₦airaland Forum

marveouz: 1966 Crisis, Coup and Biafra


Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe
Although Azikiwe was abroad when Nigeria experienced its first military coup in January 1966, he offered to return soon after it. He was largely ignored by the military government of Major-General Aguiyi-Ironsi, which acted as if he did not exist. When the Igbo Eastern Region seceded from Nigeria in May 1967 as the republic of Biafra, it placed Azikiwe in a difficult position, and gave him a stark choice. He had the choice of either maintaining national unity by supporting his lifelong dream and work of a united Nigeria. To do so would cause him to abandon the struggle of his fellow Igbos in the Eastern Region. His alternate option was to support Biafra, thereby making himself an accomplice in the destruction of his life’s work of maintaining Nigeria as a united country.

In the months preceding the war, Zik repeatedly advised against secession but according to his son Bamidele, Zik “was shouted down by people that were prompting for the war”. Reluctantly, he initially supported Biafra and his prestige allowed him to gain sympathy for Biafra’s cause and international recognition. Using his political connections, he led Biafran delegations abroad to press for recognition for the fledgling state. He persuaded Presidents Julius Nyerere of Tanzania and Kenneth Kaunda of Zambia to recognise Biafra (among his other notable successes in this regard was the bizarre President Francois “Papa Doc” Duvalier of Haiti).

He was a reluctant secessionist, and it must have broken his heart to see his beloved Nigeria being ripped apart by war. By 1968, Zik was having second thoughts. He appealed to Biafra’s leader, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, to negotiate with Nigerian leader Gowon, rather than fight on and risk what eventually happened: the elongation of Biafran suffering, defeat, and unconditional surrender. When Ojukwu would not heed his call, Azikiwe appeared in Lagos beside Gowon, and appealed for a cessation of the fighting. Some of his fellow Igbos labelled him a traitor. After the war ended, he lapsed into the background, stayed away from politics, and moved to Nsukka.

chuksonu: I am 37yrs old and single.Lots of issues are responsible for this.Anyway it's difficult somehow for me to get a real wife now that my story has changed.This is because I don,t reside in Nigeria and don,t believe in arranged marriage.I visits Nig at least twice in a year and any girl I come across now is always interested in marriage and I hate being pushed.tot it was better for a man to woo a lady for marriage instead of the other way round.I am planing to come home early next year to settle down so that I will be able to know who is real.Putting God first,I hope I will find my wifey soon as I believe she is somewhere right now.

PortHarcourtBoy: Make all these Edo and Lokoja people go find fish gills chuke inside their mouth...

Yujin: Obu maka na ekenyere unu (ndi aguata) n'anambara ka iji aju umunne gi no n'imo?
Kam ju kwa ozo! Ndi Anambara ibem, arapuru unu ogu Alaigbo nine, unu-aya chita aja? Onye erena nwanne ya n'ahia. E gbue dike n'ogu uno, o rue n'ogu ama achoba dike.

chino11: I don't care where you are related to, the fact is that we Anambrans are not in any way related to any part of imo state. All of you in that imo state, whether owerre, njaba, orlu, ikeduru you people are same and one people, we Anambra people has nothing in common with you lot. We are a monolithic state in the SE.

rawtruth: It is not going to be easy to convince the Fulanis to change their method of grazing which allow them free access to the lush greens of central Nigeria and beyond. Fulanis in this country believe that Nigeria is a "conquered territory" of the their forefather, the late Othman Danfodio so they have the right to move to any part of the country and graze their animals unhindered. Successive govts of this country, which have been dominated by Fulanis, have never made efforts to erase this impression. Rather, a powerful organisation, The Miyeti Allah Cattle Breeders Association Of Nigeria which has the Sultan of Sokoto as its patron, was formed to protect the interest of fulani cattle herders wherever they choose to graze in the country.

As late as 1983, nomadic cattle herders had no permanent presence in states like Benue, Nassarawa, Plateau and the lower parts of Taraba states.A few of them usually went to these places between January and March and would leave at the approach of the farming season. The reason was this: they had enough grazing land up there in the far-north to cater for their needs, so only those of them with more adventurous spirit bothered to go to such places to graze on the more nutritious grass.

