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Biafran War/Massacre: I Did What I Had to Do – Gowon

Published

2 weeks ago

June 9, 2025

Eric

By Eric Elezuo

58 years after the commencement of the Nigerian Civil War on July 6, 1967, better known as the Biafra War, and 55 years after its end on January 15, 1970, one of the major players of the war, seen to have supervised the massacre of the Biafran people, General Yakubu Gowon (retd), has come out to say that he did what he had to do at the period.

The former warlord, who claims born again today, did not however, offer apologetic statement as a form of foreclosure in the nightmare that purportedly claimed about three million lives, and continue to plague the South-East region till date, though he called for forgiveness and reconciliation among faiths and ethnicities.

Gowon, a former military Head of State, who held sway from 1966, when General Aguiyi Ironsi was murdered in Ibadan, to 1975 when he was toppled by General Murtala Mohammed, said the Biafra civil war was never his choice. He described the civil war as the most difficult period of his life.

The former ruler spoke after he was honoured with a Life Time Integrity and Achievement Award at the 5th Convention of the Christian Men’s Fellowship, Abuja Anglican Diocese on Saturday in Abuja.

He also disclosed that his decision to prosecute the Biafra civil war was never born out of hatred while explaining that he prosecuted the civil war due to the urgency to preserve national unity.

The former ruler called for forgiveness, reconciliation and unity across faiths and ethnicities.

He said: “I always remember the civil war. It was the most difficult period of my life.

“It was not my choice, but I had to be there, and had to do what I did in order to keep this country together.

“It was never a hatred against any people, I can assure you.”

Reflecting on life after that period, the former Head of State stressed that his decisions had often been guided by prayers and a desire to act with integrity and compassion.

“As far as this heart is concerned, everything that I do, it is through prayers.

“I ask God to help me to do the right thing the way He thinks it should be done, with love and respect for all the people.

“That is why at the end, what do we have to say? As they say: no victor, no vanquished,” he added.

Most history books and reports have however credited Gowon with touring the South East region shortly after the end of the war to reassure the people that there was ‘no victor, no vanquished’. He was said to have spread the message of the 3Rs of Reconciliation, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction promulgated by the Federal Government of Nigeria to focus citizens on a united, bigger, brotherly and viable Nigeria.

Though one writer posited that he granted free education in the region to enable everyone return to school, the report appears false as there are no evidence of free education in the region except for the 1974 Universal Free Primary Education declared across the country.

While visiting Imo State in 2018, Gowon noted that

“After the Civil War, from this town Owerri, I visited Nsukka, Enugu, Abakeliki, Umuahia, and Onitsha. We were impressed with the way the children turned out to welcome us.

“They were saying, you are our parents, our leaders, please do not allow any Nigerian child to suffer what we suffered,” Gowon said, recalling and noting the devastation his actions had on the children of the South-East, notably the injurious kwashiorkor disease, a proceed of extreme hunger.

Many observers, especially among ethnic Igbo, have consistently faulted Gowon’s public statements about the war, as he has not deem it fit to tender a direct apology to a race he attempted to obliterate with the help of foreign powers.

“No matter what Gowon does or says, his inability to feel the pain of the average Igboman still places him in the position of an intentional murderer. Saying he did what he had to do is an indication that he committed no against a race. That’s not acceptable,” a respondent, who prefers anonymity said.

Recall that in 2017, Gowon, in an interview with AIT Television heaped the blame of the war on the Biafran leader, late General Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, saying ”Ojukwu’s lies caused the civil war in the country between 1967 and 1970.” This one statement many has discontenanced, accusing the former Nigerian of lying against Ojukwu and a situation very open to public scrutiny.

Leading the avalanche of rebuttal, the Indigenous People Of Biafra (IPOB), led by Mazi Nnamdi Kanu reacted, advising Gowon to desist from making “false” statements against the late warlord. The group accused Gowon of having the penchant of distorting history, especially as it concerned the civil war.

He made the claim while giving insight into what happened at the Aburi Conference, in Ghana, convened to resolve the war.

He alleged that the civil war broke because Ojukwu went on television and gave his account of the Aburi Accord, which was at variance with what was agreed upon; thereby deceiving the people of Biafra to go to war against the Federal Government.

But IPOB in a statement by its Media and Publicity Officer, Emma Powerful, described Gowon’s comment as “total falsehood from the mouth of a hater.”

