When the author met him after a gap of many years, his opening question was ‘How is your father?’ 398 He was smartly dressed in a suit, formal but very friendly. He set no time limit to the meeting and at 4 o’ clock tea was served complete with digestive biscuits. The feeling was that he was still in the officer’s mess. Indeed his home could have been furnished by the British War Department during the fifties and sixties, comfortable but without ostentation. He is unassuming, diligent, persevering, compromising, religious, a ‘doer’ rather than a ‘creator’, a great family man, not endowed with a great intellect, but intelligent and caring. In his home he creates an image of a middle-class retired professional, with few adornments declaring any of his achievements or the positions he held in the past. When questioned about his assumption of power in Nigeria in 1966, he showed considerable embarrassment. When his wife Victoria explained that, because some of his subordinates in his new military government held more senior military positions than him, especially Colonel Adebayo, the newly appointed Military Governor of the Western Region, and Commodore Wey, the head of Nigeria’s fledgling navy, the military council awarded him rapid promotion from Lieutenant-Colonel to Major-General. Whilst his wife was explaining this he showed modest diffidence, indeed a degree of embarrassment. Another example of his diffidence is the story confirmed by him, and reaffirmed by a student colleague of his when he was at Warwick University, after he was deposed as Military Head of State. The authorities at Warwick offered him the opportunity of following a PhD course with no preconditions; this he declined, because, as he said, he had no primary degree. He therefore joined the university as an undergraduate, and spent a total of nine years achieving his objective. Despite lobbying on his behalf, Oxford University declined his application. 399 Modestly he said: ‘Achieving a PhD, from a British university, was so very much harder for me than running a country like Nigeria for nine years.’ 400 He mixed freely with students considerably younger than him and with far less experience. 401

  His lifestyle today is comparable to that of middle-class people who have achieved satisfactory lifestyles but without the trappings of great wealth. He is now well rewarded by the Nigerian state because of his late position, and has for many years been fully reintegrated into Nigeria. On his return from enforced exile he made attempts at introducing himself as a potential political candidate for power, but his political expectations were short lived. Indeed comment has been made at his inadequacy for such political ambition. 402 When questioned about this he said that he had been proposed by former colleagues to make a political stand in Nigeria on his return, but although he accepted the challenge he lacked the political will to continue after his defeat. However, today he is still regarded with great popularity in Nigeria. Because of his former position and the ongoing state of politics in his country, where little has changed since independence in 1960, in spite of a civil war, and attempts at democracy, and because of some fairly objectionable military dictatorships, in the north of the country, which still holds immense political and de facto control, he is regarded as an elder statesman.

  Following the civil war, Gowon was magnanimous towards the Biafran population, declaring that there would be ‘No victor and no vanquished’. His status on the world stage was high, culminating in his being unanimously elected to the chair of the Organisation of African Unity in 1973, a state visit to Britain and a notable presence at the Commonwealth Conference in Ottawa.

  Ojukwu’s character

  Political ambition complicates Ojukwu’s character; it is interesting to note that during the first coup, as an Igbo he did not support the rebel leaders, who were later accused of executing an Igbo-inspired insurrection, and indeed as commanding officer of the 5th Battalion based in Kano he made every effort to contain the rebellion and remained loyal to the government and to General Ironsi when the latter assumed the role of head of state. There is also evidence to show that for a considerable period of time before secession he exercised caution on separating the East from the rest of Nigeria. He continued to negotiate for a confederal state, until finally the Federal Government issued the fateful decree dividing the country into 12 states, on 27 May 1967. 403 It is probable that even before this decree Ojukwu was simply trying to gain concessions from Lagos to create security for people in the East, rather than simply seceding.

  When interviewed he gave the impression that he had been trying to resolve an almost intractable position.

  I was under immense pressure from hardliners [in the East] , returning refugees, and many Eastern Region civil servants who felt that separation was the only option. However, I was still hopeful, really until the declaration on 27 May, that a confederal compromise would be possible. I felt at the time that decree 8 went a long way by the Federal Government to implement the Aburi Agreement, and also felt that it satisfied the East’s need for security and also gave each region a high degree of autonomy. Unfortunately, though, ultimately it was unacceptable to the East because a declaration of a state of emergency in any region of the Federation required the consent of only three out of the four military governors; the East felt vulnerable to the subjective sentiments of the other three regions. [Of course, arguably, this was also true for the other regions, but in view of the fact that the other regions were tending to act with one voice, the East felt increasingly isolated, especially over the real fear of the potential aggressiveness of the North towards the East.] So my conclusion was that guarantees to protect the survival of the Igbo people were simply not forthcoming from the Federal Government. Not only were these insecurities felt by the hardliners, but an increasing number of people from all walks of life in the East felt the same way, even those from the minority tribes in the region. 404

  Ojukwu’s opening comment at his interview was ‘Any true friend of Nigeria is a friend of mine.’ 405

  His new home is very imposing, with large reception rooms, richly furnished and well appointed, indeed the dining room could accommodate some fifty people and the main reception room could comfortably hold a social occasion for 100. He has a substantial number of servants tending visitors’ needs and his home gives the impression of ostentatious wealth, but tempered by his delightful, beautiful, and gracious young wife and his young precocious children. His wife is the younger daughter of the late C.C. Ono, a well-respected lawyer and ex-politician. Indeed one is struck by the incongruity of the situation: on the one hand his extremely hospitable wife and on the other Ojukwu’s somewhat austere and haughty demeanour.

