Biafran war and Nigerian government misinformation

Biafran war and Nigerian government misinformation

First and foremost, it is time to state categorically that Biafra did not lose the 1967 to 1970 Nigerian civil wars to the heavily equipped, bloated and inept Nigerian army. By 1970, the Nigerian armed forces have ballooned to 250,000, yet they could not have the job done. Biafra lost the war to three super powers – the United States of America, United Kingdom and USSR. Having let this conclusion out of the closet, we can now proceed to state the facts as they occurred. The position of this writer is based on the mountain of information available on the information super highway, books and other literature, that are trickling out slowly to the public.

In an irrational world, there is a saying that what one does not know would be harmless. This supposition is the oldest fallacy in the book. In fact, what one does not know, pretend not to know or decided not to know can be inimical – physically or mentally. Ignorant of the law or of facts thereof is the worst detrimental disease that if not checked would permeate into perpetual ignominious.

For too long, the Nigerian people have been over dependent on the opinion of few elitists, self-centered and self anointed leaders to define issues and lead them on a gateway of progress, instead it skews and often goes wayward towards a path of disaster. In the past, these opinion leaders have applied a principle where they educate their fellow ethnic groups that one ethnic group is superior, inferior, or plain ignorant than other ethnic group. They have used a similar process in misinforming the Nigerian people and the world for more than thirty years on the Nigerian civil war that the Biafrans lost the war to the Nigerian government. That is not quite true.

So, there comes a time when the truth shall be extolled and pronounced for all to see, read, digest and absorb. After all, the truth shall set you free so it was written in the Holy book. The purpose of this essay is multi-fold, but before we proceed, it is incumbent upon the Igbos to understand that there is no need for continuous weeping, gnashing of teeth or mourn the death of Biafra. They should not cry because Biafra was not defeated by the Nigerian troops as was previously stated, rather, they were defeated by an amalgamated superiority of the three world super powers. These powers that be ignored their ideological differences because of the promise to control the Nigerian mineral resources – which amount to second partition of Nigeria in the 20^th century. The first partition of Nigeria occurred in the early 20^th century following the amalgamation of north and south and the eventual loss of some parts of Nigeria to Cameroon.

Nigerian army has never won a war. Nigeria has been involved in many conflicts since its partial independence from Britain in October 1960. It has been involved in at least six major wars and it is sad to say that it has won none. That makes its standing or ratio if you will 0:6 statistically speaking.

The starting point was the Second World War. Almost all the Nigerian recruits entered the war in order to save Europe from Adolf Hitler and his Nazi menace in Europe. Those who went to the war were stationed in India, mainly in Bombay. The British does not trust the African soldiers nor were they comfortable having them fight with them in the killing of fellow white man. At that time in history, it was the biggest offense to kill a white man who was sacrilegiously regarded as closer to god. Secondly, killing or witnessing the killing of a white man would destroy the white fictitious belief of their race, thereby expose the fallibility of the white supremacist persona. The effect of a successful removal of colonialist mentality and oppression translate to economic demise for the colonial masters. In turn, this would drive the accelerated demand to decolonize.

For the sake of fairness to those that participated in the WW II, we can conclude that the collective participation of the world at large guaranteed the successful defeat of Hitler’s heinous crime and expansionism. Nigeria happens to be a minute part of the whole equation, and that was the closest that the army has smelled victory.

The other area that Nigerian soldiers saw action was during the three-year civil war at home. This war lasted from 1967 to 1970. There are litters of stories written on the Nigerian civil war, primarily on the federal government triumph over the Igbo led Biafra. The conclusion that the Nigerian weak army defeated the ill-equipped Biafran people’s soldier is not true. It is a make believe that the Nigerian army won, the Gowon regime at the time was quick to declare the infamous "no victor, no vanquish." This proclamation was supposed to seal the deal and version of the war based on the Nigerian government perception.

In fact, the world super powers – the United States of America, the defunct USSR and United Kingdom, in alliance with the Arab countries especially, Egypt collaborated and fought the war for Nigeria. Some of these expatriate participants were afraid that people of eastern Nigeria, with superior intellect, commerce resource and abundant mineral resources would pose a major problem to their domination of the African raw material based economy.

The Arabs especially were driven to help the Hausa/ Fulani hegemony on two principles: they felt that the war was an extension of Christian v. Moslem century old dichotomy. Under this scenario, it was an affront, according to the Holy Koran for none believer, in this case the Christians to engage in a war against the Moslems. Looking back on the Nigerian civil war, the issue was framed as Christian v. Moslem on the streets of London and other major European cities.

