Tuesday 29 November 2011

OJUKWU AND THE DECLARATION OF BIAFRA - part I

The First Military Coup
The devastation that is witnessed today in Nigeria , almost forty years after independence, is an antithesis to the promise of January 15, 1966 . On that day, Major Kaduna Chukwuma Nzeogwu and his army boys staged the first coup operation dubbed "Damisa", meaning leopard in Hausa language. The promise then was that a new Nigeria was to be built from the ashes of the First Republic . Even the success of that coup foreshadowed the attractive danger the military was luring itself into. The coup was swift, brutal and merciless. When it ended, northern Nigerian leaders such as the Prime Minister Abubakar Tafawa Balewa; Ahmadu Bello, the Saduana of Sokoto and a powerful premier of the north; Festus Okotie-Eboh of the Midwest, a federal minister of finance; and Ladoke Akintola, the self acclaimed premier of the west were all killed. But no leader in the Ibo's East was killed. Because Nzeogwu himself was a Midwestern Ibo from Asaba, hence the coup took ethnic undertone.
Taking to the airwaves, Nzeogwu said, "The aim of the Revolutionary Council is to establish a strong united and prosperous nation, free from corruption and internal strife. My dear countrymen, no citizen should have anything to fear so long as that citizen is law abiding. Our enemies are the political profiteers, the swindlers, the men in high and low places that seek bribes and demand ten percent, those that seek to keep the country divided permanently so that they can remain in office as ministers or VIPs, at least the tribalists, the nepotists, those that make the country look big before the international circles; those that have corrupted our society and put the Nigerian political calendar back by their words and deeds. Like good soldiers, we are not promising anything miraculous or spectacular. But what we do promise every law-abiding citizen is freedom from fear and all forms of oppression, freedom from general inefficiency and freedom to live and strive in every field of human endeavor, both nationally and internationally. We promise that you will no more be ashamed to say that you are Nigerians.
"You are hereby warned that looting, arson, rape, embezzlement, bribery or corruption, obstructing the revolution, sabotage, subversion, false alarms and assistance to foreign invaders, are all offenses punishable by the death sentence. Illegal possession or carrying of firearms, smuggling or trying to escape with documents, valuables including money, or other assets vital to the running of any establishment will be punished by death sentence. Tearing down an order of the day or proclamation, or other notices will be penalized by death." (Extract from Beyond the Execution)
To Be Continued

Sincerely,

Dr. Tom Mbeke-Ekanem, REA
Moderator
Author, Beyond the Execution -
Understanding The Ethnic and Military Politics in Nigeria

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