infoispower:

[color=#006600][/color]



i intentionally used 21st century instead of 19th century to draw attention to the topic and because in the 21 century majority of igbos still consider ojukwu as their greatest leader.

gidgiddy:
OP, you have your some facts wrong. Gowon did not create states because Ojukwu declared Biafra, rather, it was the other way around. Ojukwu declared Biafra because after going to Ghana to negotiate a confederation with the existing 4 regions, Gowon went on to break that agreement by creating States. The 'divide and rule' started by Gowon is the same thing that the northerners use and still use to dominate Nigeria. The same true federalism which many Yorubas today say is what is best for Nigeria is what Ojukwu went to get, and got in Aburi, Ghana. But the same Yorubas and their leader Awolowo had no problem with Gowon and his fellow Northerners going back on the agreement, destroying federalism, creating States and taking away resouce control. Awolowo was all too happy to '2ic' to Gowon and protect his peoples interests. When Ojukwu declared Biafra in response, they vilified him. Till today, the same Yoruba man is looking for the same true federalism Ojukwu went to Ghana to get, and got,but has no problem calling Ojukwu a fool for not being a 'northern a$$licker' like Awolowo. All the Yoruba man knows is "we saved our selves from being killed by the Northerners by accepting one Nigeria while that stupid Ojukwu had millions of his people killed by not doing what we did". Shameful


I thank God that he created me an Igho man and didn't give me this level of cowardice

BADNEAT:
so what exactly do you aim to achieve with the post?

AdiscoPele:

3. It was the easiest way to end the war and save more souls because if the Northern Military had gotten to the Biafrian side, it would have been disastrous.

gidgiddy:
The OP made so many mistakes:

He said Ojukwu started a war: How could Ojukwu have started a war when it was Gowon that came down to east to start fighting?

He said that Ojukwu executed people like Victor Banjo, Ifeajuna, Alale and Mr Abam for opposing him: I would suggest to him to find a book called 'No place to hide: crises and conflicts inside Biafra' by Ben Odogwu. In this book he will read the ful text of how these four men were tried for plotting to topple Ojukwu and how they were secretly recorded planning their coup.

He said that Ojukwu didn't consult anyone before declaring Biafra when it is a historical fact that it was the Eastern Nigeria consultative assembly which was comprised of all the representatives and Chiefs of of the 20 provinces that made up former the eastern region that mandated Ojukwu to declare the Eastern region a separate country on 29th May 1967.

The OP said that Ojukwu rejected aid for his suffering people. Ojukwu never rejected foreign aid. What Ojukwu rejected was Gowon trying to control the distribution of the aid.

Ojukwu may have been highanded, brash and condescending but it was war situation. Hardley the time to be Mr nice guy.

The OP also failed to take into account that over 50,000 easterners were slaughtered in broad daylight and that Ojukwus signed a peace agreement in Ghana with Gowon which Gowon decided not to honour.

Ojukwu did what he had to do to protect his people and I commend him for standing up to fight northern Nigerian hegemony at a time when all others decided to be cowards and submit themselves to Nothern slavery.

infoispower:



This is not meant to create any divisions,except to try and encourage people to read widely
and come to their own conclusion,rather than hating without facts and also to illuminate why
a good leader knows when to and not to fight.

dapsonlou:


The op stated facts with proof and it's a well research piece. No hate in the piece what so ever. This is the most thorough Post on Nairaland still date. lalasticlala
obinoscopy Mynd44 Oya front page things

Hillzy:
Ipob yoots will surely come for ur head

gidgiddy:
The OP made so many mistakes:

He said Ojukwu started a war: How could Ojukwu have started a war when it was Gowon that came down to east to start fighting?

He said that Ojukwu executed people like Victor Banjo, Ifeajuna, Alale and Mr Abam for opposing him: I would suggest to him to find a book called 'No place to hide: crises and conflicts inside Biafra' by Ben Odogwu. In this book he will read the ful text of how these four men were tried for plotting to topple Ojukwu and how they were secretly recorded planning their coup.

He said that Ojukwu didn't consult anyone before declaring Biafra when it is a historical fact that it was the Eastern Nigeria consultative assembly which was comprised of all the representatives and Chiefs of of the 20 provinces that made up former the eastern region that mandated Ojukwu to declare the Eastern region a separate country on 29th May 1967.