Second, the Arab world came to the rescue of the inept Nigerian army because the Israelites lent minimal support to the Biafrans. For the Arabs, it was an extension of the Arab-Israel war in which the Arabs lost badly, both collateral wise and land. The Egyptian pilots dominated the Nigerian Airforce operation during the civil war. These pilots committed atrocities during their bombing run that targeted the innocent civilians who lived in the civilian enclaves away from the battlefields.

Instead of fighting their war, the Nigerian government led by Yakubu Gowon used blackmail to whip the rival super powers to their corner. In order words, the Nigerian government sold their birth right by partitioning the Nigerian mineral resources among the participants. The iron and steel industrial development at Ajaokuta went to USSR. It is no surprise that the iron and steel industry had not taken off since its construction contract was signed over thirty years ago. The big oil companies secured long contracts for the exploitation, exploration and degradation of the oil producing communities.

Still on the failed wars, Nigeria participated in boarder skirmishes with Cameroon and Chad. In several of this land incursions, Nigerian citizens were harassed, killed, maimed and lands seized by the intruders. Nigerian army was so weak that they lacked the bile to fight back. Warrant Officer, Brian Wilson who was a member of the United States of American army contingent that were sent to Nigerian to train the 195^th Motorized Infantry Battalion, attested to the weakness and inept training of the Nigerian army. He contended that the "Nigerians were the worst – trained army he had ever seen." (San Francisco Chronicle, January 26, 2001) Wilson’s conclusion was based on his participation in other training programs in the South and Central America and service in the peacekeeping force in Bosnia.

It is because of the Nigerian ineptness and undisciplined armed forces that compelled the former USA president, Bill Clinton to authorize sending the USA soldiers to train Nigerian soldiers to attain 21 first century military standard. Furthermore, another reason for Clinton’s action was that the Nigerian army provides the bulk of the West African peacekeeping force at troubled areas in the region, notably Liberia and Sierra Leon. The Nigerian army activities and behavior at the peacekeeping theater has been reprehensible. They have been documented and implicated in many executions, looting and other brutal acts by international human rights organizations.

The only war that the Nigerian army has won thus far, was intra army warfare called coup d’etat. They have become the undisputed specialist in violent change of military leadership, mass killing of those who are implicated or participated in a failed coup, extenuation of innocent civilians who opposed or rejected their brutal acts, and finally, embezzlement of public fund.

The Igbos should take solace knowing that Biafra was a victim of international conspiracy by those who put economic gain before human gain. Nigerian government has over the years attempted to rewrite Nigerian history. I can vividly recall that in the 1960s, the map of Nigeria used to have Bight of Biafra and Bight of Benin. What happened to Bight of Biafra still remains a mystery, although it was a part of the concerted effort by the Nigerian past and present leaders’ conspiracy to misinform the public of the true meaning of Nigerian history.

The way Nigerian leaders are behaving, it seems that they are still afraid of the Igbos and yet the Igbos has not given the country any reason to panic. As soon as the war ended, the Igbos went about their business of rebuilding their lives and salvaging whatever that was left of their properties. The Igbos did not take to the forest in order to fight endless guerrilla warfare. They did not engage in acts of sabotage that would undermine the integrity, security or otherwise of Nigeria.

The Igbos was a triple victim of Nigerian genocide. Perhaps, the Nigerian elite was afraid that the Igbos would rise up again and avenge the traitorous inhibitions on them and their kindred by those who dominated the top hierarchy of government. So far, the Igbos have chosen to do things that they do the best, educate Nigerians on the need for patriotism, and interethnic relationship through travel, residing in other ethnic indigenous communities and speaking their languages. The Igbos, one would agree speak other Nigerian ethnic languages more than the combination of 300 plus other ethnic groups spoke Igbo language.

Each time my TV set shows a documentary of the Nazi atrocities in Europe, the killings, forced slave labor and rape of women, horrors that occurred at the beginning of last century, my heart bleeds. My heart bleeds for justice and that was exactly what is happening in Europe where the Jews have a sustained effort in fishing out those that are party to European genocide. The entire world have lent their support to the Jewish effort, so why not do the same to the Nigerian genocide against the Igbos in which millions perished as a result of the actions, directly or indirectly, by the Nigerian government.

Coincidentally, this genocide occurred in the twentieth century, approximately forty years apart. In the Nigerian genocide, the Igbo women were blatantly and brutally raped some taken into slavery by the Nigerian army where they became their sex slaves. The Igbo children died of kwashiokor, an outcome of the inhumane blockade of the eastern Nigerian territory that prevented food from reaching the civilians. The three super powers that helped the Nigerian government knew it, but chose to ignore it or buckled under the threat of Yakubu Gowon. The Igbos lost their entire livelihood when the war broke out, and at the end of the war, they could not recoup their properties. The most severe effect of the post Nigerian civil war was the denial of full citizenship to the Igbos; even forty years later after the war ended in 1970.

