I am loving this 'arrangement' with the whole of my heart, indeed if Nigeria will still b one beyond 2015 it is very obvious that this 'arrangement' is a prelude to an Igbo Presidency in the not-too-far-distance! Initially, the 'Military Might' of this country was wrongfully placed in the hands of the core North where out of the 18 security outfits then, 14 was located in d north and then follows d sly quota system in d recruitments exercise of d Nigerian Army favouring d northerners massively!

The truth is that the petitioner should go and bring the roll call of all officers of Nigerian armed forces and let's see whether we have more of Igbos or Hausa! Its very simple as that!!! If you check that record u would see that it is even the igbos that have the lowest number of officers in tha armed forces and thus Abia and Ebonyi have a slightly higher number than some states who probably have more people in tha army is just an attempt to balance the already existing inbalance in the recruitment in the armed forces. I recently interracted with a very senior officer in the Federal Judicial service, he told me that the recruitment currently taking place is only ment for 3 Zones in Nigeria 2 in the North and one in th South , because they observed that people from these zones are very few in the judiciary service. Now when this is concluded certainly the other 2 Zones in the south and one in the North that seem to have even the largest number of applicants will ofcourse petition as usual of favouritism and loopsided recruitment without knowing that when the records are shown, their people stil dominate the service. So that is the case with Nigerian Army and even the immigration that caused the woman of her job.

. lol

somebody said ihejirika might be fired. . nigerians are wonderful!

Nigeria National Assembly should hold hearings with those responsible for recruitments and promotions into this important national security institution. This is the most appropriate step to investigate this problem. Any attempt to set up a kangaroo military commission would tangle this problem, and should not be address in a close door meeting as mentioned by the military spokesperson. My fear is that this could be in the mix of another ploy by the igbos to ceased Nigeria.GEJ should restraint any attempt.

[quote author=racetrack]Nigeria National Assembly should hold hearings with those responsible for recruitments and promotions into this important national security institution. This is the most appropriate step to investigate this problem. Any attempt to set up a kangaroo military commission would tangle this problem, and should not be address in a close door meeting as mentioned by the military spokesperson. My fear is that this could be in the mix of another ploy by the igbos to ceased Nigeria.GEJ should restraint any attempt.


So ur fear is that Igbos might ceased Nigeria? u are really poor coward

Negro_Ntns:

lmao! ewu......fear no allow you to utter the word.

let me catch you, i will bind you like a goat and sacrifice your as*s to ogun, god of iron.

You know your oily mouth runs 24 hours but in the dark hours you shiver and beg for your dear life like a coward you are. Cowardice is truly in your people's DNA

Your life is worthless anyway.

Rhino.5dm:
Are you this daft in real life or just trying to be stupid? Look you fool, mentioning my name alone can't increase your single digit IQ and can't make you look smarter than the dehydrated goat you are. For your bleeping Info, Berem is married with kids and not available, so stop stalking her like the helpless retarrded bingo you are.

Secondly, do you think I give a fucck about what maggots like you say about me? Look at this toad feeling important. For the last time, don't you ever in your miserable life mention my name or try connecting me with gutter dwelling, maggot eating swines like yourself. Fool.

and ur iq is above single digit as well?

Virgin Finder: I don't care if the Igbos dominate the armed forces.

My own concern is that they never clinch the presidency.

It is vital that there is a Yoruba/Northern/SS person in power to keep an 'Ihejirika' and 'Rose Uzoma' in check whereever and whenever the need arises otherwise the Igbos will go haywire.

You can be sure all the recent propaganda will yield tangible results as the COAS would have been forced consciously/subconsciously to retrace his steps or he loses his job. He may be replaced by another Igbo man for all I care.

Should the new person mess up, he'll be checked like his predecessor.

Thats how to manage Igbos. They must never clinch the top job of president.Never!!!!!!

For now, let the Igbos enjoy jor.