The OP said that Ojukwu rejected aid for his suffering people. Ojukwu never rejected foreign aid. What Ojukwu rejected was Gowon trying to control the distribution of the aid.

Ojukwu may have been highanded, brash and condescending but it was war situation. Hardley the time to be Mr nice guy.

The OP also failed to take into account that over 50,000 easterners were slaughtered in broad daylight and that Ojukwus signed a peace agreement in Ghana with Gowon which Gowon decided not to honour.

Ojukwu did what he had to do to protect his people and I commend him for standing up to fight northern Nigerian hegemony at a time when all others decided to be cowards and submit themselves to Nothern slavery.

contagiousme:



It was okoro’s that stopped our young democracy with their coup just after the election
without giving the experienced politicians enough chance.
it was okoro’s that first started military take over,that eventually became the norm,that led to the
underdevelopment of nigeria that is going on today.
it was okoro’s that first changed our federal structure by taking power away from regional governments
there by concentrating more power to the centre,the same system okoro’s are complaining about now.
it was okoro’s that first killed other ethnic and other tribal leaders and expect that there will be no retaliation
and blame the northerns when the angry northern masses descended on them.
it was okoro that when the northern leaders were asking for severe punishment for the coup plotters and change of
decree 34,he ignored all the warning and instead flew around the country to beg and appease them.
it was okoro that when their inexperienced dictatorial appointed leader,lead 3 million to their deaths,chose to
blame other tribal leaders for his incompetence.
it was okoro that made the” follow my leader “northers that would not contemplate a coup because they revere
their leaders,made the northerners more conscious of what could happen if they don’t hold on to power
it was okoro’s that when obasanjo appointed all their kins men and women in to his government went to pack all
their people in to all the ministries,the way they packed them selves into the ministries before the war,
then one nigeria was good for the okoros and yorubas were ok.
when okoro’s they chop Ofe owerri soup under Jonathan they jolly,then one nigeria good for the okoros
yebo,okoro,nna. how many times i call you!!! ? 3 times
when will you power hungry,money hungry,egotistic,tribalistic,clannish people start accepting
responsibilities for your actions and stop blaming other tribes……biko

contagiousme:


Thank you bro…
when the igbos were being led to their death like ramadan ram and christmas turkey
we yorubas swallowed our pride and might i add that we also swallowed jolof rice and
turkey,amala gbegiri and ewedu with assorted meats while we watched the drama unfolded
on the 1st television station in Africa provided by our great politically experienced leader
awolwo……

pchukwudi:


Why are you so arrogantly calling a clear hot lie an "encouragement to read widely"?.

You should go and weep for distorting history the way you just did.

Probably you should go and read wide first before drawing personal conclusions let alone forcing your silly ideas on the gullible uninformed public.

AdiscoPele:
@OP, I want to thank you greatly for this piece. You have done a great work here.

I also read the thread about the Awolowo speech and i was so disappointed with what some Igbos were typing.

They are quick to use the 3million dead propaganda forgetting that Nigeria also lost some people in thousands or even millions too.

I was also forced to researched also and whole doing that, I came across a piece in the Vanguard, published on November 28, 2011, where even Ojukwu himself called the Sage, The Best President Nigeria Never Had.

pchukwudi:


The above statement showes how ignorant you are: Someone who does not know, and yet does not know that he does not know.

Ngozi123:


I don't actually care about the rest of your post but the points that you've made here are absolute hogwash. How is it propaganda when they are merely stating facts. Even the Nigerian Government has acknowledged the death of 2 million Igbos in the war, so of course it doesn't seem far fetched to declare the real number as 3 million, given he FG's penchant for distorting the truth to fit their agenda. As for the second part of the bolded, please reveal the source that you've used that says that millions of non-Biafrans died in the Biafran War 1967-70 as that sounds like propaganda to me.

