₦airaland Forum

AgentOrange:
I am Igbo and to be honest, these questions should be directed to Nnamdi Azikiwe.

Azikiwe witnessed all that yet refused to allow a caluse for secession in the constitution.

That is why we have 'One Nigeria' today and all the clamour for Biafra is not yielding any results.

Zik was an Igbo man who was born in the North. He saw the Northerners as his brothers, hence his belief in 'one Nigeria'. In a way, I won't lay all the blame on Zik, he probably thought that after independence Nigerians would see themselves as one. How wrong he was

Ex Governor Ohakim has already stated in detail how Governor Rochas Okorohausa and APC used state apparatus to hijack the electoral process to deliver Uwajumogu. Considering how unpopular APC is in Igbo land, I have to agree he is right. For some insane reason Rochas thinks that getting an APC senator of Igbo extraction to be senate deputy president is what will make Igbos accept APC, the man is fool. Until some sort of biometric voting system is introduced, Nigerian elections will always be a joke.

StOla:
Indeed it was.

It was a case of if you can do it, we can do it better. If you can laugh at us for misery that you caused, we can make you miserable too. If you can gloat at our misfortune, we can give you something to wail over. You want to tell your kids stories of how you killed others, why not let us add stories of how you were massacred too.

You fail to render justice to mutinous soldiers, we render justice as we deem it fit.

You want a unitary government led by you while others follow? Why not see if you like it when others led and you be the follower?

Let's assume all the above it true, then what is the point of 'one Nigeria'? You should bear in mind that if it is a question of who started killing who first and who responds in kind, the Northerners are guilty. The Kano massacre of 1945 and the Jos riots of 1953 are testaments of the Norths hatred for Igbos and this was long before the January 1966 coup. So, if being together means we have to kill each other, what is the point of 'one Nigeria'?

richybanky:
Pls y is it dat anybody dat is against Ipob or Biafra is called Yoruba?

Because it is virtually only them that is against Biafra

How did you expect to see an African restaurant in an eastern European country like Poland so easy? My cousin lives in the capital, Warsaw, even he finds it hard to find African restaurants. After living in Poland for 4 years, the day he returned to Nigeria, I went to pick him up at the airport. You know what his first request was? Where he can Eat Egusi and Eba. That that day, it only remained for him to eat the plate as well. He told me that for the last 4 years all he ate was vegetables and cheese lol

abes:
Under Gowon, are you sure it wasn't Ironsi?

It wasn't Ironsi that abolished the regions and created States

The confab report, while having the best intentions, is a waste of time. The main crux of that report is the return of Nigeria to regionalism and true federalism. Since it is a well known fact that the North is staunchly against regionalism, just how is it going to be achieved? The North will vote out any bill for Regionalism so what is the point. Another thing I find hypocritcal about Yorubas is that they claim to want regionalism but the colluded with their northern friends to entrench unitary rule under Gowon

Rollingdice:
.

Which stupid corruption? If it was not a tribal coup, why wasn't any Igbo soldiers or civilians killed? Story for the gods!

But a senior Igbo officer was killed. Lt Colonel Unegbe was killed.

BankeSmalls:
If not for the stupid action of one man called Isaac Adaka Boro, who will be arguing with Usman Bugaje who should be roaming in the lower sahara desert with his cattle?

If not for the silly action of the British chap called Lugard, Bugaje wouldn't have even known where the Ocean is.

bejeiodus:
No. Obasanjo joined in 1958.

I'm not talking about the date Obasunjo started his military training. I'm talking about when he was commissioned as a full fledged officer of the Nigerian Army and that was in 1960.

OfoIgbo:
What about brigadier Ogundipe? Was he not one of the first officers? A total cowardly footnote in history, who blazed a trail that Diya, Adisa, Olarewaju and Ransome-Kuti emulated

The reason why Ogundipe was not in this picture is because Ogundipe had left the Nigerian Army to go and do other things. After independence in 1960, Ogundipe was asked to return because there were not enough Nigerian officers to take the place of the British who were going home. So Ogundipe re-enlisted and was given the rank of Colonel like his mates. He was then promoted to Brigadier in 1964. He became Ironsi's deputy in 1966. Rightfully, Ogundipe should have become head of state after the death of Ironsi as the highest ranking officer, but for reasons I still do not understand, he was shoved aside,retired and made Nigerian ambassador to Britain. He died in London in 1971.

pyr8te:
Where was obasanjo?

