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BREAKING: Ojukwu caused the civil war, Gowon insists
If Emeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, had not gone ahead of me to spill the content of our meeting in Aburi, there might not have been the civil war, Yakubu Gowon, former Nigerian Head of State, said for the umpteenth time on Wednesday.
Gowon, a General, who ruled Nigeria from 1966 to 1975, had in an exclusive interview aired on The Morning Show, a breakfast programme on Arise News television, stopped short of denying that there was actually an accord at his parley with Ojukwu, who prosecuted the war on the side of Biafra that wanted to separate from Nigeria.
The former head of state, who was months short of his 32nd birthday when he took over the country in July 1966 after the coup that led to the assassination of Aguiyi Ironsi, the first military Head of State of Nigeria, said he was down with a bout of fever from malaria, which prevented him from addressing the country on the outcome of the meeting in Aburi, a town in Ghana.
Ojukwu, he said not only preempted him in making the announcement, but actually went ahead to make pronouncements that were contradictory to the agreement, adding that it was this that led to the sharp disagreement between him and the late Biafran leader who died in 2010.
One of the misrepresentations, Gowon, told his host was that Ojukwu, said that the two parties agreed that there would be regional autonomy, with governors that would be in control of the command of their own armies, saying that nothing of the sort was agreed.
But Ojukwu had since countered this angle of the former Head of State’s story, stating that it was because Gowon and those with him at the meeting started denying the content of the Aburi Accord that made him go to town and spill adding that the full package including all the minutes that led to the agreement were already in public domain.
Regardless, Gowon insisted on Wednesday: “Although we said that the military would be zoned, you know, but the control… he wanted, you know, those zones to be commanded by the governor. Say you have a military zone in the north, it would be commanded by the governor of the military in the east, it would be commanded by, you know, by him. And, of course, we did not agree with that one.”
Stressing that the federal delegation never viewed the Aburi meeting as a forum for constitutional restructuring or military devolution, he added: “We just went there as far as we are concerned to be able to meet as officers now, and then to agree to be able to get back home and resolve a problem at home. That was my understanding. But that is not his understanding.
“Unfortunately… I was having serious attack of kind of fever or whatever it is, and I could not make a decision. Ojukwu was one who, when he came, he went and made… a statement about the Aburi Accord.
“We had to organise that, you know, a meeting of all the governors. And he was invited to attend so that we can deal with the Accord. And we met at Nifo in Benin. And he did not turn up.”
Gowon insisted that had Ojukwu attended a meeting in Benin called by him for the parties to straighten out matters, there might have been an amicable resolution and the disagreement might not have escalated to the extent of going into war.
Stressing that the government was willing to work in the “spirit of Aburi,” but would never concede national military control to regional governors, nor accept the possibility of secession, he said: “The only thing that I added was that no region, you know, will, you know, can secede from the country.”
The former Head of State, who expressed deep love for Nigeria, stated that his major wish was to be remembered as a leader who loved Nigeria and the people of the country, adding: “I want to be remembered as someone who loves his country, Nigeria, who loves Nigerians, who prays, at least if I cannot fight, I pray for Nigeria to continue to be a country that all of us love. I know it is impossible for any country to be absolutely perfect.”
“The suspect offered ₦500 million to the SPU commander in an attempt to make the team stand down and allow him to contact his associates to move the consignment elsewhere. The offer was rejected immediately and properly documented for further investigation.”
These were the exact words of Olohundare Jimoh Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG), with which he detailed how operatives of the Zone 2 Command of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) scoffed at a N500million bribe to turn their eyes off the importation of a huge consignment of drugs imported into the country.
This was part of the details of a major breakthrough by the operatives after bursting a major drug trafficking syndicate in Lagos, which led to the seizure of suspected illicit drugs estimated at ₦7.8 billion and arresting several suspects, including the alleged kingpin.
In the operation, reportedly carried out by officers of the Special Protection Unit (SPU) in collaboration with divisional police detectives, the operatives, were said to have stormed a house in Mende, Maryland area of Lagos, following months of surveillance and intelligence gathering coordinated by the Zone 2 Headquarters.
The recovered drugs consisted of hundreds of bags of suspected Canadian Loud, allegedly stored in the residence of the prime suspect, Jimoh, said disclosing that the suspect was apprehended on May 19 after weeks of strategic monitoring by operatives.