You are ranting like kkk in the US but Obama proved them wrong. Igbos will continue to prove you wrong just like our super eagles proved ethnic bigots wrong. If merit is given a chance, an Igbo can emerge likewise any other person. Stop hating, learn to appreciate people irrespective of their race, tribe or religion. A word is enough for the wise.

madridsta007: Worth Reading....

RESPONSE TO: A DANGEROUS TREND IN THE NIGERIAN ARMY

It has come to our notice that there is a campaign by some unscrupulous and unpatriotic elements whose intentions appear to be bent on destabilizing the Nigerian military and nation at large. This campaign is being propagated in the form of a spurious article being circulated that alleges that the Nigerian Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Onyeabor Azubuike Ihejirika is on some sort of sinister and clandestine operation to “Igbonise” the Nigerian Army. The COAS has been accused of selectively promoting only Igbos at the expense of others. Well, nothing can be further from the truth, and this will be demonstrated in a very clear and dispassionate analysis in rebuttal to the openly biased and ethnically tinged attempt by some disgruntled elements.
What this hatchet job of an article has done is to selectively focus on the promotion of four officers, and then proceed to make bold claims that these promotions were ethnically motivated because the said officers were of Igbo origin, and then conjure up a justification of why their promotions were ethnically motivated by employing a lot of hyperbole and incredulous reach in drawing conclusions from far-fetched inferences. The elements behind this very dishonest article have done this while ignoring the holistic picture of all promotions within the different cadres of the army. They focused on the promotions of Brigadiers Ugwu of the Ordinance Corps, Nwaogbo of the armored corps, Agha Okoro of the Supply and Transport Corps, and Chioba of the Corp of Electrical and Mechanical Engineers only. How can this be a complete picture when 43 Brigadiers where promoted Major Generals in 2011 and 22 promoted in 2012?

Now let’s examine the promotion exercise of 2011 based on available information:
On November 10 2011 the Vanguard published the following story on Army promotions:

The Nigerian Army Council has approved the promotion of 25 major- generals and 43 brigadier-generals, the largest number ever promoted at a go.
Following the recommendation of the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant-General Azubuike Ihejirika, those elevated from Brigadier Generals (one star) to Major-Generals (two stars) are Director of Army Public Relations, Brigadier-General R.I.D Isa; Director of Military Intelligence, Brigadier-General A.T. Jibrin; Director of Operations at Army HQ, Brigadier General G.A. Wahab and Defence Adviser, New York, Brigadier General G. Audu.
Others promoted Major Generals are Brig-Gen. K.C. Osuji, Brig-Gen. F.S. Owonibi, Brig-Gen. Agha-Okoro, Brig-Gen. D.D. Kitchner, Brig-Gen. B.T. Oginni, Brig-Gen. E.R. Chioba, Brig-Gen. J.M. Ogidi, Brig-Gen. S.U. Labaran, Brig-Gen. A.A. Martins, Brig-Gen. A. Chukwu, Brig-Gen. M. Idris, Brig-Gen. L.N.K. Banjiran, Brig-Gen. S.U. Audu and Brig-Gen. E.F. Abejirin.
Also promoted two star-generals are Brig-Gen. T.O. Umar, Brig-Gen. H.G. Aminu, Brig-Gen. I. Sani, Brig-Gen. A.G. Ewanshia-Oloni and Brig-Gen. P.K. Ikumonein.
A statement confirming the promotions was signed by the Chief of Staff, Army Public Relations Department, Col. Usman Abdul.
Among the Colonels promoted to the rank of Brigadier-Generals are Colonel Leo Erabor, PSO to the Chief of Army Staff, Col. O.O. Adeleke, Col. J. Alexander, Col. T.K. Golau, Col. M.M. Dan-Ali, Col. L.O. Adeosun, Col. E.A. Ransome-Kuti, Col. J.T. Abubakar and Col. S.E.U. Ekanem.
A statement confirming the promotions was signed by the Chief of Staff, Army Public Relations Department, Col. Usman Abdul.
Now we can begin to see the falsehood being peddled in the allegation that Ihejirika’s promotions were ethnically motivated to favour the Igbos as the list provided shows no such trend. Let’s take a count of Brigadiers and Major Generals promoted against their ethnicities since this is where the focus of the disgruntled elements seems to lie. Below is a list of 23 Brigadier Generals promoted to the rank of Major Generals in 2011. It will be instructive to compare the number Igbo officers promoted to the number of officers of other ethnic groups promoted:

1. Director of Army Public Relations, Brigadier-General R.I.D Isa--------------North
2. Director of Military Intelligence, Brigadier-General A.T. Jibrin--------------North
3. Director of Operations at Army HQ, Brigadier General G.A. Wahab---------North
4. Defence Adviser, New York, Brigadier General G. Audu.---------------------North
5. Brig-Gen. K.C. Osuji----------------------------------------------------------SE
6. Brig-Gen. F.S. Owonibi------------------------------------------------------SW
7. Brig-Gen. Agha-Okoro--------------------------------------------------------SE
8. Brig-Gen. D.D. Kitchner---------------------------------------------------(Unverified)
9. Brig-Gen. B.T. Oginni---------------------------------------------------------SW
10. Brig-Gen. E.R. Chioba---------------------------------------------------------SE
11. Brig-Gen. J.M. Ogidi-------------------------------------------------------(Unverified)
12. Brig-Gen. S.U. Labaran-------------------------------------------------------North
13. Brig-Gen. A.A. Martins--------------------------------------------------------SW
14. Brig-Gen. A. Chukwu----------------------------------------------------------SE
15. Brig-Gen. M. Idris------------------------------------------------------------North
16. Brig-Gen. L.N.K. Banjiran------------------------------------------------(Unverified)
17. Brig-Gen. S.U. Audu---------------------------------------------------------North
18. Brig-Gen. E.F. Abejirin--------------------------------------------------------SW
19. Brig-Gen. T.O. Umar---------------------------------------------------------North
20. Brig-Gen. H.G. Aminu--------------------------------------------------------North
21. Brig-Gen. I. Sani--------------------------------------------------------------North
22. Brig-Gen. A.G. Ewanshia-Oloni------------------------------------------------SS
23. Brig-Gen. P.K. Ikumonein------------------------------------------------------SS

Out of 23 names only four (4) appear to be Igbo names; Osuji, Agha-Okoro, Chioba and Chukwu; now that is only 17% of the number of Brigadiers promoted to Major Generals in 2011 as published by the Vanguard in November of 2011. The SE is one of 6 geopolitical zones in the country, and simple math tells us that if geopolitical zones were taken into account during promotions of officers, as it should in such a polarized and tribalised country as Nigeria, that is exactly 17% of promotions per cadre per geographical zone, given there are personnel from each zone available to be promoted. So what is the source of this contrived brouhaha? Is this not much ado about nothing? Who could be behind this, but those bent on destabilizing Nigeria for whatever selfish and nefarious ends they may have?
For good measure, below is a summary of the 2012 promotion details as published in National Mirror on December 20 2012:
Director, Army Public Relations Department, Brigadier General Bola Koleoso, who was promoted to the rank of Major General, in a statement, listed those promoted to the substantive rank of Major General to include:

1. Brigadier General NO Ojiji of the Armed Forces Command and Staff College (AFCSC);
2. Brigadier General HA Salihu; Commandant, Depot Nigerian Army,
3. Brigadier General SZ Uba of the Defence Headquarters
4. Brigadier General ET Nienge of the Nigerian Army School of Supply and Transport.
Brigadier General David Enetie of Headquarters Infantry Corps Centre,
5. Brigadier General Mashudy O. Adekanye of the Nigerian Army Ordinance School, Commander of 23 Brigade Nigerian Army
6. Brigadier General John N. Nwaoga and Brigadier General Patrick G. Ogah of Army Headquarters Directorate of Training and Operations.
Brigadier General Donald MN Oji of Nigerian Army Signals School
7. Brigadier General Tanko Y. Gaiya of the AFCSC
8. Brigadier General Bamidele O. Ologundudu of the Nigerian Defence College (NDC)
9. Brigadier General Abbas O. Adekanye of the Central Workshop; Commander 1 Brigade Nigerian Army, Brigadier General Tamunomieibi I. Dibi; Commander 2 Brigade
10. Brigadier General Tukur Y. Buratai; Commander 4 Brigade
11. Brigadier General Obi A. Umahi
12. Brigadier General Chuckwudi BB Odunukwe of the Directorate of Data Processing; Defence Attache to China
13. Brigadier General Sulaiman D. Aliyu
14. Brigadier General Junaid S. Bindawa of the Nigerian Army Armoured School (NAAS)
15. Brigadier General Obidah T. Ethan serving in the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL)
16. Brigadier General Obasina A. Ogunbiyi of the Nigerian Army Medical Corps
17. Brigadier General Friday M. Airende of the Special Vehicle Plant
New GOCs and Head Quarters:

- GOC of 1 Division(Kaduna, Maj Gen.Wahab -------------------------------Northerner
- GOC of 2 Division(Ibadan, Oyo, Maj-Gen. Ahmed Jibri ------------------Northerner
- GOCs of 3 Division(Jos, Plateau), Maj-Gen. Ebiobowei Awala------------South South
- GOC of 81 Division(Victoria Island, Lagos) is Maj-Gen. Obi Umahi ---- South East
- GOC of 82 Division(Enugu), Maj-Gen Ashimiyu Olaniyi ------------------ South West

Again here there is no sign of inequity in the promotions favouring any particular ethnic group as alleged. In fact two officers who were alleged not to have been promoted – Nienge and Adekanye are on this list, and this is not even an exhaustive list of all promoted! So what is the game here? Obviously it is not one that bodes well for the stability of the country.

The article is fraught with hateful language and innuendo; several officers promoted who happen to be Igbo are referred to as “the Igbo boy” . There is so much warped logic and impossible extrapolations and conclusions drawn from inconclusive analysis that will make one dizzy, for example, one Col Soloye is alleged not to have been promoted because of his “outstanding personal and professional records”.

How preposterous!

They continue this incredulous reach by further stating that “The plan here, just as in the case of Oyekan, is to slow down this rising star who might get in the way of Igbo officers “destined” by General Ihejirika to rise above him”.
Again, how preposterous! What is the source or proof of this bold conclusion? Unless this article was produced by superhuman mind readers this is pure baseless conjecture of the highest order. It is important to note at this juncture that none of the officers’ records who have been described as “outstanding” and being overlooked for promotion have been independently vetted. These are just claims by faceless disgruntled elements. Until independently vetted, they remain just claims. Another example of this superhuman mind-reading faculty demonstrated in this article is the case of one Col. Jidda, who for whatever reason was not promoted at a certain time, but the mind readers have gone ahead to explain that “the idea is for Jidda to wait for the Igbo boy to graduate from NIPPS so they can be presented next year with other officers from NDC course 21. Most likely, some Igbo officers would then edge out Jidda who will then suffer the faith of Col Oyekan and Col Soleye”.

Incredible!

Normally these types of baseless claims will not see the light of day in a civilized society, but we are talking of Nigeria afterall, where such poisonous and unfounded allegations have the capability of creating instability and unwarranted bloodshed as has been numerously demonstrated in the short history of the country. That is why it is important to set the record straight now before agents of destruction hijack the fragile peace of the country.

