₦airaland Forum

According to excerpts from A Journey in Service, General Ibrahim Babangida points out that the 1966 coup originated in the South West and was primarily driven by actors from that region.


"Several studies have shown that some of the fundamental issues that have continued to plague us to this day as a nation, as, for instance, the mindless interplay of ethnicism and religious identities, can be traced to the First Republic. As the situation in the country deteriorated in the days leading up to January 1966, many of the young majors came under the influence of radical southern intellectuals, particularly at the University of Ibadan, who were openly calling on the military to save the country from disintegration.

In some cases, the call for intervention resonated with incitement and even instigation. In other cases, politicians secretly called upon the military to intervene. This enthusiasm for change partly explains why, when the young majors, driven, as I have said earlier, by a genuine patriotic desire to correct the political mess in which the country had found itself and decided to overthrow the civilian Balewa government."

Source: https://www.nairaland.com/8351313/why-nigeria-suffered-5-military#134286763

Wahala

There was angst in the west because their leader was in prison. It was a fertile ground for a coup but when the coup came, their leader was not released from prison. It is actually the second coup that could be called Awo's coup. There was initial support for the coup across Nigeria including the west before people started to calculate who were killed and who escaped. It will not be right to say the west instigated the first coup but there was fertile ground for it in the west.

lawani:
There was angst in the west because their leader was in prison. It was a fertile ground for a coup but when the coup came, their leader was not released from prison. It is actually the second coup that could be called Awo's coup. There was initial support for the coup across Nigeria including the west before people started to calculate who were killed and who escaped. It will not be right to say the west instigated the first coup but there was fertile ground for it in the west.

How would they release Awo from prison when the coup failed?were they able to take over Lagos? Ademoyega's coup announcement speech could not be read because the most important speech which was to come from Lagos didnt come so how will Awo be released?
Why? How? Shebi if you were in charge you can do and undo

lawani:
There was angst in the west because their leader was in prison. It was a fertile ground for a coup but when the coup came, their leader was not released from prison. It is actually the second coup that could be called Awo's coup. There was initial support for the coup across Nigeria including the west before people started to calculate who were killed and who escaped. It will not be right to say the west instigated the first coup but there was fertile ground for it in the west.

The Jan 1966 coup was Awo's coup because all his political opponents were killed. Unfortunately the coup didn't succeed and that was why he was not released immediately to take over the government.

Awolowo was obviously a very wicked man who knew all these, but chose to starve innocent people who were fighting a war of survival. His suicide was obviously a curse that came to pass.

OfoIgbo:
The Jan 1966 coup was Awo's coup because all his political opponents were killed. Unfortunately the coup didn't succeed and that was why he was not released immediately to take over the government.

Awolowo was obviously a very wicked man who knew all these, but chose to starve innocent people who were fighting a war of survival. His suicide was obviously a curse that came to pass.

Awolowo died peacefully in his sleep. He did not do any wrong that I can decipher. He asked Northern soldiers to leave the west and they did, to go and station themselves in Ilorin. They had already passed their boundary by attacking Igbos in the west. Then the liberation army moved into the west and Midwest even when those two regions were supporting Biafra. Colonel David Ejoor had said he will not allow any attack on Biafra through the Midwest and Awo had gotten Northern soldiers out of the west. The liberation army's invasion of the west and Midwest forced the two regions to join the war. What did Awo do wrong to attract all the abuse and insults?. Awo was a great man that did right for his people and Nigeria. If no invasion of the west, then Nigeria would have broken up easily. On Awolowo again, Colonel Ojukwu himself saw Awo as a great man and said he wished he had led the Igbos

happney65:
How would they release Awo from prison when the coup failed?were they able to take over Lagos? Ademoyega's coup announcement speech could not be read because the most important speech which was to come from Lagos didnt come so how will Awo be released?
Why? How? Shebi if you were in charge you can do and undo

Well, you are right that the coup failed and part of why it failed was because they did not release Awo on the first day. Those coup plotters were just sadistic murderers

lawani:
Awolowo died peacefully in his sleep. He did not do any wrong that I can decipher. He asked Northern soldiers to leave the west and they did, to go and station themselves in Ilorin. They had already passed their boundary by attacking Igbos in the west. Then the liberation army moved into the west and Midwest even when those two regions were supporting Biafra. Colonel David Ejoor had said he will not allow any attack on Biafra through the Midwest and Awo had gotten Northern soldiers out of the west. The liberation army's invasion of the west and Midwest forced the two regions to join the war. What did Awo do wrong to attract all the abuse and insults?. Awo was a great man that did right for his people and Nigeria. If no invasion of the west, then Nigeria would have broken up easily

Awolowo was already Gowon's deputy before the Midwest invasion, so this your attempt at deceiving people into believe the west supported Biafra before the Midwest invasion will not wash.