  The interviewer waited for about an hour, witnessing other people going to meet Ojukwu, before being ushered in to meet ‘His Excellency’ as he prefers to be called. Ojukwu demanded to know the purpose of the meeting, although his chief of staff, Colonel Nwobosi, had briefed him beforehand. Ojukwu also insisted that a time limit be set, although once he had settled into recounting his knowledge of events at the time he seemd to disregard this constraint. The differences between the meetings with Gowon and Ojukwu was stark. However, Ojukwu is a politician and a man of the people and, amongst his Igbo countryman, still a leader held in high regard, but, and this is most important, from the past, as though he is ‘an emperor with no clothes’, holding court and meeting supplicants as though he still omnipotently ruled his people. There is, however, a vulnerability about Ojukwu, which suggests he is a man of compassion and sensibility.

  I feel he was very distressed to hear of Iro’s marriage to David Hunt, and I think much of his antipathy towards Britain during the war emanated from the fact that he and Iro had had an intense relationship, and that his sentiment for Britain was coloured by this union. The fact was that David Hunt was hopelessly insolvent. Marrying Iro, who was heiress to part of the Leventis family fortune, gave him financial security for life. 406

  There is definite acrimony between Iro Hunt and Ojukwu, because he always sends her Christmas cards, signed with his love, and she gets very agitated on receiving them because, as she said, of the way he behaved towards Hunt during the war. Ojukwu seems to have come to terms with the past, but Lady Hunt is in an unforgiving mood, even intimating that Ojukwu’s vitriol towards Hunt led to his health being undermined. Obviously too much can be read into these personal comments made by those involved at the time, but some elements do seem plausible, because there was hostility between Ojukwu and Hunt at the time, and maybe its origin was personal. Certainly Hunt’s deputy as High Commissioner, in Enugu, took a much more sympathetic line than Hunt towards the plight of Easterners. 407

  Because he was an extremely able politician and knew this fact too well, he tended to trust only his own judgement. This fact, coupled with an exaggerated personal ambition, blinded him to the sickening realities of Biafra’s last days. In Biafra two wars were fought, simultaneously. The first was for the survival of the Igbo race. The second was for the survival of Ojukwu’s leadership. Ojukwu’s error, which proved fatal for millions of Igbos, was that he put the later first, A good deal of the war effort was diverted into promoting Ojukwu and his leadership. Be it the question of starvation and relief or other vital matters affecting the population at large, propaganda considerations took precedence over cold realities. Calculation as a method was replaced by hopeful interpretations of ambitious wishes. 408

  As Lt.-Col. Effiong, General Officer Commanding Biafra’s army, said, ‘He was no devil. Everybody admired his personal courage, his infinite ability for hard work …. He was quite courageous – although he escaped. But he had one weakness – he did not know when to apply the brakes. But it’s because he was ambitious. He was a very able chap.’ 409

  After the war Ojukwu went into exile and spent thirteen years in the Ivory Coast. It was not until May 1982 that he and Gowon were offered an amnesty, at the time of the Shagari administration, and he returned to Nigeria. Although he remained involved in politics and was still well regarded in the East, he was to enjoy little success in that area, although in 2007 he was a presidential candidate.

  Gowon’s background

  Gowon’s formative years were spent at Wusasa, just outside Zaria, a Christian island in a sea of Muslim Hausaland:

  Honestly they really went out to give us a good all round education. At least I would say this for our mission in Wusasa – they tried to make us into human beings; to make men of us. Honestly they did not try to make us inferior black people, etc. They tried to get the best of character, upbringing and ideals in us. That I would say for the C.M.S. mission at Wusasa. Yes I am grateful to each and every one of them; and I am sure all of us are grateful to them. 410

  Instructed in Hausa, his own tongue, Angas, became difficult for him in later years. He describes growing up in an atmosphere of Christian love in Wusasa, ‘Where the Muslim boys were part of us. There was mutual respect for each other’s religion and we played together as friends.’ 411

  He had an extremely strong Christian upbringing, his father being a lay preacher working with the Church Missionary Society.

  My father was a farmer and after he converted to Christianity he returned to farming, not because he wanted to but because of financial need. I come from a large family and throughout my upbringing family funds were always in short supply. It was this situation which made me want to get out into the world in order to earn an income and help the family. I suppose this condition has remained with me to this day, in spite of the fact that I now have a lot more financial security today than I had in those early years. We chose to educate our children in England and that has proved expensive, so you might say that wealth is always relative.

