right timing, though I don't want to go to that past, but it is a fact. But when the information about the Jihad on the 17th of January 1966 leaked through, it became a matter of now or never. So we had to strike on the 15th of January, we succeeded in the North but the rest was a fiasco especially in Lagos. The story of this coup is amazing, the majority of officers who took part in the coup were Igbos, no doubt about that, also majority of the officers who quelled the coup were Igbos, let me name those who stopped us, Ironsi was the ring leader, without Ironsi we would have taken over Lagos and would have succeeded in that coup. Ironsi was at a party when he was informed. Interestingly, it was a northerner, Col. Pam who called Ironsi on phone to alert him of the coup, that he heard shootings, so Ironsi came to the 2nd Battalion and brought out troops to quell the coup. I said I will name them, Ironsi himself, Ojukwu that led us in Biafra, if you doubt me check his book “Because I Am Involved”, go and check it. Ojukwu was playing a double game in that event, while he gave us impression that he was with us, at the same time he was with Ironsi to stop us but he never for a day made a statement against the coup of January 1966, not for once, quote me on that. And when they succeeded in stopping us, Ironsi made him the Governor of Eastern Region. Then the next is Madiebo, Madiebo was holding meetings with us at Kaduna, he was in charge of Artillery, he was with us, infact it was Madiebo that we thought of sending to Lagos to negotiate the terms of our surrender to Ironsi but because he developed cold feet we had to send Obasanjo who gave us impression that he submitted our terms of surrender to Ironsi, we could not ascertain whether it is true or false but in spite of that, Ironsi started picking us one after the other. Then we had Nwawo who was Company Commander, Ironsi used Nwawo to ensure that Nzeogwu surrendered to him (Ironsi) who was the GOC, so that sealed it. So when people talk about Igbo coup, it gets me annoyed, when Yoruba writers keep on emphasizing this, we need to put things in perspective. In fact, I would want that January 1966 coup re-investigated so as to ascertain who did what. For example, if you investigate properly, that coup was meant to favour Awolowo whom we all liked. Also we need to ask deep questions such as, why was Fajuyi killed during the counter coup, it was there in the books. There was a book titled “The Nigerian Civil War” by the Nigerian Army, I have a copy which was tendered at the Oputa Panel, but the book was withdrawn from circulation, because the truth has started coming out. The book was recalled. Why was Fajuyi killed, someone was asked why Fajuyi was killed and he said that because they discovered that he was part of the January 1966 coup, even Adegboyega noted that Fajuyi gave them the plan and all the support they needed, so how else was he supposed to be involved in the coup.
But there was this account that Fajuyi was killed because he wanted to protect Ironsi who was his guest?
No, no, no, in the Army nobody does that, if you like read the accounts of Northerners especially Joe Gambo, Garba wrote “The Nigerian Revolution and the Biafran Civil War”, get a copy and go through it you would find some of these issues highlighted there.
There are reports that the North had planned a jihad on the day of the coup. Did your group have foreknowledge of this planned jihad?
Not northern elements in the Army, but the northern political clique. It is important you get this right. In all my works, I state this as it is. The Northern political clique were those behind the planned Jihad and they were going to make use of their agents in the Army to carry out that Jihad, even J.M.D. Muffet wrote the names of those who were to lead that Jihad. I have said enough on this issue.
You said that the earlier plan was for Madiebo to go and negotiate the surrender of the Coupists to Aguiyi Ironsi but later Obasanjo was sent. What is your take on this controversy that Obasanjo had prior knowledge of the January 1966 coup?
Some of these issues have been sorted out in many books and if people read they will get to know the fact. But people don't read that is why we keep having these controversies.
Cuts in... But most times the books contradict themselves?
Okay let me explain this. I wrote it plainly in my book “The Five Majors” how Madiebo was suggested but he developed cold feet due mainly to the tensions of that time and Nwawo was asked to do so in his place. But as discussions were on, the choice of Obasanjo came up. Obasanjo was close to Nzeogwu though Nzeogwu was his senior. On whether he knew about the coup, he has said so many times that he was not aware and to me that is immaterial. He gave his own account in his book Nzeogwu, and many of his people have also said he was not part of that coup. But he was with us and someone will question how he would have been that close to Nzeogwu and did not know what was happening though that could be circumstantial. However, many in the north believed he was part of that coup that was why they tried to kill him. It was Sunday Awoniyi that saved him by hiding him, but all that is now past.
So none of them made any effort to stop the coup plotters in their track?
Ironically, or if you like, paradoxically, these were the very same people who were jubilating that the coup of January 1966 has brought about a change in government, and in trying to pacify the northerners, Ironsi promoted them, Danjuma was my course mate, he was promoted to Major, Murtala was a Major, he was promoted to a Lt. Col, also Ironsi promoted some of our people who were on his side too, for example Ihedigbo was promoted to Major, Uwakwe was promoted to Major and so on and so forth. |So they were relishing the fact that there was a change of government but they forgot that every position has its own responsibility, nobody did anything. And when the coup started in the north, all they did was to flee, none of them made any effort. The only effort was at NMTC but it was being commanded by a northerner, Major Guru, this is because Okoro who was Commanding the 3rd Battalion was killed and his body was taken to NMTC by those who killed him probably to kill others too but they were challenged by the guards at the gate, and they jumped out of the vehicle and ran away. It was in the morning that the troops at NMTC found Okoro's mate body. Major Guru was commanding NMTC then and he made sure all officers and men were armed, so that anyone who comes will face everybody, but Guru was killed eventually and this was after Gowon had made a proclamation that everybody should go back to the barracks.