With respect to Awolowo, it is well-known that Ojukwu appreciated the man's capabilities as a leader for his people however this does not negate the fact that the man was responsible for the starvation policy that killed millions of people, mostly vulnerable children and elderly people. It is also a fact that he was the one who instigated the 20 Naira policy for all Biafrans who had bank accounts in Nigeria. These are facts and not a matter of opinion. In essence, Awolowo was a good and capable leader for his people but he was a terrible man, from an Igbo point of view, for what he did to them both in the course and aftermath of the war. I can understand why the Yorubas adore him because everything he did, he did for their benefit but you simply cannot expect the Igbos to have the same attitude.

contagiousme:


Thank you bro…
when the igbos were being led to their death like ramadan ram and christmas turkey
we yorubas swallowed our pride and might i add that we also swallowed jolof rice and
turkey,amala gbegiri and ewedu with assorted meats while we watched the drama unfolded
on the 1st television station in Africa provided by our great politically experienced leader
awolwo……

AdiscoPele:
I appreciate your sincere contributions and i wont argue with you concerning the number of deaths on the federal side since you are only concerned about the biafran 'propaganda'.

What we are trying to say is that Ojukwu new, as a senior officer in the army, before the war that millions of souls will be lost because he was ill prepared. The deaths could have been avoided.

Let me ask you a question, Azikiwe, Awolowo and Ahmadu Bello fought for Nigerians independence right. Ahmadu Bello was killed in a coup by young Igbo soldiers, Awolowo was at the front of the situation trying to queel the civil war. Please, where was Azikiwe all through the civil war. Why didn't anyone hear of his contributions to ending the war.

Your people should stop being ungrateful to a man who stood for your fathers when there own ran away.

I have never heard any Igbo youth mention Zik or when call him a coward. That I believe is because the stories told by your elders never mentioned him, and no one has the guts to ask.

To the 20pounds issue, note that most Igbos who had accounts in Nigerian banks withdrew all their savings before going back to the east. Let your elders be sincere with you for once.

gidgiddy:
OP, you have your some facts wrong. Gowon did not create states because Ojukwu declared Biafra, rather, it was the other way around. Ojukwu declared Biafra because after going to Ghana to negotiate a confederation with the existing 4 regions, Gowon went on to break that agreement by creating States. The 'divide and rule' started by Gowon is the same thing that the northerners use and still use to dominate Nigeria. The same true federalism which many Yorubas today say is what is best for Nigeria is what Ojukwu went to get, and got in Aburi, Ghana. But the same Yorubas and their leader Awolowo had no problem with Gowon and his fellow Northerners going back on the agreement, destroying federalism, creating States and taking away resouce control. Awolowo was all too happy to '2ic' to Gowon and protect his peoples interests. When Ojukwu declared Biafra in response, they vilified him. Till today, the same Yoruba man is looking for the same true federalism Ojukwu went to Ghana to get, and got,but has no problem calling Ojukwu a fool for not being a 'northern a$$licker' like Awolowo. All the Yoruba man knows is "we saved our selves from being killed by the Northerners by accepting one Nigeria while that stupid Ojukwu had millions of his people killed by not doing what we did". Shameful


I thank God that he created me an Igho man and didn't give me this level of cowardice

Kingspin:
The op is the greatest hater of our century. Who dislike Ojukwu because his braveness,achievements and nothing more. Your forefathers dead, born and yet unborn will never ever match Ojukwu records. So you better swallow your pride, Ojukwu is a legend Nigeria will not meet his like again in life.

infoispower:


for your information,it is so convenient to be brave when other peoples life is on the line
but i disagree that courage is when you pack you belongings and run when the war that
you stated come to your door step after you’ve sent millions to their grave.

gidgiddy:
The OP made so many mistakes:

He said Ojukwu started a war: How could Ojukwu have started a war when it was Gowon that came down to east to start fighting?

He said that Ojukwu executed people like Victor Banjo, Ifeajuna, Alale and Mr Abam for opposing him: I would suggest to him to find a book called 'No place to hide: crises and conflicts inside Biafra' by Ben Odogwu. In this book he will read the ful text of how these four men were tried for plotting to topple Ojukwu and how they were secretly recorded planning their coup.

He said that Ojukwu didn't consult anyone before declaring Biafra when it is a historical fact that it was the Eastern Nigeria consultative assembly which was comprised of all the representatives and Chiefs of of the 20 provinces that made up former the eastern region that mandated Ojukwu to declare the Eastern region a separate country on 29th May 1967.

The OP said that Ojukwu rejected aid for his suffering people. Ojukwu never rejected foreign aid. What Ojukwu rejected was Gowon trying to control the distribution of the aid.

Ojukwu may have been highanded, brash and condescending but it was war situation. Hardley the time to be Mr nice guy.

The OP also failed to take into account that over 50,000 easterners were slaughtered in broad daylight and that Ojukwus signed a peace agreement in Ghana with Gowon which Gowon decided not to honour.

