The Biafra war of 1967 to 1970 was one of the most defining events in the history of post-independent Nigeria, the war holds answers to most of the problems of the modern-day Nigerian state. Therefore, this article seeks to give a history of the Biafra civil war from an objective perspective, and it is a little deviation from the normative theme and narrative we have been used to. The sources consulted in the drafting of this essay includes; readings from journals, newspaper and magazine sources, as well as books on the biography of Ojukwu; (Emeka).
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| Gowon (left) and Ojukwu (right) |
In every conventional history of the Biafra war, it is customary to hear names like; Gowon and Ojukwu featuring prominently as the major Protagonist and Antagonist in this war. However, this study will focus on the causal events that precipitated the outbreak of the civil war. These causal events predated 1960, as well as the rise of Ojukwu and Gowon into prominence. These causal events and factors were more remote in time. While Gowon was from a minority ethnic group in the Northern region of Nigeria, Ojukwu on the other hand was from the Igbo tribe which was a major ethnic group in the Eastern Nigeria. these two factors will go on to shape the outcome of the war in the years to come.
One other factor to consider is that prior to the rise of Gowon as the Head of State in 1966, Ojukwu was the highest-ranking Army Officer after Ironsi who was to be the next in command. But due to the complexity of the political instability that rocked the country in the pre-war years, Ojukwu never attained the position of Head of State. As at the time of the outbreak of the civil war, Ojukwu was the Governor of the then Eastern Region. However, fate had something different in store for both men in the war and post-war years.
The actual cause of the Biafra war was more remote than the coup and counter coup of 1966. Although these two coups were the last straw that broke the camel’s back and led to the flaming of the tempers of war. One of such events which is of utmost importance was the so-called amalgamation of the Northern and Southern Protectorate to form Nigeria. This amalgamation without unification as aptly stated by Prof. Ajayi of the Ibadan history school is one of the major and most important factors that has led to the challenges faced by the Nigerian state from the time of independence since 1960.
This amalgamation led to a sharp divide of the country along ethnic lines. To further exacerbate the challenge of disunity, the Richard constitution which was introduced by the British government of Nigeria in 1946 under the leadership of the then Governor-General; Sir Arthur Richards introduced regionalism into the polity of Nigeria. this regionalism was what sparked off a sharp ethnic divide and disunity in the would-be country that attained independence in 1960. Regionalism also led to the formation of political parties that were ethnically and regionally based. Examples of such parties were the Action Group (AG) which was a Western region party founded by Chief Obafemi Awolowo and was dominated by the Yorubas, the Northern People’s Congress (NPC) which was a party of the Northern Region and was dominated by the Hausa-Fulani, the National Council of Nigerians and Cameroonians (NCNC) which was co-founded by Dr. Nmamdi Azikiwe and was dominated by the Igbos of the Eastern Region.
Later on, the United Middle Belt Congress (UMBC) broke away from the Action Group to become a party dominated by the people of the Middle belt region who felt voiceless and left out in a Nigerian political clime dominated by the three other larger regions. These regional based political parties which were offshoots of the regional system introduced by Sir Arthur Richard led to a division of the country along regional lines. Regionalism led to ethnic distrust and suspicions, as well as fear of domination of one region by the other in the first few years of independence. Nigeria practiced a British-style Parliamentary system of government immediately after independence, with Tafawa Balewa of the NPC becoming the Prime Minister, Nmamdi Azikiwe was the President, a position which he held ceremonially, while Chief Awolowo of the AG was the leader of the opposition in Parliament.
The Biafra civil war of 1967-1970 was described by many Historians as a war of civilization and domination between the Hausa/Fulani of the North and the Igbos of the East. Some described the war as an ethnic cleansing and genocide committed against the Igbos, some also describe the war as an outright attempt to invade the Christian East, as well as to further the Jihadist agenda of the Muslim Elites and the Hausa/Fulani cabals. However, these were all mere speculations which were not substantiated with any verifiable evidence.
One major factor to take note of in dislodging the popular myth of heaping all the blames of the war on Ojukwu and Gowon was the fact that by 1964, Nigeria was already divided on all fronts, severe cracks had already begun to appear in the stability of the political structure that ruled Nigeria in those days. This factor was further worsened by the post-election crisis that broke out in the western region. In the western region, law and order had begun to breakdown, along with rumours of a constitutional clash. Ojukwu on his part in these pre-war years was bent on maintaining unity in the Nigerian army, because the unity of the army was crucial to the unity of the country. The political Elites of the 1960s had already divided the country into three major regional political parties concentrated in the North, West and East. The civil service was also disunited, only the army at the time was truly Nigerian in a national sense.