On the Counter Coup of July 1966, sources say that it was a common knowledge that the Northerners were planning a revenge coup. How come Igbo officers did not do anything to stop them? Such effort would have changed the course of Nigeria's history.
Absolutely correct, it would have changed the course of history, but there is something called destiny. The reason those who knew about the January Coup and did nothing is also the reason nothing was done here. But in this case, there was a little difference. Madiebo made efforts, it is written in his book, he went to Ironsi to warn him, but instead of taking precautions, Ironsi called Gowon and Hassan Katsina and asked Madiebo to repeat what he told him, and of course, Madiebo denied ever telling him anything. Everybody knew, I was being held in Enugu prisons at a stage before the declaration of Biafra and while there, I got a letter smuggled to me by my former course mate Joe Ihedigbo who was in the 1st Battalion, Enugu, he told me that northerners were planning something, and I wrote him back asking him what they were doing about it, do they want some of us inside prison to come and do something for them? I told him that if those of them outside did not take this seriously and do something about it, it will eventually be their funeral, and it was their funeral because Ihedigbo was killed in that coup, he was posted to Kano and he was killed in that counter coup. They were aware, but nobody articulated a proactive effort towards that.
How would you describe General T.Y. Danjuma? He seems to be head and shoulders above his peers both in uniform and out of uniform. Was he such an outstanding officer? Was he such a brilliant cadet when he joined the Army? Who is he?
Let me be very careful of what I say and I say it without any iota of animosity towards him. He took part in the coup of July 1966, I took part in the coup of January 1966 but he seems to still be having chips on his shoulders about the whole thing because I have tried to mend fences with him but he has totally rebuffed me. That is the situation. As to his being head and shoulders above everybody, the answer is no, totally no, we were officer cadets together. He went to the Nigerian College before he came to the Army. As officer cadets, we were always arguing, I on the part of the easterners while he was on the part of the northerners, I always complained about northern domination and I felt bad about that. So I always argued with him on that basis, I like to argue things out with people. So while I took part in the coup of January 1966, he was part of the July 1966 coup, I felt that after all these years we should mend fences and move on.
It is noteworthy to say that the coup threw him up, not only the first one he took part in that killed Aguiyi Ironsi but also the coup that removed Gowon in which he was made Chief of Army Staff, so why would he not be head and shoulders above others, but that is as far as that went. He did not go to Sandhurst, he went to Mons and I am saying this without any hard feelings, he went to Mon's Officer Cadet School, and Alabi named them in his book with their photographs. Pictures don't lie, we were five that went to Sandhurst in my set as pioneer officer cadets; Uwakwe, ex Kings College, Eromobor, ex-Government College Edo, Akinwade, ex-Ibadan, Ihedigbo, ex-College of Immaculate Conception Enugu and me, also of CIC Enugu. Ihedigbo was killed in the July 1966 coup while Uwakwe died early this year of natural causes. However, he may have all the money in the whole world but money does not give satisfaction, though I may need some of that money (laughter) but I won't steal, that does not apply that he stole his, but what I am saying is that I would love a situation where those of us that were officer cadets at the same time would come together as friends irrespective of which sides we were during the civil war. For example, I have a very cordial relationship with Alabi Isama. I have picked some holes in his recent book which I have also discussed with him under a very cordial atmosphere, and that is how life is supposed to be, but people are different and that is life for you, as the French would say, C'est la vie.
General Phillip Effiong in his book, Nigeria and Biafra: My Story, wrote that the Biafran War could have been avoided and secession was not the only single solution to the 1966 crisis but contend that it was inevitable. What is your take?
I agree with Effiong entirely. First, the things that happened have happened. The killings of 1966 and others, but note that the killings of 1966 were not the only killings; there were series of killings across the country. For example, in the New Nigerian Newspaper published in 1965, there was an article titled: “Only 135 killed in the West” that is, the “Operation Wetie” in the western region which led to the death of a lot of people. Also in the Middle Belt crisis where the Nigerian Army was used to kill innocent civilians in the region. These were people who were opposed to the Northern Peoples Congress (NPC) and the January 1966 Coup came to change all that, and most importantly, there was this issue of the planned Jihad, the Jihad was meant to impose Islamism on Nigeria which was an impossibility and that Jihad was planned to start on January 17, 1966 and our coup took place on January 15, 1966. You can read it up on D.J.M Moffet and luckily his book was printed by Hudahuda press in Zaria. There, you will see “Operation No Mercy”, that was the code name of the planned Jihad and Nzeogwu did intelligence and he knew about this. So he called us and informed us that they will start the Jihad on 17th so we must pre-empt them. Luckily his office at that time was close to mine so we were always interacting.