The other set of long distance travellers were the traders among them who moved cattle herds to the south and the west, selling them along the way and using the opportunity to graze and breed their animals. As is their nomadic culture, they travelled with their families. In order to facilitate their free movements, govt in conjunction with various communities across the country created passage ways for the nomads to avoid straying animals trampling on farm crops. Even then there were still minor crises, but they were quickly and easily resolved.

However, due to desertification which has been rapidly expanding across many parts of the core-north, mass movement of nomadic fulanis and their cattle herds south/westwards became inevitable. But the fulanis failed to take into consideration, while moving to the new places, the issue of land ownership; their mostly aggressive posture when arguing with resident farmers reminded enlightened folks among these villagers of the "conquered territory" statement made by late Sir Ahmadu Bello and published in the Parrot Newspaper of 11th. October 1960.

To complicate and aggravate the already tense situation, thousands of foreign cattle herders, running from desertification in their respective countries, and who are of Fula (Fulani) descent, have been trooping freely into the country unchecked. Such new arrivals are quickly assimilated and inducted into the cattle breeders' union in the country and directed to link up with the local Ardos (Fulani community leaders)who showed them where to graze without consulting leaders of the resident communities. One interesting aspect to this "business" is that the foreign herders pay huge sum of money to the 'ardos', besides the regular dues paid by every cattle owner to the umbrella union-MACABAN. That is why the Alhaji Sale Bayari-led Miyeti Allah Cattle Breeders Association Of Nigeria has never complained of the invasion by foreign nomads, most of whom bore assorted arms and ammunition.

Therefore, the request by the fulanis to be given lands in each of the 36 states of the federation is merely to re-emphasise their long-held belief that they are the Patriachs of the 'Nigerian family' so they deserve preferential treatment. By the way, they have already forcefully taken over lands belonging to some Tiv communities around Rukubi, Doma local govt area of Nassarawa state, after a massacre of over a hundred of these villagers early this year. An incident that has remained unreported. Any doubting thomas can check it out:

TIV HOMES AND VILLAGES, IN AND AROUND RUKUBI TOWN IN DOMA LGA,NASSARAWA STATE, REMAIN DESERTED AFTER THE MASSACRE OF OVER A HUNDRED WOMEN AND CHILDREN WHO WERE FLEEING IN GROUP. THE INCIDENT TOOK PLACE NEAR A TIV VILLAGE CALLED 'AJIMAKA'. SOME SOLDIERS WHO WERE STATIONED IN RUKUBI TOWN BUT WERE "UNABLE" TO PROTECT THE TIVS AND THEIR PROPERTY WERE BEGGED BY SOME TIV YOUTHS BEFORE THEY ACCOMPANIED THEM FOR THE MAKE-SHIFT BURIAL OF THE VICTIMS IN SHALLOW MASS GRAVES. NOMADS ARE NOW GRAZING FREELY ON ABANDONED TIV FARM LANDS!. NIGERIA WE HAIL THEE!

The solution lies in ranches. There is enough land in this country, particularly in the far north, for the fulanis to establish ranches and settle down in relative peace. Should they insist on getting land in the '36 states', they should be allowed to negotiate and buy such lands from farmers in 'fair deals'. Only then can there be peace and harmony among cattle herders and farmers. We are no longer in 1804.

PortHarcourtBoy: From Rumuokoro to Eliozu to Rumuodara to Tank...Hausa don infiltrate

Dey form Yam sellers, Onion sellers and Water-melon sellers as well as Okada riders

See as Hausa boys full my street as security guards...na wa oh

alienware: When Nigerians steal money,they keep it in swiss bank,when they' re sick they go to india or germany, when they want to invest, they go to america,when they want to buy mansions they go to dubai,london etc,when they want to repent they go to saudi arabia or isreal,for holidays they go to paris or caribean but when they die they all want to be buried in nigeria. Pls help me ask them is nigeria a cemetary ?