  To this day he lives in a modest but comfortable house. 412

  This was set to continue throughout his education and was to fit well with his induction into army life, his time spent at Sandhurst and with British army officers up to 1960 when Nigeria gained its independence. His firm Christian belief forms an integral part of his character and was apparent during his leadership at the time of the Civil War, arguably causing him to refuse a totally aggressive offensive towards Biafra which, as remarked in the previous chapter, helped to extend the duration of the war. Meeting him today, one is aware of his Christian belief; it is not overt, rather it is subtly exposed in casual conversation. ‘This is a very potent force in his life. Sometimes his faith seems to verge on fatalism, but his approach is profoundly religious. He believes that God overrules in the affairs of men and that His commands are absolute and must be obeyed.’ 413

  The community of Wusasa, where Gowon spent his formative years, was created during the 1920s by Hausa Christians who were determined to build a church of their own in Zaria. This was not without its difficulties: ‘For reasons which concern the administrator’s own responsibility, it was found necessary, both for Lord Kitchener in the Sudan and myself in Nigeria to prohibit for the time being the establishment of Christian missions in Muslim districts.’ 414 In the 1920s this was still the prevalent view in Northern Nigeria, and therefore extensive negotiations took place between government administrators and the Emir’s court before some land just outside Zaria was sanctioned for development of a centre for Christians and their religion.

  At 15 he went to the Government College at Zaria, having passed the entrance examination. He was to spend four years there, from 1950 to 1954. In December 1953 he sat an entrance examination for the army. His report stated that he was an excellent boy who should turn out to be a good army officer. 415 Having passed his army examination he was told to report to Captain Bassey, the Brigade Commander at Kaduna. He was then sent to the Regular Officers Special Training School at Tessie, Ghana. Amongst his colleagues there were Alexander Madiebo, Arthur Unegbe and Michael Okwechime, all of whom were to be his agonists in the Civil War. It is perhaps worth commenting that his education was modelled on Britain’s educational system at that time, and especially at Government College the style of education was similar to that of Britain’s public schools. His colleague and then future opponent was receiving a very similar style of education in his secondary school, Epsom College, in England, the only difference being that the English public, as well as grammar, schools of the day were elitist and the opportunity for those pupils to gain entry to universities and the military institutions as junior officers were good, while the opportunities for young people receiving a similar style of education in Britain’s colonial empire were limited. However, because of Britain’s requirements for defensive forces in her colonies, in whose ranks a slow indigenisation was taking place, the opportunities for entry to the local armed forces at officer level was greater. This was particularly true in Nigeria, where at the time, however, a career in the armed forces was seen as inferior to a career in government service. This is not to denigrate Gowon’s achievements; in order for him to be selected for training at Sandhurst, not only did he pass an examination in Ghana for officer training in England, he also had to pass the War Office Selection Board (W.O.S.B.), followed by the Regular Commissions Board examination. He says that he very much enjoyed his time at Sandhurst, and he comments that it was there that his first name of Yakabu was shortened to ‘Jack’, as it remains to this day. 416 Once he had graduated from Sandhurst, after further training in England he was posted to the 4 th Battalion, at Ibadan, of the Nigerian Regiment in the Royal West African Frontier Force; the Nigerian Regiment was shortly to become the Royal Nigerian Army, following Ghana’s independence. He had hoped for a posting closer to his home near Zaria, but to no avail. By 1961 he had become a staff officer in Lagos and shortly after service in Zaire in 1963 he became the Nigerian Army’s first indigenous Adjutant-General.

  By early morning on 15 January 1966, Nigeria awoke to new political order. In spite of the first coup’s failure its resonance conclusively changed Nigeria’s political landscape. Ironsi, as General Officer commanding the Nigerian army was asked by the remaining Federal Administration to take charge of running the country in order to quell the rebellion and to restore the country to political normality. There are conflicting reports as to whether or not Gowon was implicated in this first coup, but the evidence points to his non-involvement. Indeed, but for a change to his temporary accommodation in Lagos at the time (he was due to take up a new posting as commanding officer of the second battalion from Lt-Col. Njoku), he may well have suffered the same fate as his colleague Lt-Col. Pam. Gowon’s comments about the first coup are that he had had no involvement with the coup conspirators and indeed had been driven, as he said was his duty, to ensure that the attempted overthrow of the elected government failed. He had been in England attending the Joint Services Staff College from May until the end of 1965 and he did not return to Nigeria until 13 January 1966, only a few days before the first coup. Apparently as a reward for his support for General Ironsi, after the military had been invited by the civilian government to take power, he was appointed to the senior position of Chief of Staff of the army. As Gowon pointed out. because the troops, coming mainly from the Tiv region and further north, had been most affected by the coup, and because many Northern officers, as well as their political leaders, had been killed, he was also a Northerner and he had been the army’s Adjutant-General and was well known to the majority of the army’s rank and file, maybe Ironsi was simply being pragmatic in appointing Gowon to this position. 417 The consequences of this appointment would seem to bear out Ironsi’s pragmatism, because during this first short period of military rule Gowon spent an inordinate amount of time touring the country visiting all the army establishments in order to appease the rising anger and disquiet over Ironsi’s inaction in bringing the coup’s perpetrators to justice. The fact was that the soldiers had become difficult to manage and cases of insubordination were becoming commonplace.