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You were in the Biafra Militia, how would you describe Col. Joe Achuzia?
My book, “The Fall of Biafra”, details his activities during the war. First, I would say he was not a soldier and he was a distraction for Biafra on many occasions. He was more interested in the publicity aspect of the war than the battle itself. Wherever Biafra recorded any sort of success, he would come there and organise a press conference and give a detailed account of what took place. But he was never there when the accounts he gave took place. That will give you a picture of his roles during the war. Most of his shootings hit people from behind instead of the chest, which also tells you who he was shooting.
When you look back from 1960 to date and all that this country has gone through, how would you describe the future of Nigeria?
I am skeptical about the future of Nigeria. I would rather buy that American report that gave Nigeria till 2015 to disintegrate particularly with this issue of Boko Haram. What we are seeing now is that those who claim that they fought to keep Nigeria one indivisible nation are not doing anything about Boko Haram that is fighting to divide Nigeria. Make no mistake about it, Boko Haram wants Nigeria to be divided or a theocratic Islamic nation. But politicians are busy scrambling for what they can make for themselves instead of making efforts to sort out the problems facing us as a nation. However, I don't want to be seen as a prophet of doom.
With most of the actors of the civil war no more, there is need for those alive to put the records straight and better educate this generation about their history. Why is there this seeming reluctance from those who played roles in the crisis to open up?
Let me give you an example because this is very important. I tried to talk to some of the South East Governors to create an environment where some of us can go round the zone and talk to our people especially the youths about the civil war, what led to it, how we fared and all of that, but they were not forth coming, they felt one came to ask for money from them, so nothing came out of that proposal.
Most of our people who took part in the Civil War are hard up; there is no doubt in that, in other words, they are financially living in very tight situations. They are only thinking of how to raise their kids, fend for their families and take care of themselves, they are not thinking of writing. But they also miss the point here because in writing you can also make some money. However, writing is not easy because it takes effort and skill, as I am here each time I pick my pen to write, I feel headache. It takes time and organization of your thought because you have to put it in readable form, you don't just gather information, you give information.
The challenges are that they cannot write, but they can also ask someone to pen their stories for them. It is a matter of taste, the white man said degustibus non disbutandum, there is no dispute about taste. It is a matter of taste, another problem is from the leaders themselves, they are not projecting those who burnt their neck for them on the right light, most of today's leaders are younger ones, they are not interested, they do not care, when you book an appointment to see them, they think you come to beg for money which is ridiculous.
You said you tried to talk to some governors about this but they were not forth coming. Are there no alternative avenues to create room for this all important venture?
The trouble is, even when you write, those people you think we should care about providing this information to ………do not read, unfortunately, the reading culture is dying off. But those who can read and wish to read do not have money to buy the books. What we have today even in the universities is people cyclostyling available reading materials, and passing them around as handouts notebooks. That's the present situation, having said that, we can also organize seminars or conferences where people can come together and discuss these things openly and information disseminated, there are still some of them around, and the sooner this is done the better.
Where do you situate the Igbos in all these?
I am sorry for our people because when you think of it, and I am saying this without any iota of bias whatsoever, if an Igboman takes charge of this country, there will be hope for Nigeria. This is because he will not be taking decisions or giving positions to favour his people, he will think of Nigeria first. Many people don't buy this idea, and it is a shame. If an Igbo man is in authority, when you get to his office he will behave as if he does not understand Igbo language, you have to speak English like everyone. But if a Hausa man or Yoruba man is in charge, they will speak their
own language and to them it is okay, they don't take the multicultural nature of Nigeria into consideration.
However, Igbos must put their acts together. We are talking of sovereign national conference but it should start with Sovereign National Conference for Ndigbo, it is only an Igbo man with initiative and ideas that can call such a summit among Igbos. As things are now, many are interested in licking boots, looking for who to support, but no one wants to present himself so that we can support him, no he is looking for who to make money from.
Now let me conclude by saying this, Igbos fought a war which was forced on us to protect our people, but today, we are kidnapping our people and killing each other to make money, this is a shame.

