by Agbonmagbe Kazeem
Obafemi Awolowo is the undisputed hero of the Yoruba tribe of Nigeria whose wartime policy of
starvation and currency change helped kill the Biafran dream. The post colonial era of Nigerian history was dominated by three actors, Nnamdi Azikiwe, Obafemi Awolowo and Ahmadu Bello.
Dr Azikiwe was an avowed nationalist who preferred one Nigeria above anything else. Sir Ahmadu Bello was a
tribalist who initially
preferred a balkanized
Nigeria to enable his people live their religious and cultural life without external negative influence and was later reluctantly convinced to seek an agenda for a united Nigeria.
“Chief Obafemi Awolowo from the
onset did not hide his
preference for an Oduduwa Republic.”
Chief Awolowo was idolised by the Yorubas because he
was able to transform the southwest into an
educational and industrial hub in Africa and build a robust political climate. He
so much understood the value of education that he made it free, affordable and offered a lot of scholarships
to Yorubas to advance
academically to the highest level. He ran a political system in Action Group whereby people have their say while the leader has his way. This is the system President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is successfully emulate in All Progressive Congress.
Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe, a core nationalist, never received the level of hero worship Awolowo received in the southwest because Igbos severally accused him of not taking them out of Nigeria when Chief Awolowo and Sir Ahmadu Bello were
angling for a balkanized nation.
Chief Awolowo was
the sage whose idea ended the Nigerian civil war. He advised the Gowon Cabinet
to block all food supplies to Biafra so as to end the war
quickly and according to him, “starvation is a
legitimate instrument of war.” This led to the
starvation of over one
million Biafran children.
Thus Awolowo’s advice and actions led to the quick end
to the Biafran dream.
Therefore, it is right to say that what the entire armed forces of Nigeria could not do, the wisdom of Awolowo did.
Chief Awolowo also ensured that every adult Biafran who managed to survive the starvation was given 20 pounds to start life afresh
irrespective of the amount of money in anyone’s bank account before the war started.
Another policy of
his which frustrated Biafra’s ability to import food and arms was the change of currency.
According to Awolowo, “and it is on
record that Ojukwu
admitted that two things defeated him in this war, that’s as at the day he left
Biafra. He said one, the change of currency. He said
that was the first thing that defeated him, and we did that to prevent Ojukwu taking the money which his
soldiers had stolen from our Central Bank for sale abroad to buy arms. So I decided to
change the currency, and for your benefit, it can now be told the whole world, only Gowon knew the day
before the change took place.”
Chief Awolowo has been variously accused of introducing tribalism into the Nigerian politics. He chased Dr Azikiwe out of Ibadan in 1954 when the NCNC headed by Azikiwe won majority seats in the Western Nigeria House of
Assembly and through a palace coup called cross-carpeting, Zik was denied the Premiership of Western Nigeria, at a time when Professor Eyo Ita, an Efik was Premier of Eastern Region and Alhaji Umoru Altine, a Fulani, was Mayor of Enugu. Dr Azikiwe, following the footsteps of
Awolowo, had to frustrate Professor Eyo Ita out of Enugu.
Chief Awolowo and
Sir Ahmadu Bello seem to have a deeper
understanding of the
Nigerian complexities than Dr Azikiwe.
While Awolowo never
trusted the Igbos, the north never trusted Awolowo and the Yorubas. The northern oligarchy instigated crisis in Western Nigeria in the same
manner former President Obasanjo
used the Uba brothers to instigate crisis in Anambra State. This crisis led to the
trumped up charges leading to the trial and
imprisonment of Awolowo.
Reports have it that he was to be poisoned in prison before the military coup
altered the state of affairs.
Awolowo was released from
Calabar prison by Biafran leader Odumegwu Ojukwu
and there was an agreement that while Ojukwu declares
Biafra in the East, Awolowo would declare Oduduwa
Republic in the West.
The British establishment, sensing the dangers of Awolowo declaring
Oduduwa Republic in the West, convinced Gowon and the north to checkmate Awolowo’s secessionist agenda by appointing him
the Vice Chairman of the Federal Executive Council.
This strategy worked
effectively and Awolowo was deceived that after
Gowon’s tenure he would be given the opportunity of ruling Nigeria.
Awolowo thus had to checkmate the Biafran dream to clear any
obstacle to his ruling
Nigeria while the north was looking for the right opportunity to throw him into the dustbin. In frustration, Awo resigned from Gowon’s cabinet when
he realised he had been politically duped.
Awolowo quashed the
Biafran dream while the northern establishment
killed the Oduduwa dream and betrayed Awolowo’s presidential ambition thrice.
According to Fani-Kayode,
“… the north literally begged Awolowo not to declare Oduduwa Republic and go the way of Biafra even
though that was his original intention…
It was the support that the southwest gave to the north that allowed Nigeria to win the war. It was the lie that Gowon and the
northern leaders fed
Awolowo that he would be made President of the
country after the war and after being effectively made
de facto Prime Minister under Gowon during the war that got Awolowo to support them.” Invariably, the Igbos and Yorubas were effectively dribbled, divided, manipulated and overpowered.
The emergence of
Awolowo’s kinsman
Obasanjo as Head of State was another opportunity for him to realise his dream of ruling Nigeria. The 1979 election result was decided in the infamous judgement
where the Supreme Court refused Awolowo’s plea that
2/3 of 19 is 13 states, and went ahead to declare Alhaji Shehu Shagari the winner of the election. The north led by Generals Shehu Yar’Adua and Theophilus Danjuma
convinced Obasanjo why Awolowo should never be the president of Nigeria.
Therefore, instead of a
runoff election, which some believe could favour Awolowo, the Supreme Court declared Alhaji Shehu
Shagari the winner. Late Chief MKO Abiola at one point was used by the northern dominated National Party of Nigeria,
NPN, to oppose the
presidential ambition of Awolowo . He used his National Concord
newspapers and enormous wealth to fight Awolowo and
UPN and when they finished using him to deal with Awolowo, they frustrated Abiola’s presidential
ambition and he had to resign from the party in 1982. Alhaji Umaru Dikko, then transport minister, sent a message to Abiola that the presidency was not for sale to the highest bidder.
When Babangida annulled the election of Abiola in 1993, Yorubas alluded to a
certain curse Awolowo placed on Abiola, in the heat of the latter’s opposition to his presidential ambition that “even if Abiola was to be given the presidential seat, he would not sit on it.”
In 1999, after the suspicious death of Abiola in July 1998,
the NORTHERN establishment sensing that Chief Olu Falae
was the choice of the
Yoruba people, rigged the polls in favour of Obasanjo.
It is obvious that the North had shown evidence of being deadly political
strategists than their
Yoruba and Igbo
compatriots, having used the political suspicion between the duo to dribble them.
Conclusively, the north is not as dumb as people assume; they used Awolowo to checkmate Biafra and then dealt with Awolowo and his ambition.
To be continue…..
“THE HISTORIAN”
AGBONMAGBE REMILEKUN KAZEEM
+2348036472826
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