One of his accusations for murdering JTU Aguiyi-Ironsi and FA Fajuyi and dragging their bodies, most insultingly, by a kit-car and rope tied to their necks and dragged from Ibadan to Lalupon for dumping, was that "Ironsi was Igbo, whose people had killed their leader" of the "North" and was trying to run a unitary government instead of the semi-autonomous regions as we had had it in the colonial and post-colonial times before that coup. But what have we had since then, other than an ever worsening unitary government, even after so many years of various "civilian" governments? When after the July 1966 "counter-coup" TY Danjuma and co had asked Gowon to take over as head of state, his first national radio broadcast to "his fellow Nigerians" was that he was being asked as the most senior officer of the Northern extraction available, to take over the government. Further, he observed that he personally saw no basis for unity between Nigeria's very many ethnic nationalities; and so, that he saw his present given task as that of "maintaining the peace until Nigerians will sort out by themselves how they should go thereafter". Less than a month thereafter, his "Northern" colleagues not only convinced him that what he said in the broadcast was not what he should have said. On the contrary, he was to say that "to keep Nigeria one is a task that must be done", a statement that then metamorphosed to be a major war slogan of those late 1960s. Shortly thereafter also, he got convinced that his own very name GOWON was designed by God, or at least some god, for that occasion, to read "Get On With One Nigeria - GOWON"! This also soon became a war slogan for them. Through the jihadist pogrom that followed within the very next year, there were efforts around the world to broker a genuine peace in the country. Following these efforts and at a conference in this regard called and presided over by the military leader of Ghana (General Ankrah) at Aburi, near Accra, while Gowon led the Nigerian side and Ojukwu led the Eastern Nigerian side, they agreed to restore Nigeria to a confederation as the only way that Nigeria could be a peaceful country (they call this restructuring now!). However, when Gowon came back (AGAIN!), the Nigerian political hawks were again at him; and he again reneged on his convictions as he did with the July 1966 post coup national broadcast. That is how we got to "the Nigerian civil war"; and eventually, where we are now! So, have either Gowon or Danjuma realized that he/they, for all those years at the technical helm of affairs in this country, was/were serving this "Northern" oligarchic (thanks to Obafemi Awolowo, NOT ME), or more appropriately jihadists', agenda of Nigeria; as everybody now knows it to be? Will they confess those sins, or at least gross improprieties in good governance and make the necessary amendments? Or will they continue to refuse to acknowledge it but rather recruit us to be praying over the lies, or to be defending ourselves with nothing, as they have been doing? Those who have access to those two gentlemen should do well to bring these facts to them. In that way, they may be persuaded to do what they ought to do rather than these two really useless things that they are apparently so very serious about. May God help us all in these regards through Christ our Lord, amen! There are still many Nigerians born by 1950 or earlier and who are still alive. Some of them may have lived meaningfully and substantively all over Nigeria and/or experienced the overall Nigeria; and especially, the Kaduna-Ibadan-Lagos axis politics as this author had done. They may desire to give us their "other perspectives" of these Nigerian histories as I have done here. Such will only expand and enrich our national discusses in these regards, not diminish them. May God also give them the grace to do it through Christ our Lord, amen! |
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