I guess those who planned and executed the coup are now setting the records straight.

I had not really gone through the write up but always knew the coup was not Ethnic oriented. WAS born out of angry due to the rising corruption in the country and those killed were beneficiaries to the said corruption.

According to him, the coup was planned, and supposed to be carried out, in 1961. In the same vein he says the coup was for Awolowo to be placed in power---less than a year after independence (Oct-Jan).... what am I missing here?

On a very serious note, my opinion on this 1966 coup isn't if it was necessary or not, but WHY MURDER THIS GREAT LEADERS!!!
Is a bloodless coup a taboo in the Army then? So I don't blame us Northerners for seeing it as an Igbo Coup, no matter the type of explanations they give. May God Bless Our Country

From all indications, most of those who fought the war on both sides are now living in poverty, the other day, we read about Benjamin Adekunle, Gbulie has confirmed this also, except for the few like Obasanjo and Danjuma et al, who profited from the chaos of Nigeria as it is now.
My surprise is their refusal to help their brothers in arm.
As per the last statement of Col. Gbulie, only a fool will believe that the present Igbo man can do better than, the present looters, what is presently happening in the east where they govern is an eye opener. The conduct of the current Igbo men and women in government also attest to the fact that Nigerian syndrome of corruption is detribalised.

What an elaborate and a revealing piece by Gbulie! I have always loved Kaduna Nzeogwu for his determination, courage, foresight and vision for a better Nigeria! If the coup had succeeded, Nigeria by now would have been the toast of other Nations! The January 15 putsch was a blessing in disguise for Nigerians because if the Sardauna-initiated January 17th Jihad had succeeded, I can only say the case of Nigeria would have been worst than Sudan! May His (Nzeogwu) soul continue to Rest In Peace!

I miss the great Nzeogwu that's all I can say here

On the majors, they were as follows, the three key people who masterminded the coup were Nzeogwu, Ifeajuna and Adegboyega. If you read Adegboyega's book 'Why We Struck' he wrote that the coup was conceived in 1961, it was to take place in 1961 but as a result of some of the goings on in the country, it was being shuffled from time to time.

.............Ben Gbulie

Still an Igbo coup?

It is noteworthy to say that people have not analysed the situation in perspective. It was Awolowo who would have benefitted from that coup. Even the northerners were well aware of this fact but as soon as it failed, the Yorubas chorused that it was an Igbo coup

.....Ben Gbulie

Most Nigerian leaders had prior knowledge of the January 1966 coup, period! Let me start with Tafawa Balewa, he not only had prior knowledge of it, he equally refused the offer made him by the British High Commissioner to take refuge on a British ship moored off the high seas in Lagos. If he didn't know why did he refuse the offer. On Ahmadu Bello, he knew, even Akintola had to go to Kaduna to warn him on the need to take precautions but he refused, but Akintola said that before anybody will kill him, he will first kill someone, that was why he opened fire on Nwobosi and co that went for him at Ibadan, he opened fire and shot Egbiko in the head, (by the way Egbiko died recently after a brief illness)

So Akintola fired the first shot and people expected him not to be fired back at?

Lmao. If you like call it Awolowo coup, Yoruba coup or Hausa conspiracy. Does it really matter what's called? Available pieces of evidence show in unmistakable clarity that it was an Igbo coup.

Ademulegun called us to a meeting in Kaduna and told us that a new political party was springing up in Nigeria and they were going to have a meeting in Kano with the aim to use the army to destabilise the country, he warned that if anybody knows anything, he should be informed so they all knew about it, they knew.

Ademulegun, typical Yoruba man, waiting for others to plan and execute a coup for him so he can chop where he did not sow.

Prof Corruption: Lmao. If you like call it Awolowo coup, Yoruba coup or Hausa conspiracy. Does it really matter what's called? Call it anything! But available pieces of evidence show in unmistakable clarity that it was an Igbo coup.

This interview was made for people like you. Still, will you learn?

The majority of officers who took part in the coup were Igbos, no doubt about that, also majority of the officers who quelled the coup were Igbos, let me name those who stopped us....... Ironsi, Ojukwu, Madiebo, Nwawo........ So when people talk about Igbo coup, it gets me annoyed, when Yoruba writers keep on emphasizing this, we need to put things in perspective.

So Igbo officers still stopped the coup. Why would Igbos stop what is supposed to be their coup?

Also we need to ask deep questions such as, why was Fajuyi killed during the counter coup, it was there in the books. There was a book titled “The Nigerian Civil War” by the Nigerian Army, I have a copy which was tendered at the Oputa Panel, but the book was withdrawn from circulation, because the truth has started coming out. The book was recalled. Why was Fajuyi killed, someone was asked why Fajuyi was killed and he said that because they discovered that he was part of the January 1966 coup, even Adegboyega noted that Fajuyi gave them the plan and all the support they needed, so how else was he supposed to be involved in the coup.

So Fajuyi also was involved and hence was killed in the counter coup.

On the Counter Coup of July 1966, sources say that it was a common knowledge that the Northerners were planning a revenge coup. How come Igbo officers did not do anything to stop them? Such effort would have changed the course of Nigeria's history.
Absolutely correct, it would have changed the course of history, but there is something called destiny. The reason those who knew about the January Coup and did nothing is also the reason nothing was done here. But in this case, there was a little difference. Madiebo made efforts, it is written in his book, he went to Ironsi to warn him, but instead of taking precautions, Ironsi called Gowon and Hassan Katsina and asked Madiebo to repeat what he told him, and of course, Madiebo denied ever telling him anything.

