CHAPTER ONE

Introduction.

When I wrote the first public edition of the Biafran Scientists 10 years ago, precisely 30 years after the beginning of the Nigerian Civil War in 1967, it was to put on record the scientific achievements of African Scientists trapped on the Biafran side of the conflict. It was not intended to eulogize the Biafran Scientists and to incite the younger generations to opt for WAR as a means of settling political disputes. It is always better to JAW-JAW rather than to WAR-WAR. It was merely written so that the complete facts about the Nigerian Civil War are not those portrayed by writers praising the achievements of the well-armed and well-trained Nigerian Armed Forces over the ill-equipped and untrained Biafran quickly - assembled Armed Forces.

It is now 40 years since the beginning of the Nigerian Civil War in which the Nigerian Federal Armed Forces after 30 months of intense battles and the untold hardship of civilians on the Biafran side of the various War Fronts occurred.

Although in January 1970, the Biafran Armed Forces finally succumbed to the superior fire power of the well-trained and well-equipped Nigerian Armed Forces, General Yakubu Gowon, the Commander-in-Chief of the Nigerian Armed forces, in his amnesty speech declared that there was “no victor and no vanquished”. This heroic and historic speech, paved the way for the eventual reconciliation and re-absorption of Biafra (the former Eastern Nigeria) into the old Nigerian Fold.

The wounds of the Civil War have not been easy to heal, but a lot has been achieved in the past 40 years. Many of the active combatants (political and military) have passed on or are now approaching their “last bus stop” in their final journey through life. The now very active youths in the Nigerian Political Arena did not experience the horrors of the Civil War or were too young to remember vividly the details of the War and Conflict.

This is the time to revisit the Nigerian Civil War in a SATIRICAL and HUMOROUS WAY avoiding JUDGEMENTAL ISSUES, so that both the old and the young can enjoy this book as a “misunderstanding between ‘several brothers and sisters’ in the same way that the people of LILLIPUT fought over how to break an egg they would all jointly eat”. For the Lilliputians, the question was whether to break the egg from the small end or from the big end. For the Nigerians, the question was whether after the bloodbaths of January 15, 1966, July 29, 1966 and thereafter, to continue to live as one United Country, as several Independent States or as a Confederation of semi-autonomous States.

In the 1950s the Nigerian Political Leaders led by Alhaji Ahmadu Bello, the Sarduana of Sokoto, leading the Northern Peoples Congress (NPC), Chief Obafemi Awolowo of the Action Group (AG) in the West and Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe (Zik) of the NCNC in the East, were clamouring for Nigeria’s Independence from British Colonial Rule. Awolowo and Zik told the British Colonial Government that they were ready to accept Political Independence from Britain in 1957, but Alhaji Ahmadu Bello said the North would not be ready for political independence till after 1957. In a reconciliatory mood both Awolowo and Zik conceded to Ahmadu Bello’s request and instead of getting Nigeria’s Independence in 1957 as the Gold Coast (now Ghana) did, Nigeria’s Independence was deferred to 1960. By 1960, the North had acquired a lot of administrative and political power in Nigeria and with the help of the then British Government was able to win more votes at the pools than either the Action Group or the NCNC; though no Party won an overall majority to be able to rule Nigeria. Then followed the horse trading between the three political parties in which finally the NPC of the North and the NCNC of the East agreed to form an alliance (a coalition) and the majority ruling group while the AG became a strong Opposition Party.

This led to a lot of political instability in Nigeria as each political group spent all the time seeking for political alliances that will give them the ruling edge at the Central Government (The Federal Government) that had the control of Power and Financial Muscle of Nigeria. It was not surprising when in 1964 political turmoil became the order of the day in Nigeria. Chief Obafemi Awolowo of the AG was eventually jailed by the Alhaji Tafawa Balewa-led Federal Government for treasonable felony. Dr. Mike Okpara now leader of the NCNC of the Eastern Nigeria (the former leader Zik had become a ceremonial President), tried to team up with the remnants of the AG while the NPC had got tired of its alliance with the Eastern NCNC and was forging an alliance with Chief SLA Akintola’s faction of the Yoruba AG.

In the fracas and political instability that ensued throughout Nigeria, the Nigerian Military saw an opportunity to step in and allegedly bring the turmoil to a stop and begin the economic development of Nigeria for the good of the Nigerian Masses. Unfortunately, the main leaders of the 5 Majors who effected the first military Coup de'tat in Nigeria on January 15, 1966 came from the Igbo (Ibo in English)-area of Nigeria. Notable among them were Major Chukwuma Nzeogwu (Mid-Western Igbo), Major Emmanuel Ifeajuna, and Major Gbulie, though Major Banjo (a Yoruba man) was among them. Their maiden speech did not indicate that the Igbo military boys had planned to take over the Federal Government of Nigeria and install an Igbo-dominated Central Government. However, a lot of senior military officers from Northern Nigeria were killed in the coup. The coup was successful in the North and the West but failed hopelessly in the East which further fuelled the rumour that it was an Igbo-planned coup. There was only partial success in the Central Government with the Prime Minister, Sir Alhaji Tafawa Balewa and the Federal Minister of Finance, Chief Okotiebo being killed before the Senate convened in an emergency meeting and hurriedly handed political power to the Military and made the most senior Military Officer, Major-General Aguiyi Ironsi the Military Head of State. Major-General Aguiyi Ironsi, though the most Senior Nigerian Military Officer who had served meritoriously in the Congo, was unfortunately an Igbo man thus further strengthening the rumour of an Igbo domination of Nigeria.
All these allegations finally spelt doom for the Igbo race in Nigeria as far as Nigerian politics was concerned. Subsequent events in the political history of Nigeria have borne out the mortal fear the rest of the Nigerian people have against the Igbos (even the Igbos in Diaspora). Even the other tribes in the then Eastern Nigeria who should know the Igbos better and be more friendly with them, unfortunately feel more comfortable with other tribes in the rest of Nigeria. Is it because the Igbos are bad and evil people or that the rest of Nigeria is afraid of their industrious and daring attitude when it comes to business matters and going to places where even the “devil fears to tread”?

When Major-General Aguiyi Ironsi became the Military Head of State, he instituted Military Decrees that gave the indication that he wanted Unitary Rule under his own Command, with the Military Governors he appointed in-charge of the four regions to be reporting directly to him in Lagos, the then Federal Capital City of Nigeria. This alienated him against the Northern politicians and through their military officers the North planned a counter-coup which was carried out on July 29, 1966, a few months after the Nzeogwu-led first coup of January 15, 1966. This coup led to a massive bloodshed of both the military and the civilians of Eastern origin resident in Northern Nigeria. The people who bore the brunt of the massacre or pogrom were of course the people from the Igbo-speaking areas of Eastern Nigeria.

The tension created by this second coup and its aftermath spread all over Nigeria and soon many people of Eastern Nigerian Origin in the Southern Regions outside the Eastern Region started feeling unsafe for their lives and as the massive killings of the Easterners continued in the North, they joined their kith and kin in the North in fleeing back to the safe haven of Eastern Nigeria.

This book as earlier stated is a SATIRE on the sad history of Nigeria between 1966 and 1970, so it will not highlight the full details of the mass massacres of defenceless civilians that took place all over Nigeria before the actual Civil War started in July 1967. Many authors have already chronicled these in their various Nigerian Civil War Books.