Ojukwu did what he had to do to protect his people and I commend him for standing up to fight northern Nigerian hegemony at a time when all others decided to be cowards and submit themselves to Nothern slavery.

Kingspin:
Ojukwu has a million reasons to go for the war because of the high level of provocation as of the time. And what led to Nigerian civil war is still with us. Sending millions to their grave, I think Nigeria would have let them go simple.

pchukwudi:


Why are you so arrogantly calling a clear hot lie an "encouragement to read widely"?.

You should go and weep for distorting history the way you just did.

Probably you should go and read wide first before drawing personal conclusions let alone forcing your silly ideas on the gullible uninformed public.

infoispower:



Buy this book :Ralph uwuchie, "reflections of the nigerian civil war"
he is an insider he fought with biafra till the end.
google this quote:”the biafran masses, enslaved by an extremely efficient propaganda network and cowed by
the iron grip of ruthless military machine had neither the facts or the liberty to form an independent opinion.
the case of the elite was different…those who had access to the facts knew that the time had come to seek a realistic
way to end the war …. in private they expressed this view but proved to cowardly to take a stand and tell ojukwu the
truth"un quote.

http://thenationonlineng.net/genocide-biafran-culpability-and-achebes-impressions/
https://peccaviconsulting./2015/08/04/biafra-strategic-military-lessons-from-the-civil-war-1/

biafra had effective propaganda system and stories which majority of people still believe till present

Themonster:
lalasticlala obinoscopy Mynd44
Why won't you guys take down this thread and sanction the op

contagiousme:



It was okoro’s that stopped our young democracy with their coup just after the election
without giving the experienced politicians enough chance.
it was okoro’s that first started military take over,that eventually became the norm,that led to the
underdevelopment of nigeria that is going on today.
it was okoro’s that first changed our federal structure by taking power away from regional governments
there by concentrating more power to the centre,the same system okoro’s are complaining about now.
it was okoro’s that first killed other ethnic and other tribal leaders and expect that there will be no retaliation
and blame the northerns when the angry northern masses descended on them.
it was okoro that when the northern leaders were asking for severe punishment for the coup plotters and change of
decree 34,he ignored all the warning and instead flew around the country to beg and appease them.
it was okoro that when their inexperienced dictatorial appointed leader,lead 3 million to their deaths,chose to
blame other tribal leaders for his incompetence.
it was okoro that made the” follow my leader “northers that would not contemplate a coup because they revere
their leaders,made the northerners more conscious of what could happen if they don’t hold on to power
it was okoro’s that when obasanjo appointed all their kins men and women in to his government went to pack all
their people in to all the ministries,the way they packed them selves into the ministries before the war,
then one nigeria was good for the okoros and yorubas were ok.
when okoro’s they chop Ofe owerri soup under Jonathan they jolly,then one nigeria good for the okras

Yeo,Okoro,Nna. how many times i call you!!! ? 3 times
when will you power hungry,money hungry,egotistic,tribalistic,clannish people start accepting
responsibilities for your actions and stop blaming other tribes……biko

gidgiddy:
OP, you have your some facts wrong. Gowon did not create states because Ojukwu declared Biafra, rather, it was the other way around. Ojukwu declared Biafra because after going to Ghana to negotiate a confederation with the existing 4 regions, Gowon went on to break that agreement by creating States. The 'divide and rule' started by Gowon is the same thing that the northerners use and still use to dominate Nigeria. The same true federalism which many Yorubas today say is
what is best for Nigeria is what Ojukwu went to get, and got in Aburi, Ghana. But the same Yorubas and their leader Awolowo had no
problem with Gowon and his fellow Northerners going back on the agreement, destroying federalism, creating States and taking away resouce control.
Awolowo was all too happy to '2ic' to Gowon and protect his peoples interests. When Ojukwu declared Biafra in response, they vilified him. Till today, the same Yoruba man is looking for the same true federalism Ojukwu went to Ghana to get, and got,but has no problem calling Ojukwu a fool for not being a
'northern a$$licker' like Awolowo. All the Yoruba man knows is "we saved our selves from being killed by the Northerners by accepting

one Nigeria while that stupid Ojukwu had millions of his people killed by not doing what we did". Shameful

I thank God that he created me an Igho man and didn't give me this level of cowardice