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| Soldiers at work during the Biafran war |
Fast forward to 1966. Contrary to many sources provided as at the time of the first military coup in Nigeria which was led and masterminded by Major Kaduna Chukwuma Nzeogwu, which many Northerners claimed Ojukwu was involved in, the fact was that Ojukwu was never informed of any coup attempt, neither was he involved in any plot to overthrow the government. This first coup has been largely described by many Writers as an Igbo coup. When the coup of January 1966 was in full sway, Ojukwu was on a national posting to Kano where he was to remain with his family as at the time of the coup. It must be stated quite clearly that at the time of the first military coup in Nigeria’s history in January 1966, Ojukwu was a well known and noted Pan-Nigeria who even tried to persuade his people not to go to war. Ojukwu opted for negotiations and peaceful settlement of all disputes and grievances. His efforts were futile in stopping the tide of war that was in the atmosphere.
The response to the first military coup in Nigeria which happened on January 1966 and which led to the death of many prominent first Republic Leaders like; Tafawa Balewa, the Sardauna of Sokoto; Sir Ahmadu Bello, Samuel Ladoke Akintola of the western region, etc was a counter coup of July 1966 led by the soldiers of the Northern region which dislodged Aguiyi Ironsi and led to his death, as well as that of Colonel Adekunle Fajuyi and many more soldiers from the East and West region. This coup saw the installation of Yakubu Gowon as Head of State even though Ojukwu was meant to be next the most senior Army Officer in Nigeria. The emergence of Gowon as Head of State led to a clash of ego and superiority conflict between himself and Ojukwu who were friends and this was never resolved at the beginning of the war. Gowon like Ojukwu never wanted war, he also opted for negotiations. This was why they agreed to a peace accord at Aburi, Ghana. The failure of Gowon to fulfill his own part of the agreement reached at Aburi further exacerbated the war to new heights of fire and fury.
However, what most narrators of the civil war failed to realize was that Gowon and Ojukwu found themselves enmeshed in a national conflict that was beyond their control and that predated their emergence as national military leaders. From all sources available, Gowon himself was subject to advises and pressures from Northern Military Oligarchs and Cabals, as well as constant advises and cajoling from the British High Commission. Gowon had no power of his own, he was used as a front/stooge to fulfill the ambitions of the counter coup plotters of July 1966 who opted for pulling the North out of Nigeria. but Gowon was believed to have been the one who tried to persuade the Northern Officers to make Nigeria remain intact, since the North was twice as large as the East and West was already dominating the Nigerian terrain.
One other factor that prompted the Igbos in the Eastern region to cajole Ojukwu to pull out of Nigeria was the incessant killings of the Igbos in the North in the latter part of 1966. This killing of the Igbos became a genocide leading to the exodus of the Igbos in large numbers from the North. It was the Northern Officers and Political Cabals who first opted for secession and not the Igbos. It was the genocide against the Igbos in the North that prompted their calls for a secession.
Gowon and Ojukwu who were long term friends turned foes were reluctant in leading the country into a war, but the various advises and persuasions they received from the advisers that surrounded them eventually led them into waging the civil war. Gowon and Ojukwu became helpless in stopping this war from happening. Thus, Gowon and Ojukwu were never at fault, Ojukwu on his part was convinced by the Igbo Elders and Local Assembly to pull the East out of Nigeria due to the massacre of the Igbos in the North.
After failed attempts to persuade them to rescind this decision, Ojukwu had no choice than to opt for secession and declared Biafra an independent country on May 30th, 1967 in Enugu. Gowon on the other hand was also persuaded by the disgruntled Northern Army Officers and Northern Elders and Cabals to quash the Biafran secessionist ambitions. Gowon also had the ears of the British government and was in favour with the British High Commission, this made him to have a position of advantage over Ojukwu. The British government also favoured a unified and undivided Nigeria for economic, political and strategic reasons.
Gowon was obviously pacifist and gentle in disposition, he was naïve as compared to Ojukwu in politics and history, he was also from a minority ethnic group in the North in Jos precisely, he was also a Christian. When Gowon acting in the capacity as Head of State ordered the remnant of the Nigerian army to march to the East to quash the Biafran rebellion, from all indications, he was acting under duress, and he was also probably acting in a way to assert his superiority and flaunt his power over Ojukwu. When the war started, Gowon’s first move was to suspend the regional system in favour of the creation of states. However, this was a step too late, as Nigeria had already fully plunged into the civil war as at the time of the creation of the first twelve states in 1967. All other attempts at maintaining peace such as the Aburi accord had also failed and become futile.
In conclusion, Gowon was never at fault in the civil war that erupted in 1967. He and Ojukwu found themselves in a complex situation that was beyond their control.
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