“At the ripe old age of 83 and with the little window God has left open to him to repent and show remorse, Yakubu Gowon has chosen to continue to deceive himself with his bouquet of falsehood,” the statement partly read,

“It was the Labour Party government of Britain that cleverly convinced the Arewa North to put pressure on Gowon to feign illness, thereby making it difficult for him to tell the country what was agreed in Aburi because they were not comfortable with the agreement.

“Today, Gowon, whom we are led to believe is a prayerful Christian, has said he wasn’t able to speak when he returned from Aburi because he was ill. Question is: Was his information minister also ill? Were all government’s spokesmen in Lagos also down with illness at the same time that made it difficult for Lagos to make a pronouncement on Aburi Agreement several weeks after the meeting?”

The group said ”Gowon’s attempt to rewrite history would have worked had IPOB not been in existence.”

Also reacting to Gowon’s claims, a former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode, who is now an All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain, maintained that late Ojukwu agreed to the terms reached at Aburi.

Describing Gowon’s remark as false, the Fani-Kayode stressed that the former head of state reneged on the agreement upon his return to Nigeria from Ghana.

In a tweet on his Twitter handle, Mr. Fani-Kayode wrote: “Gen. Yakubu Gowon, an elder statesman said Ojukwu caused the civil war by lying about what transpired in Aburi. This is false. Ojukwu told no lie. Gowon agreed to all the terms in Aburi but when he got home, he reneged on the agreement. This is what led to the civil war.”

After over 50 years of the Nigerian Civil War, better known as the Biafra war, where thousands died, the Nnamdi Kanu – led IPOB is still asking for a Biafran state.

Today, IPOB is labeled a terrorist group, and Nnamdi Kanu in detention, facing legal charges bordering on terrorism activities.

“The Biafra War is one dark spot in the history of Nigeria as a country, and until Gowon takes responsibility, offer genuine apologies, forgiveness may be far. Of course, nobody has forgotten.

It’s obvious God has forgiven him, but he needs a complete forgiveness from the South East region that was pillaged and ravaged for 30 whole months and counting before a deep rooted reconciliation can take effect,” the Source added.

General Gowon will be 91 years in a few months, is probably one of the remaining few of his contemporaries, and is reputed as a respected stateman.

Headline

Trump Confirms US Bombing of Iran’s Nuclear Sites, Warns Against Attempt to Retaliate

Published

15 hours ago

June 22, 2025

Eric

U.S. President, Donald Trump, has disclosed that the United States has carried out “very successful attack” on three nuclear sites in Iran namely Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan.

President Trump disclosed this via Truth Social while warning that “any retaliation by Iran against the United States of America will be met with force far greater than what was witnessed tonight”.

Trump in posts on the social media platform on Saturday described the attack on the Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan nuclear sites as historic for the USA, Israel and the world, adding that Iran must now agree to end the war.

“We have completed our very successful attack on the three Nuclear sites in Iran, including Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan.

“All planes are now outside of Iran air space. A full payload of bombs was dropped on the primary site, Fordow. All planes are safely on their way home.

“Congratulations to our great American warriors. There is not another military in the world that could have done this. Now is the time for peace,” Trump wrote.

Sources said the United States Air Force used 6 Northrop B-2 Spirit stealth bombers to drop 12 bunker-buster bombs, that is 360,000 lbs, on the Fordow Nuclear Facility, obliterating the entire nuclear capability.

This is coming after hostilities broke out between Israel and Iran on June 13, when Israel launched airstrikes on several sites across Iran, including military and nuclear facilities, prompting Tehran to launch retaliatory strikes.

The Israel versus Iran crisis has led to fatalities running into hundreds as Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, on Saturday, warned that the U.S. participation in Israel’s ongoing attacks on Iran would be “very unfortunate” and “extremely dangerous for everyone.”

Also, the United Nations’ Secretary-General Antonio Guterres had warned that the ongoing violent conflict between Iran and Israel is “a fire no one can control” and risks spiraling out of control.

Meanwhile, the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) had earlier released the most alarming update on the ongoing Israel’s attacks on Iran’s nuclear facilities.

IAEA Director General, Rafael Grossi, on Friday, warned the UN Security Council that Israeli attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities were degrading critical safety systems and placing millions at potential radiological risk.

Grossi said at Natanz, the destruction of electricity infrastructure and direct strikes on enrichment halls had led to internal contamination.

Grossi said while no radiological release has been detected outside the facility, warned that uranium compounds now posed significant health hazards within.

At Isfahan, the UN nuclear watchdog boss said multiple buildings including a uranium conversion plant and a metal processing facility, were hit.

At Arak’s Khondab reactor site, he said that damage was sustained, though the facility was not operational.

