Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu
Chukwuemeka
Odumegwu-Ojukwu was born on November 4, 1933 at Zungeru in northern Nigeria to
Sir Louis Phillippe Odumegwu Ojukwu, a businessman from Nnewi in southeastern
Nigeria. Sir Louis was into transport business; he made a wise use of the
business boom during the Second World War to become one of the richest men in
Nigeria when he passed in 1966. So it could be rightly said that Chukwuemeka
Odumegwu-Ojukwu was born into wealth.
Emeka, as he was fondly called,
began his educational career in Kings College, Lagos in southwestern Nigeria.
He got into trouble by participating in anti-colonial demonstrations with such
seniors as Anthony Enahoro. At 13, his father sent him overseas to Great
Britain to study at Epsom College, England. He left Epsom at 18 for
Lincoln College, Oxford. At Oxford University, he obtained a bachelor’s
degree in modern history. After graduate studies, he retuned to
colonial Nigeria. This was in 1956.
Expected to take his father's
business, he instead joined the civil service in Eastern Nigeria as an
Administrative Officer at Udi, in present-day Enugu State, where he was
exposed to the beauty of Waawaland. In 1957, within months of working
with the colonial civil service, he left and joined the military as one of the
first and few university graduates to join the army: O. Olutoye (1956); C.
Odumegwu-Ojukwu (1957), E. A. Ifeajuna and C. O. Rotimi (1960), and A.
Ademoyega (1962). In his case, he joined as an infantry recruit because
the colonial officers would not let him into the officer corps, no thanks to
his father's pulling of strings to keep him out of the army. But no one lights
a candle and puts it under the bed. Odumegwu-Ojukwu soon got his way and went
on to undergo required military training in Ghana and later back in England.
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CAREER
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Officer Odumegwu-Ojukwu’s popular
background and sound education guaranteed his promotion to higher ranks.
Besides, as at 1956, the Nigerian Military Forces had 250 officers and
only 15 were Nigerians. There were 6,400 other ranks, of which 336 were
British. It is not surprising that he is N/29 and that the army found in
valuable training resources in the young man. (W. U. Bassey was N/1, while JTU
Aguiyi-Ironsi was N/2; the first Nigerian to be commissioned as an officer,
Lieutenant L. V. Ugboma, left in 1948) Odumegwu-Ojukwu has an understandably
fast rise in the military, eventually becoming the Quartermaster General.
Ojukwu came into national prominence
upon his appointment as military governor in 1966 and his actions thereafter. A
military coup against the civilian Nigerian federal government in
January 1966 and a counter coup in July 1966 by different military factions,
perceived to be ethnic coups, resulted in pogroms in Northern Nigeria in
which Igbos were predominantly killed. Ojukwu who was not an active
participant in either coup was appointed the military governor of Nigeria's
Eastern region in January 1966 by General Aguyi Ironsi.
In 1967, great challenges confronted
the Igbos of Nigeria with the coup d’etat of 15 January 1966 led by Chukwuma
Kaduna Nzeogwu who was widely considered to be an outstanding progressive and
was buried with full military honours when killed by those he fought against.
His coup d’etat was triggered by political lawlessness, and uncontrolled
looting and lacing in the streets of Western Nigeria. Unfortunately the
Sarduana of Sokoto, Sir Ahmadu Bello; the Prime Minister of Nigeria, Sir Tafawa
Balewa; the Premier of the Western Region,Chief Ladoke Akintola and the Finance
Minister, Chief Festus Okotie Eboh (among others including military officers)
were killed in the process. The pogrom of Igbos followed in Northern Nigeria
beginning in July 1966.Eventually, then Lt. Col. Odumegwu Ojukwu declared
Biafra's Independence on 30 May 1967. (Biafra- 30 May 1967 to 15 January 1970).
He took part in talks to seek an end
to the hostilities by seeking peace with the then Nigerian military leadership,
headed by General Yakubu Gowon (Nigeria's head of state following the July 1966
counter coup).
Colonel Odumegwu-Ojukwu never lost
faith in a peaceful solution of the crises, even though citizens of Eastern
Nigeria were so traumatized they generally wanted nothing more to do with their
fellow citizens-turned-killers. Yet he persisted on the path of peace. First,
he insisted that the military hierarchy must be preserved; in which case,
Brigadier Ogundipe should take over leadership, not Colonel Gowon. But Ogundipe
no longer had the stomach to deal with a riotous army; he was easily convinced
to step out and into the Nigerian High Commission in London. On September 29,
the final phase of the planned Pogrom was executed, marked by its brutal
bestiality. Still, while coping with the mass return of maimed and bruised
brethrens from the North and West, Odumegwu-Ojukwu persevered; even when it had
become obvious to his people that the basis for unity had been irreparably
eroded, he still talked with whomever would listen. He never lost faith in
seizing the moment to fashion out a lasting legacy for generations yet unborn.