Madiebo is an Anambra i.d.i.o.t

Awaiting books on this topic by:
1. Gowon
2. Danjuma
3. M.D Yusufu
4. Obasanjo(more details)
5. Other personalties of the 1966 crises----big/small, northerner/westerner/easter, men/women, foriegners/Nigerians with knowledge

They owe th
e future a complete understanding of what realy happened.

adejoro75:

This interview was made for people like you. Still, will you learn?

And this is for people like you. Enjoy!

Do you share the view that Biafra was a tragic mistake in Nigeria ´s history?

First of all, let me tell you this, when the British were here, we were the last Nigerian officers to be commanded by the British soldiers. (He called for a picture hung on the wall of his sitting room to be brought down to show the first set of Nigerian military officers at that period).The senior person to me in Nigeria was Bassey, the second was Aguiyi Ironsi. The Igbos wanted to rule. Why they wanted to rule was that (Nnamdi) Azikiwe was the then Governor-General and more or less Head of State. The constitution did not give any power to Azikiwe. So, this annoyed the Igbo people and they used to say: “How can we run a constitution in which the Head of State cannot advise the government, the government cannot contact the Head of State for any advice?” So, the answer was well to take over since they were already leading and yet they had no control over the government. That was why the Igbo soldiers decided to organise a coup. But at that time, there were four major leading officers which included me, Yakubu Gowon, Bassey and Ojukwu. Igbo people relied on Ojukwu for the coup and they were able to convince the Yoruba. Ojukwu and Banjo now contacted me and Gowon for a coup. But we refused.

How many of you refused to participate in the planned coup then?

Gowon and I refused and they went on their own. But we then reported to that European officer, General Foster. I and Gowon reported to him that some people were trying to plan a coup. He called all of us — the Nigerian Army officers — and advised us not to organise any military coup. When Ojukwu´s father heard about this, he put a memo into House of Assembly that all Europeans should leave the army. It was that year that all the Europeans in the army were sent back to their country. Then, Ironsi, who was Number Two, took over the command of the army. While he was there, Ojukwu still had the coup plot in his mind. He told Ironsi that he should not allow Ejoor and Gowon to be in Army Headquarters, saying as long they remained in Army headquarters, they would not be able to execute the coup. So, Ironsi sent Gowon on a course in the United Kingdom but he left me alone.[/b] When Igbos were worrying him that Ejoor was still there, he told them that: “This man from that small state, minority state? You can handle him, he cannot do anything. Go away, and leave me.” So, he left me. By December when Gowon came back, it was like a small war in Ironsi´s office. Some army officers told Ironsi that: “We told you to send these two people away, now Gowon has come back. What can we do now? Ironsi was embarrassed and after Gowon came back on the 20th and on the 23rd of that month, Ironsi now sent me away from Army headquarters to Enugu, saying: “He should be hidden there.” I went there and then they tried again but the one they tried was in January 1966 after I had left the Army headquarters. But at that time, they said whatever happened, Ejoor and Gowon must die. They threatened the person who was to organise a coup on behalf of the Igbos in Lagos side.

Who was that person?

Emmanuel Ifeajuna. The one in Kaduna , Nzeogwu. I think you know that one. Ifeajuna was holding a very big post in the Brigade then. He was a Chief of Staff to Maimalari. He sent a message that we had this meeting which would last a week; that I should come to Lagos . He was the one who booked me into Ikoyi Hotel in Room 17 and my number in the army was 17.. It was a lucky number for me. I got to Lagos for the meeting and then the meeting started on Monday. Then on Thursday, I can’t recall what happened in my hotel room. I just complained that I didn’t like the room. They couldn´t change it on Thursday. It was on Friday, the last day of the meeting that I came back to the hotel by 4.30 pm. When I got to the hotel, they had changed my room because they knew that the following day, I would leave. I said all right. Because of the cocktail party which Maimalari organised for us, we could not come back on time. I left the cocktail party at about 11 p.m when we should have left at 8.00 pm.There was no need for us to come on time. Although he called it a cocktail party, it was like a buffet dinner. So, I ate to my satisfaction and when I got to the hotel, I didn´t go to the dining room to eat again; I just went straight to my bed and slept off. It was at three o’clock that night that the coup plotters came. They killed my colleague, the one commanding the Western Region, and after putting his body in the booth of the car, they rushed to my room, to Room 17, to kill me thinking that I was there. According to their story, they didn´t want me to see them. So, when they kicked the door open, they just sprayed the bed with bullets and then round before they switched on the light. When they switched on the light, nobody was there and they started saying to themselves, “he is gone, he is gone” and I was snoring downstairs. That was how, at least, I can tell that God saved me from the coup. Now, for Gowon.

http://maxsiollun./2009/04/17/igbo-soldiers-plotted-coup-from-independence-day-ejoor/

adejoro75:

So Fajuyi also was involved and hence was killed in the counter coup.