Abandoned properties is still a hot potato and successive Nigerian national governments have shied away from it. How can one consider his property abandoned in his own country? That can only happen in Nigeria.

Nigerian government should set up a civil war tribunal to look into the atrocities perpetuated against the Igbos and other southerners during the civil war, and continues this day. If the government balks, which is likely given the Obasanjo’s temperament and aversion towards the Igbos, perhaps, the Igbos should take their case to the International war tribunal and name the recalcitrant that perpetuated the Igbo genocide, which incidentally includes General Obasanjo (rtd.). The country would not heal its wounds until all the aggrieved in Nigeria has been successfully put to rest. Any attempt to deal with the Nigerian problem cosmetically should be unacceptable.

Nigeria has so much to learn from the Igbos. Nigeria needs the Igbos more than the Igbos needs Nigeria. Like the Ikemba of Nnewi rightfully argued, "we (Igbos) built armored cars and tanks. We modified aircraft from trainer to fighters, from passenger aircraft to bombers. In three years of freedom we had broken the technological barriers." (Ojukwu’s lecture on February 22, 1994). The Igbo phobia that grips Nigerian leadership has costed the nation the contribution of the Igbos as full citizens of Nigeria. Last year, upon the wanton killing of the Igbos in the far northern Nigeria following the introduction of sharia law, five Igbo governors held a meeting and afterwards, issued a statement or a stand. They condemned the atrocities against the citizens of their states who sojourned in the far north and they hoped that the nation would act swiftly, and that did not happen.

The governors argued that perhaps the nation should look towards a confederacy if the national government cannot respect the sanctity of life and property of its citizens. That statement was the least anyone can ask of its government. Instead of seeking solution, the president of Nigeria attacked the governors and accused them of sabotage and treason. He was quick to attack the governors, but slow in discouraging the disrespect and scorn these sharia governors directed towards him and the living constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. This act amounts to double standard. Like Ikemba of Nnewi, Emeka Ojukwu said on a speech delivered on February 22, 1994, he argued that "the Tivs were in open revolt right from the dawn of independence, the West joined in this revolt in the fourth year of independence, Isaac Boro proclaimed his republic in the next year. In 1966 came the attempted coup led by Emmanuel Ifeajuna. Between 1966 and 1967 came the massacres (of Igbos) in the north of Nigeria. One fascinating aspect of all this chaos is that Nigeria only went to war against Ndigbo."

There are hundreds of issues that hover on the borderline of mistrust of the Igbos. The Igbos constitute at least seventy percent of the movers and shakers of Nigerian commerce, yet they have to travel thousands of miles to the seaports and international airports in order to send or receive goods for local market. What the economists that have guided the national government have failed to tell their boss was that the cost of the transportation, the bribes along the route of the commodities to its destination features in the final cost of the goods to the consumers. One does not need a Harvard or Oxford degree to figure that out.

Now that the cat has been let out of the bag, it is about time that the Nigerian civil war history, the real history be taught at all levels of the Nigerian academic world. Nigerians need to learn the source of the consternation, they need to figure out how to resolve their ethnic conflicts, they need to know that Biafra existed once in the map of the world and that like Ikemba of Nnewi once said, paraphrase, it exit in the mind of every Igbo person. Nobody can kill the Biafra of the mind. Nigerian leaders need to learn how to live with it for Biafra will never go away. It is part of the Igbo and even Nigerian history.

The Igbos need to fly the Biafran flags with impunity. They need to take the Biafran issue a little further. Those who would not mind should name their kids Biafra. It would be interesting to know what the federal government would do. Would they ban the child from full citizenship of Nigeria or would they annihilate the child, as they have attempted to destroy Ralph Uwazurike for standing up for what he believes in – his unwavering commitment in the preservation of his Biafran heritage.

Finally, as this article hits the press, one feels a heavy burden lifted from ones’ shoulders. Time has come when the leaders of Nigeria should live up to the oaths that they took when they were sworn into office. They were supposed to abide by the elements of the Nigerian constitution which among other stipulations stated that nobody should suffer from discrimination, Nigerians should live wherever they wish; there should be equal treatments of all ethnic groups, and since the national cake falls within the domain of the central government, there should be equitable allocation of money to all regardless of ethnicity.

I am proud of my Igbo heritage, likewise the Yorubas should take pride in being descendants from Oduduwa, the northern Nigerian Moslems cherished Usman Dan Fodio’s religious renaissance and the Fulanis should adore their Arabic heritage. To show my pride and adoration for being part of the defunct Biafra, I still carry Biafra currency despite the fact that the war artificially ended thirty-two years ago. Biafra would rise up again, but in what form, is pregnant for there is a little bit of Biafra in every Igboman.

The writer is one of our esteemed contributors.