The storm generated by renown novelist, Prof Chinua Achebe, over his claim that war-time Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon, and the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo formulated the policy of genocide against Igbo during the civil war continued, yesterday.
Awolowo’s daughter, Dr (Mrs) Tokunbo Awolowo-Dosunmu, said she was disappointed about Achebe’s claim.
She also hinted that the Awolowo family may issue a formal response on the controversial claim by the novelist in his latest memoir on Biafra, ‘There was a country’.
But a former governor of Anambra State, Dr Chinwoke Mbadinuju, said whatever Achebe said about the civil war should be taken seriously.
Mbadinuju cited the novelist’s antecedents.
Awolowo was the vice chairman of the Federal Executive Council (FEC), equivalent of deputy to Gowon, during the civil war.
“While a formal statement responding to the offensive comments of the writer is being prepared by the family all I can say for now is that I feel so disappointed”.
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Toks, disppointed? Why should you be? You were only a toddler during the tragic events. Truth is always bitter but constant. Achebe is a man not given to frivolities.
ReplyDeleteYes, Chief Achebe is not a man given to frivolities... But one wonders why he so conveniently forgot that 2million people died only BECAUSE BIAFRA DECLAREF WAR! If Ojukwu had not, these lives would not have been lost. Shikena.
ReplyDeleteCan there be a gain without a pain? Atimes in life we make sacrifices,I'm not saying I'm interested in wars but it happened then and was supposed to be for the good of this generation, tell me are u okay were u are now?
DeleteIts not like that Mr anonymous. There r rules of engagement in war. Warefare is not do everything to kill the enemy. Otherwise chemical weapons will be the order of the day.as a govt, they ahoulf have assumed responsibilty by targetting the biafran army and not the civilian population. The nigerian govt in the hands of gowon and awolowo formulated a policy to starve the igbos knowing fully well that death would result. Am not an igbo but like chinua achebe, I stand for d truth. The yorubas r too proud, even Germany have in recent days recognised their mistakes of the past. No one wants ur apologises. All we want is the truth of d past. That is a vitality for a future.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, As much as I reverend the great author of our time with all sense of humility. I suppossed the octogenarian shouldnt ve brought up this kind of too sensitive issues that is capable by heating the more the already heated polity and which cannot does anything better than disintegrate the unity of the nation at this trying perios of boko haram insurgency with associated political, inter-tribes and religious killings all over the place. Pls use your elderly wisdom to bring Nigerians together than to cause disunity among the races again. Long Live Fed Rep of Nigeria.
ReplyDeleteTp.
Most times, old age forces ppl who feel they ve done nothing or not done enough to leave something to help as they approach d grave. Often times they have to xpose something a secret or truth. If chinua achebe kept silent as u all want, he would be going to d grave with that truth.
DeleteBiafra/Nigeria conflict was all about two camps wanting to greedily appropriate the oil-bearing Niger Delta region. Winning meant wealth, so Awolowo couldn't have abandoned the prospects of changing the lives of his people with crude oil money, which his region's cocoa could NEVER have provided, even if every piece of land in the Southwest was used to cultivate cocoa.
ReplyDeleteNigeria is a powder keg ready to explode in all directions.
It's only a matter of time before the Nigerian time bomb sets off.
Safari, the Biafrans went to war not as a result of Oil, but rather the polgroms metted out to their kins in Northern Nigeria. The Biafrans has always had oil in states like Imo and Abia and are known to be shrewd merchants. Whatever the case, they would have conviniently survived. The problem is that Awo and Gowon knew perfectly well what they were doing. Even after the surrender, to nail the whole affair, Awo gave every biafran a token 20 nigerian pounds, irrespective of the millions they may have had in Nigeria prior to the war. For every war, their are rules of engagement, were it to be today, both would have been charged to Hague. So please be aware of the
DeleteOJUKWU was right on what he did !
ReplyDeleteProf. Achebe is who u can describe as a man of wisdom but he seems to have fallen short of that at this point. This is not the time to start talking abt what can break the country. Leave the past alone. Why doesn't he live the rest of his life in peace rather than create chaos b4 his departure from this world! Pa Achebe, go rest o! U r gr8 man already!
ReplyDeleteWhy is the Awolowo family dissappointed, The man is only speaking the truth. Much as I admire Gowon, he should have known better and kept the war strictly to those fighting. By their act, many women and children were raped and killed by the Nigeria army
ReplyDeleteany person that is against prof's book on the civil war must b biased.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds ridiculous when I see comments talking about keeping Nigeria united. To all who bear that notion: "Wake up and smell the ethnic coffee!". This country's unity and being is a JOKE.
ReplyDeleteIt's untold stories like these that bring out old wounds and heal them properly. Truths about people dying away like mosquitoes should never be swept under the bed. The corpses will stink and cry for it's stories to be told. When we make these horrible and uncomfortable stories known by all, future generations will grow up conscious of events that can lead to the loss of human lives.
Stories like the shooting of a "honey-mooning" husband; the broad-daylight, slow and painful death of the 4 UNIPORT students and other stories that don't even make it to blogs like this should be on CNN and should haunt us for the rest of our lives if we still have our human traits intact.
Please, if you've ever witnessed an event that led to the death of at least one person, use all the resources available to you and publicise it. I salute Prof. Chinua Achebe
Wether Awo is guilty or not, the truth about war strategy must be told. How can you fight a person and expect the person to feed you or make food available on your table? Where was Prof when Ojukwu was planning for the war? Why Ojukwu not make adequate provision for food and and necessay health facilities. This pointly shows how myopic his stategist plotters were.
ReplyDeleteNow let us face reality. As at today, if source/distribution of food is restricted to the eastern region just for 3 months, I want everybody from the east and south-south even the south-west to tell me what measures they have put in place since the end of that war to guarantee food security.
well said chuwuemeka, if we as humans that we claim to be dont reflect on our past mistakes, how then can we confront the present problems begging for solution? Am not saying this as an igbo, but if the story told me by my uncle ( a casualty of biafran war)is true, then the comments and writing of achebe and other achebes is well timed in reminding us of the need to be transparent in governance, democratic , enschew corruption and nepotism/tribalism in our conduct.
ReplyDeleteI wonder why Achebe is revealing this truth now ,when a south-south(a minority in quote) President is the President of Nigeria,its so worrisome,i believe there are more to his comments that meet the eye
ReplyDeleteProf Achebe is an erudite scholar who should anything possible in his possession to ensure a united nigeria and NOT to be castigating an elder stateman even after death. The point is why is he raisng the issue now (After 25 years of Awo's death). he should be remembered that the entire polity is heated up everywhere now and such a statement in uncalled for now
ReplyDeletecan somebody define what a genocide is? if both side of a conflict offically declared war on each other can the defeated party claim genocide?
ReplyDeleteis ORE in ondo state part of the suppossedly biafra nation? i hope this is not another case of zik of africa which became zik of nigeria and ended as only zik of ibo land? how come the man is making such claims now after 42 years? the war ended? or is the alledged policy a new diacovery now.
ds looks like agenda 2015 to me. ibo presidency? if that is the case, then people should come out in one plane language and not trying to re-write history or blackmail some set of people in the country.
ReplyDeletefriends its was all about the money from both sides and still is. Another thing is that these comments will not address the present political state of the country. And If the country divides now into different contours, that is, North, Biafra, West, Niger Delta...each will self-destroy because of the high level of greed and corruption in the system and the self-centredness of people. And by the hunger ended the war.
ReplyDelete