Obasunjo joined in 1960, this picture is 1959.

PresidentT:
Where is Olufemi Olutoye? He was the 2nd graduate to enlist with the NA just hours after Ojukwu enrolled.

Olufemi Olutoye was commissioned as an officer in 1960 along with Obasunjo and Nzeogwu. This picture was 1959, a year before that.

Left to right sitting: Captain Robert Adeyinka Adebayo, Captain Philip Effiong, Captain Umeh Ogere Imo, Major Samuel Adesoji Ademulegun, Major Wellington Bassey, General Forster, Major JTU Aguiyi Ironsi, Major Ralph Adetunji Shodeinde, Captain Zakaria Maimalari, Captain Conrad Nwawo, Captain David Akpode Ejoor.

2nd Row Standing: Lt Igboba, Lt George Remunoiyowun Kurubo, (non Nigerian standing next to Kurubo), Lt J Akahan Akaga, Lt Patrick Awunah, Lt Louis Ogbonnia, Lt Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, Lt Eyo Ekpo, Lt Author Unegbe, Lt Abogo Largema

3rd Row Standing: Lt Hillary Mbilitem Njoku, 2nd Lt Macauley Nzefili, 2nd Lt David Oguniwe, 2nd Lt Shadrack, Lt Alexander Madiebo, 2nd Lt Anthony Eze, Lt Yakubu Gowon, 2nd Lt Sylvanus Nwanjei, Lt Yakubu Pam, 2nd Lt Hassan Katsina.

4 Officers could not make it for the picture. They were Captain Kur Mohammed, Lt Fajuyi, Lt Banjo and Lt Okwechime

The first Officer to be commissioned was Wellington Bassey with Army number (N1). Two months later, Ironsi (N2) and Ademulegun (N3) joined. I'm not sure what the numbers of the rest are but Nwawo was (N10), Philip Effiong (N15), Ejoor(N17)

It has always been Nigeria that brings violence into the issue of Biafra. It is Nigeria that is shooting peaceful protesers. It is Nigeria that is arresting and torturing them. It is Nigeria that started a civil war by coming to the eastern region to fight. While Biafra stands for peace and democracy, Nigeria has stood for violence and "enforced union".

Dim Ojukwu never said his people should not agitate for Biafra, what he was against was another war. There won't be a war, there will be a UN superviced referendum and we shall leave peacefully

ernesty20:
in a situation where the government is killing them at will and nothing happens, is it not advisable for our youth to leave the issue of biafra since nobody cares about their lives?

That's not how the world works. If a Government unjustly kills its own people, it is the duty of the people to rise up and bring that Government and the system down. We don't live in military times any more.

Ashinze? He might be Delta-Igbo

ernesty20:
if u must know, i am also an igbo guy. I dnt want my fellow youth to continue wasting their lives and making enemies for themselves

It is not the Igbo youth wasting their lives, it is the Government killing them. The constitution allows us all freedom of speech,freedom of movement and freedom of expression. This means that anybody can feel free to talk and protest about Biafra. So if your Government decides to shoot the youth for enjoying the freedom the law gives them by peacefuly agitating for Biafra then it your Government at fault and not the youth. If your own Government cannot uphold the law then what hope has the common man? No civilised Government ever shoots unarmed people. So if your advice is for everyone to forget their constitutional rights so that the Government will not kill them then you are simply helping the Government to become a dictatorship

ernesty20:
Igbo youth, please stop wasting your life for nothing. This biafra of a thing u guys are fighting for is dead and gone. Nnamdi kanu who brainwashed u guys is already rotting in jail, and i think he will die there. A question u shud ask yourself is this- how many igbo bigwigs want biafra? The answer is simple.. "nobody"!!!

So stop wasting your life and time on biafra. Biafra is dead and gone.

You should advice your self first and ask why you and other Nigerians can't do without Igbos.

Oh! While you are at it, also advice your self why you are answeing the slave name given you by a white man as a 'Nigerian'

Sorry bro, Igbos have not yet lost their sense of self determination and freedom like most of you Ngerians

The only difference between someone like me and Barcanista is that he is still a years away from realising that Nigeria is a hopeless case and the best thing is to hold a referendum and allow people such as an Igbo born son of the the soil like me to exit this 'Lord Lugard Created House of commotion' called Nigeria.