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And so they ended up in Aburi, Ghana
on January 4, 1967 for a peace conference hosted by General Joseph Ankrah. The
brilliance of Colonel Odumegwu-Ojukwu was apparent throughout the talk. He
succeeded in convincing his colleagues to sign off on what became known as
“Aburi Accord.” Just when everyone thought that Nigeria was back on the path of
peace, Colonel Gowon reneged and proceeded to split the Eastern Region
unilaterally into three states on May 27, 1967! Three days later on May 30,
1967 and based on the mandate of the Eastern Nigerian Constituent Assembly,
Colonel Odumegwu-Ojukwu declared Eastern Nigeria a sovereign state to be known
as BIAFRA:
On July 6, 1967, Gowon declared war
and attacked Biafra. And the Nigeria-Biafra War ensued. It was an international
war, NOT a "civil war"; Biafra was already a sovereign state.
Besides, there was nothing civil about wars. This war
was most brutal and even barbaric. For 30 bloody months, the war
raged on. Now General Odumegwu-Ojukwu knew that the odds against the new
republic was overwhelming, but he preferred to fight for what is right and
defend the sovereignty of Biafra against what was obviously an illegitimate
regime of General Yakubu Gowon. The unholy Anglo-Soviet alliance, using rogue
Egyptian mercenaries fresh from the war with Israel, pounded Biafra and
Biafrans with armaments big and small, including the use of hunger as a weapon
of war – which resulted in the ravaging kwashiorkor.
Biafra lasted for 30 eventful
months during which a potential, indigenous African superpower almost emerged.
But the forces against Biafra were enormous. On January 9, 1970, General
Odumegwu-Ojukwu handed over power to his second in command, Chief of General
Staff Major-General Philip Effiong (now late), and left for Côte d’Ivoire,
where President Felix Houphöet-Boigny -- who had recognized Biafra
on May 14, 1968 -- granted him political asylum.
By January 12, 1970, Colonel
Olusegun Obasanjo -- who was hell-bent on capturing the Biafra leader alive, so
as not to make him martyr and to avoid continued conflict, he claimed -- had to
deal with General Effiong. Obasanjo accepted the instruments of cessation of
hostilities in Owerri. These were ratified at a formal ceremony in Lagos,
presided over by General Gowon. Obasanjo went on to become the head of state,
following the assassination of General Murtala Muhammed on Friday, February 13,
1976. On October 1, 1979, Obasanjo stepped down for an elected regime.
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After 13 years in exile, the Federal
Government of Nigeria under President Shehu Aliyu Usman Shagari granted an
official pardon to Odumegwu-Ojukwu and opened the road for a triumphant return
in 1982. The people of Nnewi gave him the now very famous title of “Ikemba”
(Power of the people), while the entire Igbo nation called him “Dikedioramma”
(Beloved hero). He was indeed a beloved hero.
General Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu
is a quintessential Igbo man: proud, ambitious, and intelligent... even
arrogant, as many would accuse. Here is a young man who at 33 had the fate of a
nation thrust onto him, and he did not disappoint. He is a rare gem, the
unconquered spirit of the Igbo personified. It is not surprising albeit ironic
that in 2003 the Igbo once again turned to the same person, who had led them in
a war to get out of Nigeria’s gyre, to lead them in a political battle back to
Nigeria's now-centralized center in Abuja.
The political foray ended in the now
called "4/19" fiasco, a complete corruption of the electoral process.
In the aftermath of the rigged elections, Odumegwu-Ojukwu teamed up with other
parties, including General Muhammadu Buhari, who had jailed him, to
fight the result of the reelection of President Obasanjo in the courts of law.
This latest fight still drags on, and the patience of the people is running on
low.
Following the sudden success of the
26 August sit-at-home protest by the Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign
State of Biafra (MASSOB), the Federal Government of Nigeria took a harder look
at the organization. First, the Attorney General declared the action
treasonable. Many legal experts disagreed. The Vice President weighed in and
condemned the media for giving the group publicity!
Ikemba Odumegwu-Ojukwu’s open
support for MASSOB did not sit well with the federal government presided over
by the man who thought he had ended Biafra for ever. Through its State
Security Services (SSS) it sought to haul in Ikemba for questioning. At first,
it appeared as a routine invitation to Abuja, the federal capital territory.