The greatest risk, however, he said, is the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant, which remains operational.

Grossi warned that a direct strike “could result in a high release of radioactivity to the environment.”

He stressed that even a disruption of its external power supply could lead to a core meltdown.

In the worst-case scenario, radiation would affect populations hundreds of kilometres away and require mass evacuations, he warned.

Grossi also warned against any attack on the Tehran Nuclear Research Reactor, which could endanger millions in the capital.

“Nuclear facilities and material must not be shrouded by the fog of war,” he said. We must maintain communication, transparency and restraint,” the IAEA chief stressed.

Grossi pledged that the IAEA would continue to monitor and report on nuclear safety conditions in Iran and reiterated his readiness to mediate.

He stressed that the agency “can guarantee, through a watertight inspections system,” that nuclear weapons will not be developed in Iran, urging dialogue.

“The alternative is a protracted conflict and a looming nuclear threat that would erode the global non-proliferation regime,” he stressed.

Headline

Adeleke Rejoices with Oluwo of Iwo, Oba Akanbi at 58

Published

2 days ago

June 21, 2025

Eric

The Executive Governor of Osun State, Senator Ademola Adeleke, has rejoiced with the Paramount ruler of Iwoland, HIM Oba Abdulrasheed Adewale Akanbi, Telu I, on the occasion of his 58th birthday, lauding the foremost traditional ruler’s passionate commitment to uplifting humanity.

A statement by the Governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Mallam Olawale Rasheed rveals tgat the Governor acknowledges Oba Akanbi’s exceptional sense of dedication to the advancement of Iwoland, utilising contacts and his God-given resources to facilitate developments, praising him for leading the charge for the remarkable transformation that Iwoland is experiencing under his reign.

The Governor commends the frontline monarch for the shared vision for growth and impactful governance, hailing him as a model for purposeful leadership given the monumental progress that Iwoland is recording under this rulership.

“I rejoice with His Imperial Majesty, Oba Abdulrasheed Adewale Akanbi, Telu I, on the occasion of his birthday. Oba Akanbi is a visionary leader and his steadfast pursuit of a virile and prosperous Iwoland is truly inspiring,” the Governor was quoted in a congratulatory message.

“On this day, I honour Kabiyesi’s exceptional contributions to the promotion of our tradition and the endearing effort in fostering peace and harmony in Iwoland and Osun state as a whole.

“It is my prayer that Kabiyesi’s new age brings him more joy and abundant blessings. I also beseech God Almighty to give him more grace to continue his life of service and impact.”

Headline

Coalition Group Floats New Party, ADA, Seeks INEC Registration

Published

3 days ago

June 20, 2025

Eric

The National Opposition Coalition Group, led by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and ex-Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has formally applied to the Independent National Electoral Commission for the registration of a new political party—the All Democratic Alliance.

The application, dated June 19, was acknowledged by INEC on Friday, signalling the coalition’s determination to float a new platform instead of aligning with any existing political party.

The formation of ADA, backed by some other key political heavyweights, including former Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi and Umar Ardo, convener of the League of Northern Democrats and former aide to President Olusegun Obasanjo, seeks to capitalise on mounting public dissatisfaction and political realignments to stop President Bola Tinubu at the next poll.

The application comes just a few days after INEC warned political groups that no amount of pressure or public sentiment would override the need for strict compliance with constitutional and electoral guidelines.

The commission reiterated that party registration remains a rigorous constitutional process—not merely a political declaration.

With Thursday’s application, the national opposition coalition has now put an end to weeks of speculation about whether it would revive a dormant political platform or launch a fresh one altogether.

A copy of the application letter, obtained by our correspondent in Abuja, was jointly signed by the association’s Protem National Chairman, Chief Akin A. Rickets, and Protem National Secretary, Abdullahi Elayo.

The letter partly read, “We respectfully write to the Independent National Electoral Commission, requesting the registration of our association, the All Democratic Alliance, as a political party.

“This is a sequel to the decision taken by the Nigerian National Coalition Group to sponsor our association for full registration.

“The name of the party shall be All Democratic Alliance with ADA as our acronym and ‘Justice for All’ as our slogan.”

The coalition also submitted relevant documents, including the party’s constitution, manifesto, logo, and minutes of its foundational meetings.

The party’s symbol prominently features a maize (corn), which the applicants say represents abundance, resilience, and sustenance—core ideals they hope to promote.

“We have further attached our manifesto encompassing details of our party ideology and our constitution providing the legal framework that defines our identity, structures, and organisation,” the letter continued.

The Punch