Offering further details, he said the operation was executed with technical support and guidance from the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Disu, alongside coordinated efforts between the SPU and divisional police teams.
Jimoh revealed that during the operation, the suspect allegedly attempted to bribe the SPU commander with ₦500 million to compromise the mission and allow the movement of the drug consignment.
The AIG described the development as a reflection of the renewed professionalism and operational discipline being entrenched in the Force under the current policing strategy.
He noted that the success of the operation underscored the importance of deploying specialized police units alongside conventional divisional teams in tackling organized crime.
According to him, the operation demonstrated the effectiveness of rapid containment strategies, intelligence-led policing, and professional conduct among the operatives involved in the raid.
“Rapid containment was achieved as the Special Protection Unit worked with divisional teams to secure the perimeter and prevent escape or interference with evidence.
“The operation was intelligence-driven, following months of surveillance and technical monitoring before the raid was carried out.
“The immediate rejection and documentation of the bribe attempt also reflect the standard expected from redeployed personnel at the divisional level,” Jimoh added.
Reacting to the development, the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Disu, commended the operatives for their professionalism, saying the success of the operation validated the ongoing redeployment of personnel to divisions and units across Lagos and Ogun states.
The IGP noted: “Policing must be close to the people, and our specialized units must work side by side with divisional teams on the ground.
“The professionalism shown by the SPU commander in rejecting a ₦500 million bribe and following due procedure is the standard we expect. It shows that when you put your best foot forward at the grassroots, you get results and restore public trust.”
Disu further assured that the Force leadership would continue to reward integrity while holding officers accountable to the highest ethical standards.
Police authorities said exhibits recovered during the operation have been properly documented and will be tendered in court. The suspects are currently in custody while investigations continue to track down other members of the drug trafficking network.
Slavery is a wound on the memory of the Universal Church, Pope Leo XIV, said on Monday, as he issued a fresh apology over the participation of the the Catholic Church in the centuries-long delay in condemning slavery.
The pontiff stressed the position of the church after his predecessors had offered similar apologies, said: “For this, in the name of the Church, I sincerely ask for pardon.”
Writing in a major text that warned about “new forms of slavery” behind the digital economy, the joined John Paul II, who denounced slave trade in 1992 before issuing a sweeping request for forgiveness for historical injustices in 2000 and Pope Francis who also repeatedly denounced contemporary forms of slavery.
In his own vein, Pope Leo, pointed out that the Church owned slaves until the Middle Ages and it also advised European sovereigns on how to justify the enslavement of “infidels.”
He stressed in “Magnifica Humanitas” (Magnificent Humanity), a document focused primarily on the rise of artificial intelligence, that it was only in the 19th century that “a formal, absolute and universal condemnation of slavery was clearly articulated.”
Hear him: “It is true that past events cannot be judged anachronistically, as though the moral criteria that matured over time had always been available. Yet neither can we deny or diminish the delay with which both society and the Church came to denounce the scourge of slavery. This constitutes a wound in Christian memory, one from which we cannot consider ourselves detached.”
Qowiy Oloyede, a resident of Oriya Sokoto road, Atan Ota, is currently telling operatives of the Ogun State Colice command, the reasons that pushed him into making a video suggesting that a part of the state was under attack of terrorists, knowing same to be fake.
Oloyede, reports say, dragged to the police on May 23 by one Ayinla Sodiq, who accused him of creating and sharing a misleading TikTok video falsely claiming that bandits had invaded the Atan Ota community..
Zagazola Makama, a counterinsurgency publication, which broke the news, said on immediately being questioning by the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), Oloyed, allegedly confessed to fabricating the video to gain followers on social media.
Apart from admitting that that he created the fake bandit attack content to gain followers and trend online, said in a video currently on social media the herder featured in the clip was a cattle rearer who usually grazed cows behind his shop and had initially refused to participate before eventually agreeing.
Oloyede, who also claimed he could neither read nor write, adding that his apprentice wrote the caption accompanying the video posted online, maintained that he had only produced and posted two similar videos, one on Monday and another on Wednesday.
The command, said to have recovered photographs and video evidence linked to the fake publication during preliminary investigation, added that the suspect would be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID), Abeokuta, for further investigation, warning residents against spreading false information capable of causing panic and public disorder, and for the public to verify information before sharing content on social media.
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