How can the west and Awolowo be supporting Biafra, and at the same time Awolowo was Gowon's major minister?

OfoIgbo:
Awolowo was already Gowon's deputy before the Midwest invasion, so this your attempt at deceiving people into believe the west supported Biafra before the Midwest invasion will not wash.

How can the west and Awolowo be supporting Biafra, and at the same time Awolowo was Gowon's major minister?

He did the right thing by accepting to be Gowon's deputy. Ojukwu himself was governor in the East. Gowon was Awo's benefactor. Being Gowon's deputy did not mean Nigeria would have ultimately survived. Awo had already said if the East goes the west will go. He got the Northern soldiers out of the west.
The fact is that before the invasion of the west, the west did not allow Northern soldiers to attack the East from the west

OfoIgbo:
Awolowo was already Gowon's deputy before the Midwest invasion, so this your attempt at deceiving people into believe the west supported Biafra before the Midwest invasion will not wash.

How can the west and Awolowo be supporting Biafra, and at the same time Awolowo was Gowon's major minister?

They always think they are very smart

lawani:
Well, you are right that the coup failed and part of why it failed was because they did not release Awo on the first day. Those coup plotters were just sadistic murderers

How will they release him on the first day when it was a failed coup and they didnt take over Lagos which was the seat of power. The order to release Awo was to come from Lagos.

The only place it succedded was Kaduna.

lawani:
He did the right thing by accepting to be Gowon's deputy. Ojukwu himself was governor in the East. Gowon was Awo's benefactor. Being Gowon's deputy did not mean Nigeria would have ultimately survived. Awo had already said if the East goes the west will go. He got the Northern soldiers out of the west.
The fact is that before the invasion of the west, the west did not allow Northern soldiers to attack the East from the west

That is a weird way of showing his dissatisfaction with Nigeria......accepting to be Gowon's deputy in protecting Nigeria.

And by the way, Gowon who was the commander in chief of the forces that attacked northern Igboland, was resident in Lagos, which we all know, is generally to the west. So Biafrans retaliating by attempting to get to the west, was very legitimate.

Yorubas and the west allowed Gowon to initiate aggression against Igbos, while residing in the west. To make matters worse, the supreme Yoruba leader accepted to be Gowon's deputy in their aggression against Ndigbo.

Pazienza

OfoIgbo:
That is a weird way of showing his dissatisfaction with Nigeria......accepting to be Gowon's deputy in protecting Nigeria.

And by the way, Gowon who was the commander in chief of the forces that attacked northern Igboland, was resident in Lagos, which we all know, is generally to the west. So Biafrans retaliating by attempting to get to the west, was very legitimate.

Yorubas and the west allowed Gowon to initiate aggression against Igbos, while residing in the west. To make matters worse, the supreme Yoruba leader accepted to be Gowon's deputy in their aggression against Ndigbo.

Pazienza

Awo can not refuse an offer of the second best job in the country from his benefactor. What he got from Gowon was what he could have gotten from the plotters of the first coup. Deputy. He did what he could for Biafra by chasing Northern soldiers out of the west with just his mouth. That was remarkable. I firmly believe that if not for the invasion of the midwest and the west, Biafra would have succeeded. You have to fear your adversaries at least a little during war. Colonel David Ejoor stated bluntly that the Midwest territory will not be used to attack Biafra and the government did not force him. Awo did not have troops under his command and he can not be fighting his benefactors.
You think he should have started fighting Gowon?
If you say Biafra had the right to attack any part of Nigeria even when those parts were insisting they will not allow their territories be used against Biafra, will you say those parts were wrong to resist Biafran invasion when it came?. What would you have done in their shoes?.
You have to understand that the Midwest and the west were not ready to go from British overlordship to Igbo overlordship

happney65:
How will they release him on the first day when it was a failed coup and they didnt take over Lagos which was the seat of power. The order to release Awo was to come from Lagos.

The only place it succedded was Kaduna.

Tell me why they can't include his release in the coup speech?. Gideon Orkar broke up Nigeria in.his coup speech that failed. It was a matter of sending someone to Calabar to free him and making him deputy in the government.

lawani:
Tell me why they can't include his release in the coup speech?. Gideon Orkar broke up Nigeria in.his coup speech that failed. It was a matter of sending someone to Calabar to free him and making him deputy in the government.

You want to compare Orkar to the 66 coup? Haba naa

Orkar took over Nigeria for about 12hours. He took over the Federal Capital of Lagos. Those
of 66 were not. Ironisi quelled the coup in Lagos and nothing of such could happen

How can you release Awolowo in calabar when the Lagos,which is the federal government where that order can come from is not in your hands?How?

I