[size=28pt]?[/size]

Yes. When he got to Ibadan , the counter-coup people, Brigadier Danjuma, waylaid him. It was there they waylaid him and killed him in Ibadan . When he was with Fajuyi, Fajuyi did not want them to take Ironsi away just like that. That was why they killed Fajuyi with Ironsi, not that they had anything against Fajuyi at that time. That was how I escaped death for the second time. As I am talking to you, I have looked at death, where there was nothing I could do, I was just waiting for death to come, for seven times. How many people have gone through that? Looking at death, not that I was told. The other ones that happened when I did not know is different, but the ones I saw, I know.

adejoro75:

So Igbo officers still stopped the coup. Why would Igbos stop what is supposed to be their coup?

Who benefited from the coup-Awolowo(??), coup foiled and existing structure preserved (??) or Ironsi concluded the job as planned ( )

Talking on the first coup, when Balewa got missing, we knew Okotie- Eboh had been Hied, we knew Akintola had been killed. We, the members of the Balewa cabinet started meeting. But how can you have a cabinet meeting without the Prime Minister acting or Prime Minister presiding. So, unanimously, we nominated acting Prime Minister amongst us. Then we continued holding our meetings. Then we got a message that we should all assemble at the Cabinet office. All the Ministers were requested by the G.O.C. of the Nigerian Army, General Ironsi to assemble.

What was amazing at that time was that Ironsi was going all over Lagos unarmed. We assembled there. Having nominated ZANA Diphcharima as our acting Prime Minister in the absence of the Prime Minister, whose where about we didn't know, we approached the acting President, Nwafor Orizu to swear him in because he cannot legitimately act as the Prime Minister except he is sworn- in. Nwafor Orizu refused. He said he needed t contact Zik who was then in West Indies.

Under the law, that is, the Interpretation Act, as acting President, Nwazor Orizu had all the powers of the President. The GOC said he wanted to see all the cabinet ministers. And so we assembled at the cabinet office. Well, I have read in many books saying that we handed over to the military. We did not hand-over. Ironsi told us that "you either hand over as gentlemen or you hand-over by force". These were his words. Is that voluntary hand-over? So we did not hand-over. We wanted an Acting Prime Minister to be in place but Ironsi forced us, and I use the word force advisedly, to handover to him. He was controlling the soldiers.

The acting President, Nwafor Orizu, who did not cooperate with us, cooperated with the GOC. Dr. Orizu and the GOC prepared speeches which Nwafor Orizu broadcast handing over the government of the country to the army. I here state again categorically as a member of that cabinet that we did not hand-over voluntarily. It was a coup.

http://www.dawodu.com/akinjid3.htm

For example, in the New Nigerian Newspaper published in 1965, there was an article titled: “Only 135 killed in the West” that is, the “Operation Wetie” in the western region which led to the death of a lot of people.

This one na fulani pa gambari

Prof Corruption:

Who benefited from the coup-Awolowo(??), coup foiled and existing structure preserved (??) or Ironsi concluded the job as planned ( )


http://www.dawodu.com/akinjid3.htm

This Bolaji Aluko's fake analysis has been beaten over and over at NVS. Try harder.

adejoro75:

This Bolaji Aluko's fake analysis has been beaten over and over at NVS. Try harder.

It was written by Richard Akinjide, QC, SAN, not Bolaji Aluko. Are you awake now?

I am sorry for our people because when you think of it, and I am saying this without any iota of bias whatsoever, if an Igboman takes charge of this country, there will be hope for Nigeria. This is because he will not be taking decisions or giving positions to favour his people, he will think of Nigeria first. Many people don't buy this idea, and it is a shame. If an Igbo man is in authority, when you get to his office he will behave as if he does not understand Igbo language, you have to speak English like everyone. But if a Hausa man or Yoruba man is in charge, they will speak their
own language and to them it is okay, they don't take the multicultural nature of Nigeria into consideration.

Unfortunately, Igbos have learned tribalism from the Hausa and especially the Yoruba. So this may not apply as of today

Prof Corruption:

It was written by Richard Akinjide, QC, SAN, not Bolaji Aluko. Are you awake now?

From someone who was nowhere near the coup nor the war front, that was utter gibberish

Now let me conclude by saying this, Igbos fought a war which was forced on us to protect our people, but today, we are kidnapping our people and killing each other to make money, this is a shame.

This is true, but no less true about Nigeria as whole where Boko, OPC etc are killing one another

adejoro75:

From someone who was nowhere near the coup nor the war front, that was utter gibberish

He was in government, part of ministers summoned by Ironsi. Now read this, slowly, this time around:

Lagos - I Was in the first cabinet that was overthrown by the military in this country. I entered parliament in December 12, 1959. And I remained in Parliament until January 15, 1966 when the Government was overthrown. I was the Federal Minister of Education in that cabinet.

I woke up in the morning in my official house in Ikoyi to discover that my telephone was not working. I had never experienced coup before nor did I know that it was a coup, thinking it was just a telephone fault; until a colleague of mine in the cabinet Chief Abiodun Akerele, came in and told me there had been a military coup. So I had the fortune or the misfortune of being a victim of the first coup ever in this country.

