Yakubu Gowon Turns 87 Today

Yakubu Gowon (born 19 October 1934), affectionately known as Jack Gowon, is a retired Nigerian Army general and military leader. As Head of State of Nigeria, Gowon presided over a controversial Nigerian Civil War and delivered the famous "no victor, no vanquished" speech at the war's end in an effort to promote healing and reconciliation.
The Nigerian Civil War is listed as one of the deadliest in modern history, with some accusing Gowon of crimes against humanity and genocide. Gowon maintains that he committed no wrongdoing during the war and that his leadership saved the country.

An Anglican Christian from a minority Ngas family of Northern Nigeria, Gowon is a Nigerian nationalist, and a believer in the unity and oneness of Nigeria. Gowon's rise to power following the July 1966 counter-coup cemented military rule in Nigeria. Consequently, Gowon is the longest serving head of state of Nigeria, ruling for almost nine years until his overthrow in the coup d'état of 1975 by Brigadier Murtala Mohammed.

Early life

Gowon is a Ngas (Angas) from Lur, a small village in the present Kanke Local Government Area of Plateau State. His parents, Nde Yohanna and Matwok Kurnyang left for Wusasa, Zaria as Church Missionary Society (CMS) missionaries in the early days of Gowon's life. His father took pride in the fact that he married the same day as the future Queen Mother Elizabeth married the future King George VI. Gowon was the fifth of eleven children. He grew up in Zaria and had his early life and education there. At school, Gowon proved to be a very good athlete: he was the school football goalkeeper, pole vaulter, and long-distance runner. He broke the school mile record in his first year. He was also the boxing captain.

Early career

Gowon joined the Nigerian Army in 1954, and received his commission as a second lieutenant on 19 October 1955, his 21st birthday. He was trained in the prestigious Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, UK (1955–56), Staff College, Camberley, UK (1962) as well as the Joint Staff College, Latimer, 1965. He saw action in the Congo as part of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force, both in 1960–61 and in 1963. He advanced to battalion commander rank by 1966, at which time he was still a lieutenant colonel.

Head of state

In 1966, Gowon was chosen to become head of state. Up until then, Gowon remained strictly a career soldier with no involvement whatsoever in politics, until the tumultuous events of the year suddenly thrust him into a leadership role, when his unusual background as a Northerner who was neither of Hausa nor Fulani ancestry nor of the Islamic faith made him a particularly safe choice to lead a nation whose population was seething with ethnic tension.

Gowon promoted himself twice as Nigerian Head of State. Gowon was a Lt. Colonel upon his ascendancy to the top of the new Federal military government of Nigeria on August 1, 1966 however other senior military officers such as Commodore Joseph Wey, Brigadier Babafemi Ogundipe, and Colonel Robert Adebayo were a part of the government and their military seniority to Gowon was awkward. To stabilize his position as Head of State, Gowon promoted himself to Major-General just before the start of the civil war hostilities in 1967 and to full General at the end of the civil war in 1970.

Overthrow

On 29 July 1975, while Gowon was attending an OAU summit in Kampala, a group of officers led by Colonel Joe Nanven Garba announced his overthrow. The coup plotters appointed Brigadier Murtala Muhammed as head of the new government, and Brigadier Olusegun Obasanjo as his deputy.

Years in exile

Gowon subsequently went into exile in the United Kingdom, where he acquired a Ph.D. in political science as a student at the University of Warwick. His main British residence is on the border of north London and Hertfordshire, where he has very much become part of the English community in his area. He served a term as Churchwarden in his parish church, St Mary the Virgin, Monken Hadley.

Personal life

Gowon married Miss Victoria Zakari, a trained nurse in 1969 at a ceremony officiated by Seth Irunsewe Kale at the Cathedral Church of Christ, Lagos.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yakubu_Gowon

Let him go and save his people from ethnic cleansing

I still don't know why this Man is not recognised and respected the way other heads of state are , OBJ , Abdulsalami .seems to carry more respect

Crazy man
He send zoo soldiers to kill and maim innocent Biafrans, rape our mothers and grandmothers, thousands of children died of starvation in the lasting civil war that left a great vacuum in our hearts and history
He forced us to remain in this contraption called Nigeria. May his remaining days be darker, may he never find rest the after life, and may his generations to come never find peace on the surface of this earth.

We shall tell these stories to our generations

.

When is this SIMP gonna die

Extinction owa

Happy birthday Yakubu...many happy returns

Hello Mr Ex President...


Fvk you & ur birthday groove

The 4 million souls u slaughtered still cry out from Sheol & they soon await you

The man that made Nigeria remain one. Because of him, there are millions of Igbos in the Southwest and North. Not living as aliens but as Nigerians, making billions and making a difference. May you live longer Uncle Jack.
God bless Nigeria.

D founder of nysc- the policy that has become a disaster for nigerian youths; killing them as they travel to terrorists enclaves for PPA and also during elections

I see a progressive govt some day coming in and scrapping nysc
I see a reform for nysc to better adjust to new realities

kettykin:
I still don't know why this Man is not recognised and respected the way other heads of state are , OBJ , Abdulsalami .seems to carry more respect

What are his achievements... List them

Only in a zoo shall a man who committed the most heinous genocide against the indigenous people is celebrated. Someone who suppose to be in jail for a war crime. Crime against humanity. I wish you unhappy birthday and I hope that you and your generation kiss my multi-racial behind while you burn in hell for all I care.

lalasticlala:
Yakubu Gowon Turns 87 Today



https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yakubu_Gowon

The head of state wey enjoy Nigeria pass.

One of dem Nigeria destroyers

Happy birthday
Your war with ojukwu helped so much in destroying this country

Happy birthday sir

One of our sensible president that value the masses....tins were cheap in his regime

Great man.

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Ndi igbo hates Gowon.

kettykin:
I still don't know why this Man is not recognised and respected the way other heads of state are , OBJ , Abdulsalami .seems to carry more respect

He is actually, only way older and above dem in military hierarchy. Those 2 no be him set.

You think say e easy to win a war as a sitting Head of State? As he dey so, he did what no other Head of State alive or dead did, he led and won a war for Nigeria. He is already immortalised and will one day be on a national currency. It's because he still dey alive dem never do am. Gen Gowon na a global icon and national legion.

One of the founding Fathers problems of this country

He ascended to the top position as a Lt Col and promoted himself twice just to make himself feel good, isn't that corruption All past and present leaders of this country are fraudsters.

I'll just like to ask one question, "Was the civil war necessary?"

Happy birthday sir

OloshoMan:
When is this SIMP gonna die

Uncultured statement

Gowon that can't save his plateau people

87 years. wow.

how old is buhari again?

okoo

Hmmm