Nigeria Civil War: The Lies Told Against Ojukwu

 Nigeria Civil War: The Lies Told Against Ojukwu

A popular adage says that "lies travel millions of miles in decades but it takes truth few seconds to overtake it". Nigeria has existed for one hundred and seven (107) years  now out of which she has mischievously survived politically for sixty (60) years by reason of her flag independence in the year, 1960. Her existence hinged on deception and falsehood. It has been gravely peddled even by jaundiced political analysts and historians that late Chukwuemeke Odimegwu Ojukwu, orchestrated the Nigeria genocidal war levied against Biafrans from 1967 to 1970. The proponents of this deception often times, baselessly turn around to blame the war on the 1966 coup when confronted with unassailable facts, calling that unfortunate event an ""Igbo coup" or rather, hinge same porous submission on the then killing of other Nigerian regional leaders.

To put all these lies to rest, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) cum director, Radio Biafra, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, tore all to shreds when he strongly and informatively brought to the notice of the general public, the antics and agenda of the Nigerian Fulani ruling government which they labored so hard over the years to conceal. It has been brazenly made known to all who cared to listen that the Nigerian Northern region was the first to push for secession. Radio Biafra has very immensely and painstakingly helped to redirect everyone back to untainted history. It has meticulously unveiled that the Northern region was the first ever, to place demand for secession in 1954 but was convinced to make a tactical withdrawal based on the fact that there is no sustainable natural resources to fall back to should the plan be allowed to scale through. This was intelligently brought to bear upon the then agitating Northern leaders since their amalgamation with the southern protectorate. The colonialists reasoned that there would run into unprecedented deficit in the administration the North via the British Royal Company (BRC).

Britain subtly employed the use of these strategies to save their company which is Nigeria, from disintegrating. These colonialists proceeded further to hand over the country to Northern Fulanis and equally nurtured them into crass hatred for the southerners especially, Biafrans. Recall the effrontery with which a renowned Northern leader, Ahmadu Bello, stated that he would rather get a whiteman employed rather than an Easterner just because of the domineering staff handed over to them in 1966. These evil manipulated indices were factored in by the then British colonial administrators. The British are well known for using Africa and Africans to conquer themselves. This is an indisputable  fact that has only been narrated differently in Ghana since after the successful coup d'etat carried out by Flight lieutenant Jerry John Rawlings of blessed memory.

Ghana as a country, economically and otherwise, took a progressive dive as those staged as British house slaves were dislodged from maintaining the status quo following their independence.

The Nigeria coup d'etat of 1966 was a replica of that of Ghana that would have cleansed up the political mess instituted in the country by Britain. The staged coup became unsuccessful because of sabotage by some corrupt regional leaders. While some of them fled the country, some were busily enmeshed in the celebration of the coup bluff. It was then afterwards termed as "Igbo coup" but one of the coupists, Ademoyega, a Yorubaman, that subsequently gave the narrative in his book "why we struck". He succinctly laid everything bare for all to see. He was biasedly exonerated and the Igbos were totally blamed for it. Ademoyega further stated that Samuel Akintola told the then Saduana of Sokoto, about the coup, advising that they fly out but they all rebuffed it until they were all caught in the web. Some reasoned that they leaked the information to Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe but that was a lie. Every Nigerian politician then, knew about the plotted coup but while Azikiwe fled, they choose to dine and wine, rising afterwards to label the event, an Igbo affair with the connivance of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) and the Nigerian media.

Quite a number of innocent Biafran civilians resident in the North, were mowed down. The pogrom was unprecedented and after that massacre, the then military ruler of Nigeria, General Aguiyi Ironsi was eventually killed. Many Biafran citizens which consisted of pregnant women, children, youths, the elderly (men and women), were all gruesomely killed  within the same Northern region. The then military administrator of the Eastern region, Chukwuemeke Odimegwu Ojukwu, was grossly angry at the exclusive massive killing of his people and instructed that all the Northern-based Easterners (Biafrans), should immediately journey back home. This opened the vista for the mass exodus of Igbos from that part of Nigeria.

A conference held in Aburi, Ghana was put together between Ojukwu and the man who took over the gravely corrupt affairs of Nigeria, called Yakubu Gowon, that was aided and controlled by Britain. At that Aburi conference, it was tacitly agreed on terms and conditions that Nigeria would be administered again as one entity to avert continued bloodshed and extermination on what was regarded as "Aburi Accord". On arrival in Nigeria from the Ghana meeting however, Yakubu Gowon totally reneged on the same "Accord" he wholeheartedly signed in Aburi. He directed a deployment of occupational forces to the Eastern region. This made Ojukwu to summon a conference of all traditional rulers within the Eastern region (Biafraland) and at the end, they overwhelmingly resolved to declare Biafra. This name (Biafra), was suggested by one of the renowned Biafran historian, Chief Frank Opigo, of Ijaw extraction.

The British tutored Nigeria, in her provocative antecedent, declared to wage an attritious war against Biafra. While the young Biafran state was fighting for survival, Nigeria aided by her foreign allies like Britain, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, amongst others, was fighting for the control of the vast crude oil resources in Biafraland. The war was solely prosecuted to completely exterminate the Biafran people with recorded proofs. Other tools of accomplishment were employed, through stringent food and economic blockade by air, land and sea.

The genocidal war was made to linger for a period of three unbroken years from 1967 to 1970 and at the end of it all, there was a declaration of "No victor, no vanquished". Biafrans there and then dropped their arms not knowing that the Nigerian government would change tactics. The entire narrative of all that transpired, was twisted and the global community was bamboozled with lies that Chukwuemeke Odimegwu Ojukwu caused the war whereas he only demanded for the restructuring of Nigeria. History was abolished in schools primarily for this purpose by the Nigerian government. The truth needed to be adequately concealed from the upcoming generations, it was craftily carried out. But thankfully, God orchestrated the emergence of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu to dutifully unveil to this generation, the damning truth through the instrumentality of Radio Biafra which he directs.

Today, many who fought the war against Biafra, are today, terribly regretting their involvement due to the gruelling repercussions they are suffering.

Many are now driving the campaign for the same restructuring that made them to tag Ojukwu a stupid fellow for rightly placing that demand decades of years ago. And like Mazi Nnamdi Kanu often asks, who really is now stupid, Ojukwu or the Nigerian government? Nigeria is seriously in a panic mode now. The lies that Ojukwu caused the war which has lived and deceived many for over five decades now, have been completely punctured through Radio Biafra broadcasts. What an encouraging feat!

Written by Joshua T

Edited by Mazi Chuks Lyon

For Family Writers Press International.