Before proceeding further I wish to note that I am not in anyway in support of the bloodshed that occurred in the day of January 15, 1966, whether it be civilian or military, that is not to say that the coup of January 15 1966 given all relevant facts was not justified, matter of fact Nzeogwu’s coup was much more justified than the coups of 1975 and 1983 which were effected to correct a number of certain ills those behind the coup perceived in the regimes or administration they toppled then.
I had in the last piece mentioned that the brains of the January 15th coup had wanted to install an Obafemi Awolowo, a Yoruba of Ijebu from Remo in the then Western Region of Nigeria as Premier and not an Azikiwe or MI Okpara, how this piece of information escaped the colourful mind of the “Omo Karo Jire” exponent is at first mind boggling but on deeper reflection one finds that it is merely due to the inter ethnic political squabbles that raged on in the early 60’s between the supporters of Awolowo and Akintola, one must recall that FFK’s father, Remi Fani Kayode had served as Deputy Premier in the puppeteer administration of Ladoke Akintola and perhaps was primed for bigger things in that “finest hour” period of theirs, however the coup of 1966 did shatter such permutations breaking their ugly hold onto power in the Western Region. Perhaps such could be the singular reason why his scion,FFK chooses each and every time to demonize the January 15th coupists.
Major Nzeogwu one of the leaders of that coup barely spoke the Igbo language, dressed more in Northern attire and saw himself first as a Nigerian and nothing more. On the slated day of the coup, Nzeogwu’s entire strike force in the North comprised more of Northern soldiers than those from either the Eastern or Western Regions, same too can be said of soldiers used by Major General Aguiyi Ironsi who mobilized against the coup in the South, notably in Lagos and Ibadan.
An Igbo coup as ponderously illustrated by Fani Kayode would not have seen Nzeogwu threaten to invade the Southern part of Nigeria and Lagos to complete the goals of the Revolution , neither would it have seen General Ironsi calling off such with much commando bluster, that for a short period of time the entire nation was thrown into that eerie feeling that the nation was about to be engulfed in a civil war. So much for an Igbo coup that Nzeogwu, contrary to the agreements later reached between him and IronsI in order to prevent further bloodshed in the aftermath of the coup’s failure in the South was rather arrested and detained in Kirikiri Lagos before he was moved to Aba .
Documented history about events leading to the civil war also posit that Ojukwu then as Military Governor of the East had shown immense reluctance to release Nzeogwu from detention following the blood letting of July 29 coup, it was only after students of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka had engaged in a series of protests calling on Ojukwu to release Nzeogwu did Ojukwu do so in March 1967.
In an excerpt from a letter written by Nzeogwu to his onetime military roommate and firwnd Olusegun Obasanjo, Nzeogwu had this to say of Ojukwu.
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” You have no doubt heard a lot of rumours about my relations with Ojukwu. We obviously see things quite differently after what he did to my supporters in January 1966. ” This sums all what I have been saying.
As far as I am concerned the present scapegoating of NdiIgbo via the attempted negation of history by FFK is akin to the anti-Semitic behaviour in NAZI Germany , particularly when the Jews were blamed for the defeat of Germany in World War 1. Labelling the coup as an Igbo one, despite the numerous evidence that suggests it is not and never was, is merely the excuse for the senseless killings that occurred during and after the July 29th coup. What FFK fails to note is that those who plotted the July 29 coup, the Muritala’s, Gowon’s, Danjuma’s and Abacha’s had to give reason not only for.the slaughter of those accused of plotting the coup but also the killing of innocent officers and even civilians.
The trouble with the likes of FFK who have been bitten by this Igbo Coup bug is that rather than seek out the truth of such an event from the numerous facts available, they have rather lazily hung unto their negations like some child to some unbelievable urban legend , spooks and ghost stories.
As a Third Generation Nigerian, it is instructive that the lessons of the past are put to good use in our search for a united Nigeria and in our quest for reconciliation and healing, it becomes ideal that we embrace the truth and nothing more, otherwise we will continue to be that fractious entity, though laden with Immense opportunities and a vibrant population continue to totter while nations less endowed make giant strides.
The January 15 coup was thus never an Igbo Coup.
Period!
May Nigeria Succeed!!