The article mentions cases of several officers who for one reason or another are believed to have been bypassed for promotion. This may or may not be true, but this section of the article does not talk about the Igbo officers who were also bypassed. In any promotional exercise there are bound to be those who will be disappointed as top positions are limited, and the Nigerian Army is no exception. One comes off reading this article thinking only Igbos get promoted in the Nigerian Army, while all others get bypassed. How incredulous! Suffice it to say that Ihejirika is not responsible for all promotions within the army. Most officers are promoted based on a recommendation from their supervisors and superiors, based on merit, as in any other professional organization. There is no way Ihejirika can be personally involved in the promotion of every officer within the Nigerian Army, and so some of these grudges IF legitimate need to be taken up with the supervisors of the concerned officers and not the COAS.
The biggest joke of the article is the insinuation of the entrenchment of nepotism and mediocrity against the COAS by citing the promotion of Brigadier Onoeveta, the former ADC to late President Umaru Yar’adua. First, Onoeveta is not Igbo, nor is he related to the COAS in any way, so how do they get off alleging nepotism? They ask the question “what explains the retention and preferential treatment being given to Brigadier Onoeveta, who is notorious for mediocrity.” (sic) and go on to provide the answer, “One possible explanation for this elevation of mediocrity is that it is a calculated attempt to achieve certain sinister or diabolical objective perhaps known only to General Ihejirika and the dark forces behind his actions”.

What a caricature!

There are also patent falsehoods and outright lies, for example the article claims that Brigadiers Oginni and Martins, were passed over for their junior Igbo counterpart, but this has been verified false as both were among those who were promoted in 2011. Brigadiers Nienge and Adekanye were also alleged to have been passed up for promotion but show up on the list of those promoted in 2012. Why this and why now? Could there be some elements in the Army or in the country at large who are looking for a repeat of 1966, where false and unfounded rumours in the Nigerian Army set the Northern NCOs and junior officers against their Igbo colleagues and officers in a bloody Fun of bloodletting that left over 300 Igbo army corpses in its wake and culminated in the Nigerian Civil War?

The false propaganda continues with the allegation that Ihejirika is somehow trying to repeat a non-existent 1966 agenda “according to which all non-Igbo senior officers were eliminated and replaced, as shown below, by Igbo officers appointed by General Ironsi, on 17th January 1966?”
The following names were then given as Ironsi’s Igbo appointments:

Serial Name Command Ethnic group

1 Lt Col George Kurubo Chief of Staff Nigeria Airforce Ibo, East
2 Lt Col Njoku Commanding Officer 2nd Brigade Ibo
3 Major H. Igboba Commanding Officer 2nd Battalion Ibo, East
4 Major. G. Okonweze Commanding Officer, Abeokuta Garrison Ibo, Mid West
5 Major Nzefili Commanding Officer 4 Battalion Ibo, Mid West
6 Major Ochei Commanding Officer Federal Guards Ibo, Mid West
7 Major D. Ogunewe Commanding Officer1Bn Ibo, East
8 Lt Col Bassey Commanding Officer 1 Brigade East Non Ibo
9 Major Okoro Commanding Officer,3 Battalion Igbo, East
10 Major F Akagha Commanding Officer Depot. Igbo, East
Aside from the obvious falsehood of Kurubo not being Igbo, it will be shown below how data has been selectively edited and manipulated to portray a false image and give a false message. Below is the true composition of Ironsi’s Military postings and Federal appointments:

A-Ironsi’s Military Postings:
Major General Johnson Aguiyi Ironsi----Head of State--------------------------------East

Lt. Col. Hassan U. Katsina, Military Governor of Northern Region-------------------North

Lt. Col. Francis A. Fajuyi, Military Governor of Western Region---------------------West

Lt. Col. Chukwuememka O. Ojukwu, Military Governor of Eastern Region----------East

Lt. Col. David A. Ejoor, Military Governor of Mid-Western Region--------------Mid-West

Brigadier Babafemi Ogundipe, Chief of Staff, Supreme Headquarters (SHQ) -----West

Lt. Col. Yakubu Gowon, Chief of Staff, Army-----------------------------------------North