Many people may not know that I spent 18 months in detention in prisons across the country. I've spent the time in Kirikiri prison, Ilesha prison, Ibadan prison and the Abeokuta prison Two of us who were in Balewa's government emerged when the military handed over to civilians in 1979 as part of the civilian Government. In Balewa's government, Alhaji Shehu Shagari was the Minister of Works while I was the Minister of Education. When the Military handed over to us after about 14 years, Shagari emerged as the President, while I became the Attorney - General and Minister of Justice. Again, Shagari's government was overthrown just a few months after I left the cabinet. Of course, we suspected it was coming.

A lot of things that happened between that period and now would never see the light of the day. When you are in government, you know a lot of things; you see a lot of things. A lot of things you know or did or saw will die with you. This is the practice the whole world. People have asked me to write my memoirs, I just laugh because there are certain things I can never reveal. When I was in Tafawa Balewa's Cabinet, all Cabinet ministers had access to written intelligence report every month. That was the practice at that time. But when Shagari came in, for reasons, which I cannot explain, that practice was no longer followed. But by virtue of my duties as the Attorney - General and as a member of the National Security Council, I continued to have access to some sensitive matters.

Nigeria is a very complex country. Our problems did not start yesterday. It started about 1884. Lord Lugard came here about 1894 and many people did not know that Major Lugard was not originally employed by the British Government. He was employed by companies. He was first employed by East Indian Company, by the Royal East African Company and then by the Royal Niger Company. It was from the Royal Niger Company that he transferred to the British government. Unless you know this background, you will not know the root causes of our problems. The interest of the Europeans in Africa and indeed Nigeria was economic and it's still economic. They have no permanent friends and no permanent interests. Neither their interests nor their friends are permanent. Nigeria was created as British sphere of interests for business. In 1898, Lugard formed the West African Frontier Force initially with 2,000 soldiers and that was the beginning of our problems.

Anybody who wants to know the root cause of all the coups and our present problems, and who does not know the evolution Nigeria would just be looking at the matter superficially. Our problems started from that time. And Lugard was what they called at that time imperialist. A number of British soldiers, businessmen, politicians were very patriotic. But I must warn you; they were operating in the interest of their country. Lugard became a Lord.

Nigerians, too, should operate in the interest of their country. When Lugard formed the West African Frontier Force with 2,000 troops, about 90 percent of them were from the North mainly from the Middle belt. And his dispatches to London between that time and January 1914 are extremely interesting. Lugard came here for a purpose ant that purpose was British interest. Between 1898 and 1914, he sent a number of dispatches to London which led to the Amalgamation of 1914.

The Order - in - Council was drawn up in November 1913 signed and came into force in January 1914. In those dispatches, Lugard said a number of things, which are at the root causes of yesterday and today's problems.

The British needed the Railway from the North to the Coast in the interest of British business. Amalgamation of the South (not of the people) became of crucial importance to British business interest. He said the North and the South should be amalgamated. Southern Nigeria came into existence on January 1900 ... At the Centenary of the fall of Benin, I wrote a piece in a number of papers but before I published the piece, I sent a copy to the Oba of Benin. So when Benin was conquered in 1896, it made the creation of the Southern Nigerian protectorate possible on January 1, 1900.

If you remember, Sokoto was not conquered until 1903. So, there was no question of Nigeria at that time. After the conquest of Sokoto, they were able to create the northern Nigerian protectorate. Lugard went full blast and created what was to be known as the protectorate of Northern Nigeria. What is critical and important are the reasons Lugard gave in his dispatches. They are as follows: He said the North is poor and they have no resources to run the protectorate of the North. That they have no access to the sea; that the South has resources and have educated people.

The first Yoruba lawyer was called to the Bar in 1861. Therefore, because it was not the policy of the British Government to bring the taxpayers money to run the protectorate, it was in the interest of the British business and the British taxpayer that there should be Amalgamation. But what the British amalgamated was the Administration of the North and South and not the people of the North and the South, that is one of the root causes of the problems of Nigeria and the Nigerians.

When the amalgamation took effect, the British government sealed off the South from the North. And between 1914 andl960, that's a period of 46 years, the British allowed minimum contact between the North and South because it was not in the British interest that the North be allowed to be polluted by the educated South. That was the basis on which we got our independence in 1960 when I was in the parliament. I entered Parliament on December 12, 1959. When the North formed a political party, the northern leaders called it Northern Peoples Congress (NPC). They didn't call it Nigeria Peoples Congress. That was in accordance with the dictum and policies of Lugard. When Aminu Kano formed his own party, it was called Northern Elements Progressive Union (NEPU) not Nigerian Progressive Union.

It was only Awolowo and Zik who were mistaken that there was anything called Nigeria. Infact, the so-cared Nigeria created in 1914 was a complete fraud. It was created not in the interest of Nigeria or Nigerians but in the interest of the British. And what were the structures created? The structures created were as follows: Northern Nigeria was to represent England; Western Nigeria like Wales; Eastern Nigeria was to be like Scotland. In the British structure, England has permanent majority in the House of Commons. There was no way Wales can ever dominate England, neither can Scotland dominate Britain. But they are very shrewd. They would allow a Scottish man to become Prime Minister. They would allow a Welsh man to become Prime Minister in London but the fact remains that the actual power rested in England.