NgeneUkwenu:
22: Arresting and stopping Nnamumudi Kanu from preaching hate messages against other ethnic groups because Jonathan/PDP Lost power!

Ndi ara!

Nnamdi Kanu has been broadcasting since 2009, his radio slowly gathered popularity over the years. It's got nothing to do with GEJ losing. Kanu didn't even support GEJ.

Kanu didn't force you to listen to his hate messages did he? Besides, its not like Nigerians love the selves anyway. You better start looking at the points that have been put against Buhari because the Kanu you are mentioning is a successful UK based man from a wealthy Royal family. If Buhari messes up Nigeria, it is people like you who will suffer it more than Kanu.

oyinkinola:
...many people world wide predict the break-up of nigeria, many time, but they were proof wrong, all those predicts the division of nigeria simply because they were been deceived of the diversity of nigeria nation, religion differences, ethnicitity, region, lingustics differences, with all these diversities and many, people easily confused and predict the break-up of nigeria but they were wrong.
....geographically nigeria is divided into three part by river niger and benue meet at lokoja and flow downwards into the ocean hereby divide nigeria into three land mass, north, west, and east! with three principal ethinic groups in diferent region...hausa/fulani in the north, yoruba in the west, igbo in the east, muslim majority in the north, mixed religion ...muslim, christian and pagan in the west, majority christian in the east!
all other setup in nigeria is artificial and secondary, for any prediction to be actualised it must have the support of 2/3 other wise it's a failure, any political set-up failed to fufil the 2/3 support of the tree region will never gain power in nigeria, the break-up of nigeria is impossible because it can never gain the 2/3 support!
....those who were day and night dream of seccesion in nigeria were wasting their time, it can never come! if you want to succed in nigeria politicaly you must look beyond your region and gain the trust of one of the remaining two regions and ethnics besides yours, that's the secret behind the political power!
....if any region or political set-up think is solely enough and can acheive anything in nigeria beside the support of the 2/3 tell them to back down it can never happen!

So anyone who wants to seceed needs 2/3 support? Really? Which 2/3 support did Lugard get when he was creating Nigeria?

He could be worth that although I don't know about now. I have read his author biography. Nzeribe was an Igbo business who was based in Ghana the n 60's and 70's. He purported dealt in precious stones such as Gold and he grew fabulously rich. There was a time it was widely reported in the Ghana media that Nzeribe bribed the then Ghanain head of state, General Ankrah and this contributed to the overthrow of Ankrah and Nzeribe returned to Nigeria. It is said that when he returned and went to open an account, almost 20 able bodied men where needed to bring into the bank the amount of money he brought. Nzeribe was once thought to be the richest man in Nigeria

Afroconnect:
The Eastern consultative forum you are talking about is a bunch of Ojukwu cronies and he himself,this forum does not really represent the entire eastern population.

Feeling agitated and sponsoring a clandestine militia is one thing,but declaring a full scale war that you can't win is another. He didn't think it through...it's not wise to jeorpardise the lives of millions due to his feelings.

Why are you not talking about the Aburi agreement which Gowon broke? You are busy blaming Ojukwu but the man who broke the peace agreement Gowon is still alive but you say nothing about that because you do not want to admit that Ojukwu did not cause the war. I will never know how you people reason. Ojukwu signed an agreement in Ghana to keep Nigeria one and avoid war. Ojukwu went home and kept his side of the agreement, Gowon went home and broke his side of the agreement yet you people still blame Ojukwu for declaring Biafra? With the declaration of Biafra, Gowon could still have called Ojukwu to the peace table but Gowon chose to come down to the east to fight a war. So how can Ojukwu have declared war? How can a person be resting in his house and another person comes to fight him in his house but you blame the person who was resting in his house for fighting. This sort of daft mentality is beyond me. You people wanted Ojukwu to accept the breaking of the Aburi agreement, the dissolving of the regions, Nothern domination and on top of that, a$$-lick Gowon? I laugh in Igbo.


Ojukwu was in the best position to win the war. Ojukwu had the Oil, the man power and the Seaport. Is it the Groundnut pyramids that Gowon would have used to fight the war? The only reason Nigeria won was the British Warships which blockaded Biafra from selling Oil and importing enough Arms and food to keep going. It was also these British warships that helped Nigeria capture PortHacourt. Had Britain not blockaded Biafra, Gowon would have ran out of money and given up. So when people say Ojukwu could not have won, I wonder what planet they come from.