Lt Col George T. Kurubo, Chief of Staff, Airforce ------------------------------------East

Commodore J.E.A Wey, Chief of Staff, Navy------------------------------------------West

Alhaji Kam Selem, Inspector General of Police---------------------------------------North

Major Mobolaji Johnson, Administrator, Lagos Capital Territory-------------------West

Mr. S.O. Wey, Secretary to the Supreme Military Council--------------------------West

Lt. Col Hilary Njoku, Commanding Officer 2nd Infantry Brigade, Apapa------------East

Lt Col W. U. Bassey, Acting Commanding Officer 1st Brigade, Kaduna------------East

Lt. Col. Philip Efiong,-SHQ--------------------------------------------------------------East

Major Ibrahim Haruna, Chief Ordnance Officer--------------------------------------North

Major David S. Ogunewe, Commanding Officer 1st Battalion, Enugu--------------East

Major Israel Okoro, Commanding Officer 3rd Battalion, Kaduna-------------------East

Major Festus Akagha, Commandant NRTC, Zaria-----------------------------------East

Major Eyo Ekpo, Military Secretary, SHQ---------------------------------------------East

Major Joe Akahan, Commander 4th Battalion, Ibadan------------------------------North

Lt. Col. Michael Okwechime, Chairman Sports Council and Inspector of Engrs.------------Mid-West

Lt. Col. Macaulay Nzefili, Military General Manager, Railways------------------Mid-West

Summary
Northerners -------------5
Mid Westerners---------3
Westerners---------------5
Easterners----------------10

A couple of important facts need to be noted here:

1. Not all officers of Eastern origin are Igbo, for example Kurubo is Kalabari, Effiong is Efik, Ekpo is Efik etc.
2. The East had the most number of officers (~70%) in the officer corps during this time. (Luckham)
3. Entrance examination cut off points had been drastically lowered in an engineered bid to allow Northerners who couldn’t score high enough to make the passing grades to be enrolled en masse into the Army to catch up with other regions as a result of a push by the then Sardauna of Sokoto and Minister of Defence both from the North. (Luckham)
4. A lot of junior northern officers like Gowon, Haruna, M. Muhammed were rapidly promoted to positions way above their ranks by Ironsi to make up for some of the losses of the North in the January coup. (Efiong )
5. Ironsi went way out of his way to appease the North with promotions, appointments, and reassurances to no avail. He was murdered on July 29 1966 by mutinous Northern officers citing a laundry list of paranoid claims and allegations about a grand Igbo plot to take over the country that have been proven to be false by all credible historians.

B-Ironsi’s Federal Appointments:
Secretary to the Federal Military Government--------------------Westerner
Agriculture and Natural resources---------------------------------Westerner
Communication------------------------------------------------------Westerner
Justice----------------------------------------------------------------Westerner
Works and Housing--------------------------------------------------Westerner
Defence---------------------------------------------------------------Northerner
Education--------------------------------------------------------------Northerner
External Affairs--------------------------------------------------------Northerner
Finance-----------------------------------------------------------------Northerner
Internal Affairs (two) ------------------------------------------------Northerner
Northerner
Trade------------------------------------------------------------------Northerner
Economic Development----------------------------------------------Mid-Westerner
Industry----------------------------------------------------------------Mid-Westerner
Information-------------------------------------------------------------Mid-Westerner
Labour-------------------------------------------------------------------Mid-Westerner
Mines and Power-------------------------------------------------------Mid-Westerner
Transport---------------------------------------------------------------Mid-Westerner
Establishment-----------------------------------------------------------Easterner
Health--------------------------------------------------------------------Easterner
Others (three) ----------------------------------------------------------Easterner
Northerner
Mid Westerner
Summary:
Northerners -------------8
Mid Westerners---------7
Westerners---------------5
Easterners----------------3