But events soon took a turn for the worse. In a press conference at his
home in Enugu, capital of the southeast region, Odumegwu-Ojukwu revealed that
the Feds were after him and the founder/leader of MASSOB, Chief Ralph
Uwazuruike. He revealed that the SSS had sent him a one-way economy air
ticket for the one-hour flight to Abuja. The SSS was quick to counter that the
Ikemba must show up for a chat, calling his stance cheap blackmail and labeling
him a coward. Odumegwu-Ojukwu and his supporters were quick to remind Nigeria
of the many politically motivated murders that remain unsolved. They posit that
if the SSS wanted to chat with the Ikemba, they could do so
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in Enugu or go to court and obtain
an arrest warrant. Then again, what would be the charges? For exercising his
fundamental right of free speech
But that was the jaw-jaw part. The
fact remain that the SSS wanted to interrogate the Biafra hero and that the
Biafra leader would not bulge. In fact, Odumgwu-Ojukwu reminded the media that
former heads of state Muhammadu Buhari and Ibrahim Babangida had refused to
appear before the Oputa Panel of human rights violation and the heavens did not
fall. The question on everyone’s lip was: Who wants the Ikemba
killed? Why is the presidential candidate of the All Progressives
Grand Alliance (APGA) being subjected to such disrespect from a retired colonel
(head of SSS) whose boss (the President) was Odumegwu-Ojukwu’s junior in the
Nigerian army?
What next? The SSS waited for him to
make his annual trip to the United States for medical checkup. On Tuesday,
night of November 16, 2004, on Zik's 100th birthday (posthumous, that is), the
SSS seized his passport at Murtala Muhammed International Airport. And so began
another phase in endless saga of Emeka vs. State, a rebel with a cause versus a
state looking for direction.
AFTER BIAFRA
As a committed democrat, every
single day under an un-elected government hurts him. The citizens of this
country are mature enough to make their own choices, just as they have the
right to make their own mistakes".
Ojukwu had played a significant role
in Nigeria's return to democracy since 1999 (the fourth Republic). He had
contested as presidential candidate of his party, All Progressives Grand
Alliance(APGA)for the last three of the four elections. Until his illness, he
remained the party leader. The party was in control of two states in and
largely influential amongst the igbo ethnic area of Nigeria
FAMILY
Odumegwu-Ojukwu is married to a
beauty-full Waawa woman, Bianca Onoh, the Nigerian 1989 Miss
Inter-Continental Pageant. He was the presidential candidate of APGA in 2003
presidential elections. He still maintains primary residence in Enugu.
Odemegwu
Ojukwu and Wife bianca
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DEATH
On 26 November 2011, Ikemba Odumegwu
Ojukwu died in the United Kingdom after a brief illness, aged 78. The Nigerian
army accorded him the highest military accolade and conducted funeral parade
for him in Abuja, Nigeria on 27 February the day his body was flown back to
Nigeria from London before his burial on Friday, 2 March 2012. He was buried in
a newly built mausoleum in his compound at Nnewi. Before his final internment,
he had about the most unique and elaborate weeklong funeral ceremonies in
Nigeria besides Chief Obafemi Awolowo, whereby his body was carried around the
five Eastern states, Imo, Abia, Enugu, Ebonyi, Anambra, including the nation's
capital, Abuja. Memorial services and public events were also held in his
honour in several places across Nigeria, including Lagos and Niger state his birthplace.
the former head of state "Chief Olusegun Obasanjo expressed sadness at the
death of Odemegwu Ojukwu.
“It is with deep sadness that I
received the news of the demise of my friend and colleague.
“He and I were subalterns in the
army at Nigeria’s independence in 1960.
“In a way, his death marks the end
of an era in Nigeria.
Obasanjo also reminisced over
discussions he had with Ojukwu before the latter’s demise.
In an interview in London, Obasanjo
recalled particularly that at several times, he discussed the possibility of an
expression of remorse from Ojukwu “on the Nigerian civil war which in itself
was a culmination of actions and reactions’’.
“I condole with his family and pray
for the repose of his soul.’
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DEATH, they say, is an acquired
trait, and there is no mortal who will not taste of its bitter pill. When it
will come, no mortal knows; but like an unrelenting
stalker, it shadows its victims and
takes them away the way a hen plucks its feathers.
And so, Chief Chukwuemeka
Odumegwu-Ojukwu, the Ikemba Nnewi and the undisputable leader of Igbo nation is
dead. His death is, nonetheless, a sting in the tail for the former Biafran
warlord, who fought with death on several occasions to remain alive, but
eventually capitulated to its superior power as he bade the world farewell on
Saturday, 26th November, 2011in a London hospital at the age of 78.
Ojukwu, a historian, soldier and
politician, was hated and loved by many, depending on which side of the
divide one is looking at his life and times. For larger segment of Nigerians
and beyond, he represented the soul of Nd’Igbo, even as some still have
reservation on his leadership for leading the Igbo to the ill-fated Nigerian/
Biafran civil war in 1967.
His death marks a watershed, the end
of yet another monumental epoch, in Nigeria’s turbulent history. As an Igbo
nationalist, soldier, politician and thinker, Ojukwu is unarguably the greatest
son of Igboland yet after Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe.
farewell the irriplaceble hero of Igbo land and
Nigeria, your memories will never be erased!
#nationalweekofremembrancefordepartedwriters
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