That was what Lugard created in Nigeria, a permanent majority for the North. The population figure of the North is also a fraud. Infact, a British Colonial Civil Servant who was involved in the fraud was trying to expose it but he was never allowed to publish it. The analysis is as follows: If you look at the map of West Africa, starting from Mauritania to Cameroun and take a population of each country as you move from the coast to the Savannah, the population decreases. Or conversely, as you come from the Desert to the Coast, right from Mauritania to the Cameroun, the population increases. The only exception throughout that zone is Nigeria. Nigeria is the only zone whereby you go from coast to the North, the population increases and you come from the North to the Coast, the population decreases. Well, geographers, anthropologists and population experts, draw your conclusions, Someone has told me the last population census was done by computer, what a nonsense.

A computer is as good as its programmer. A computer will produce what you ask it to produce. I have read this book from cover to cover. This is a fantastic book. I want us to find a way to ensure that as many Nigerians read this book. It is a raw material for future authors. There is one thing which is missing in the book and that is the first broadcast of General Ibrahim Babangida when he assumed power in 1985. That broadcast is very crucial to the economic problems we have today. ... [b]Talking on the first coup, when Balewa got missing, we knew Okotie- Eboh had been Hied, we knew Akintola had been killed. We, the members of the Balewa cabinet started meeting. But how can you have a cabinet meeting without the Prime Minister acting or Prime Minister presiding. So, unanimously, we nominated acting Prime Minister amongst us. Then we continued holding our meetings. Then we got a message that we should all assemble at the Cabinet office. All the Ministers were requested by the G.O.C. of the Nigerian Army, General Ironsi to assemble.

What was amazing at that time was that Ironsi was going all over Lagos unarmed. We assembled there. Having nominated ZANA Diphcharima as our acting Prime Minister in the absence of the Prime Minister, whose where about we didn't know, we approached the acting President, Nwafor Orizu to swear him in because he cannot legitimately act as the Prime Minister except he is sworn- in. Nwafor Orizu refused. He said he needed t contact Zik who was then in West Indies.

Under the law, that is, the Interpretation Act, as acting President, Nwazor Orizu had all the powers of the President. The GOC said he wanted to see all the cabinet ministers. And so we assembled at the cabinet office. Well, I have read in many books saying that we handed over to the military. We did not hand-over. Ironsi told us that "you either hand over as gentlemen or you hand-over by force". These were his words. Is that voluntary hand-over? So we did not hand-over. We wanted an Acting Prime Minister to be in place but Ironsi forced us, and I use the word force advisedly, to handover to him. He was controlling the soldiers.

The acting President, Nwafor Orizu, who did not cooperate with us, cooperated with the GOC. Dr. Orizu and the GOC prepared speeches which Nwafor Orizu broadcast handing over the government of the country to the army. I here state again categorically as a member of that cabinet that we did not hand-over voluntarily. It was a coup.[/b] This is a very good book, which everybody must read. It is raw material for future authors. Anybody, who wants to know some of the causes of our problems, military instability should read this book. I even recommend this book to all universities and secondary schools, so that they can know how we get to where we are now. What this book shows is that if anybody stages a coup and if people don't accept it, it would not succeed. What puzzles me is how the author got all these materials. He must have connections in high places to be able to get a lot of these materials.

These materials should not be in the archives, they should be in the public domain so that we know the causes of our problems. I pray that all Nigerians should rise up and say no if anybody seizes a radio station and says "fellow countrymen". I hope that this book will find its way into all university libraries throughout this country, to all secondary school library and abroad. I appeal to the media to give this book a comprehensive and desired review.

The more I open the book, the more I see something to talk about. This book is going to represent one of those chapters in the tragedy of Nigeria. This book is just like horror film because the instability which was started in I966 ... because many of the coups are what I'll call commercial coups. If anything at all, we have to learn a great lesson from this book and also learn a lesson on what happened, who failed or succeed in their coups. When it succeeds. They call it glorious revolution. But when it fails, it is called treason. It is my honour and privilege to present this great and historic book. One of the things I like about the book is the language of the author. He's someone who speaks Englishman's English. He writes Queen's English. Very lucid, very flowing.

@Adejoro75

Propaganda won't change history. Igbo staged a coup:

1.They killed leaders from the North and the West while Eastern ones were preserved. Selective execution of corrupt(?) leaders?
2.The existing structure of government was changed with power moving from the North to the East. Yes or No?
3.The Easterners who staged the coup benefited from it. True or false?

No one would have called it an Igbo coup had Ironsi preserved the existing structure.

Have a great day.

adejoro75:

So Akintola fired the first shot and people expected him not to be fired back at?

And if he didn't fired, u will call hm a coward... Besides wat happened to those dat dnt make any attempt to defnd dia selvs? And who expected hm not to be killed? U ARE JUST TALKING RUBBISH... Adejoro( yoruba or igbo)