C- General Managers, Chairmen, Directors and Secretaries of Federal boards and Corporations
Electricity Corporation of Nigeria, General Manager-------------------Expatriate
Secretary-------------------Northerner
Railways------------------------------------General Manager----------Easterner
Secretary------------------Northerner
Ports Authority General Manager--------General Manager-----------Westerner
Secretary-------------------Westerner
Shipping Line------------------------------General Manager-----------Westerner
Secretary------------------Mid-Westerner
Coal Corporation--------------------------General Manager-----------Easterner
Secretary---------------------Northerner
Board of Customs and Excise------------Chairman----------------------Westerner
Secretary-----------------------Westerner
Airways-----------------------------------General Manager---------------Expatriate
Secretary------------------------Easterner
Industrial Development Bank------------General Manager---------------Northerner
Secretary------------------------Westerner
Nigerian External Communication------General Manager----------------Expatriate
Secretary-------------------------Westerner
Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation-----Director---------------------------Westerner
Secretary--------------------------Westerner
Board of Inland Revenue---------------Chairman--------------------------Westerner
Secretary----------------------------Westerner
Nigerin Produce Marketing Company Ltd---Chairman---------------------Westerner
Managing Director----------------Northerner
Secretary--------------------------Westerner
Central Bank----------------------------Governor---------------------------Northerner

Summary:
Northerners -------------6
Mid Westerners---------1
Westerners---------------12
Easterners----------------3
Expatriates---------------3

It is now becoming clear that this is a campaign of calumny and evil propaganda of epic proportions aimed at destabilizing the peace of this nation. If this is not treason then what is? The evil elements behind this campaign have to be fished out and brought to book. Nigeria’s stability is too fragile for these types of expensive political games that have gone on for too long from certain elements who do not want progress for this country. When other nations have moved ahead with industrialization and technological development we are still bogged down by tribal/religious and ethnic conflicts in 2013. Are we cursed? Nigeria is now a laughing stock of smaller African nations who used to look up to us as Africa’s potential super power, and yet we are not able to pause for a second to get our heads out of the sand to self-examine and self-correct after 50 years of rudderless existence as an independent nation. How long can we continue this way? This is definitely not the path forward to a vibrant and prosperous nation. Some things have got to give. Nigerians need to rise up and claim their country from those bent on keeping us behind.

SIGNED,
CONCERNED CITIZENS OF NIGERIA
References:
1. http://www.vanguardngr.com/2011/11/army-lifts-25-to-major-generals-43-as-brigadier-generals/

2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnson_Aguiyi-Ironsi

3. http://army.mil.ng/divisions.html

4. January 15: Before and After, 1966 Nigerian Crisis, Government Printer, Enugu.
5. http://nationalmirroronline.net/new/150-army-officers-promoted/

6. Nigeria and Biafra, My Story, Philip Efiong, 2007
7. The Nigerian Military, A Sociological Analysis of Authority and Revolt 1960-67, Robin Luckham

bravo brother. if only the same paper that wrote the posted drivel can see this and the nairalanders with iq's higher than a single digit. Some nigerians are damned too gullible.

Negro_Ntns: . lol

somebody said ihejirika might be fired. . nigerians are wonderful!

hahahahaha as if them get say for the matter

The History of the Nigerian Army at a Glance!

It is generally believed that Ugboma was commissioned in the forties before Wellington Bassey but he left the army before the "N" system began. According to this view, that is why Bassey is now commemorated as Nigeria’s first commissioned officer when in fact he was not. Likewise, Umar Lawan was commissioned with Maimalari at Sandhurst in 1953 but was discharged soon after. Onuaguluchi was commissioned in 1956 but died soon after. Like Ugboma, neither of these men was listed on the roll when the "N" system began. Hence it affected the order and numbers of all other Nigerian officers before and after them in the West African frontier force whose names were transferred to the new "N" register.

Going by Lt Col. Mac Nzefili’s account on the recruitments and the order of the then Army of Nigeria, he said, “My first Army Number in the Gold Coast (Ghana) at the Regular Officer’s Special Training School as a Cadet, was N/A 18151047. At the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, H.M. Queen Elizabeth II commissioned me into the British Army. Our numbers will be found in the British Roll. We passed out on 19 December 1957. Nigeria was still British Protected then. On being posted to the Royal West African Frontier Force (RWAFF), now dissolved, I had a new number, WA 64 (West Africa 64). When Gold Coast became Independent as GHANA, the remaining British West African Countries went their different ways and a further change in Military Numbers took place. My new number became N25 (Nigeria 25). Note that N/A and N before the military numbers did not mean the same thing. "N" is for Officers and "N/A" for other Ranks including Cadets.” Lt Col. Mac Nzefili, a 1957 graduate of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, was among the first 30 Nigerians ever commissioned into the Army. Therefore, he belongs to that unique pre-independence first generation of officers.

What is known today as the Nigerian Army was, before 1966, a part of the British West African Army called the Royal West Africa Frontier Force (RWAFF). This force included the armies of Gold Coast (Ghana) Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Gambia. At this time, there were eight indigenous Nigerian officers in the entire force, the rest being British officers. The role of an army in a developing country was not fully realized by the nationalist leaders struggling for independence, hence, there was no effective pressure on the British Government to train Nigerian officers in preparation for independence. Even at this stage, it was clear that the future stability of a nation such as Nigeria depended to a large scale on the existence of a reliable army. One result of this short - sightedness was that the first Nigerian to command the Nigerian Army - Maj Gen. J.T.U. Aguiyi Ironsi, was not appointed until 1965, nearly five years after independence.

At independence, it was also obvious that only the group that controlled the Army could aspire to run a stable Nigerian government. Either by coincidence or by design, almost all the military installations were concentrated in one area of the country - The North. To illustrate this fact, below is a list of major military installations in Nigeria and their locations before the January 1966 coup:

Northern Nigeria:
1. 3rd Battalion - Kaduna
2. 5th Battalion - Kano
3. 1 Field Battery (Artillery) - Kaduna
4. 1 Field Squadron (Engr.) - Kaduna
5. 88 Transport Regiment - Kaduna
6. Nigerian Defense Academy - "
7. Ordinance Depot - "
8. 44 Military Hospital - "
9. Nigeria Military Training College -"
10. Recon Squadron & Regt - "
11. Nigerian Air Force - "
12. Ammunition Factory - "
13. Recruit Training Depot - Zaria
14. Nigerian Military School - "

Western Nigeria:
1. 4th Battalion - Ibadan
2. 2 Field Battery (Arty) -Abeokuta
3. 2 Recon Squadron -"
Eastern Nigeria:
1st Battalion - Enugu

There were no military units in the Mid - Western Nigeria and those in Lagos were either administrative or ceremonial. Recruitment of soldiers into the Nigerian Army was based on ethnic quota system. Under this system Northern Nigeria provided 60%, Eastern and Western Nigeria 15% each and Mid - Western Nigeria 10%. This was done to encourage the Northerners who had not been interested in joining the Army initially. The standard of entry into the Army was as well lowered to favor the Northerners. As a result the North in 1966 had the absolute majority within the rank and file of the Army. The standards fell within the Army and the soldiers became more politically conscious. Madiebo pointed out "In order to ensure the loyalty of the military thus established, the criterion for promotion and advancement was based more on political considerations than efficiency or competence. (Madiebo, Alexander A.: The Nigerian revolution and the Biafran war)!

The involvement of the Military in politics took a turn for the worse during the Western Nigerian elections in October 1965. The politicians openly courted the friendship of top military officers. Due to the chaos that characterized the general election of 1964 and the Western Region election of 1965, it had become clear that Nigeria was overdue for a change. By October 1965, rumors of an impending coup were already circulating in the country. It was therefore not much of a surprise when the coup was finally staged.

The petitioners are being economical with the truth. They mischievously appeal to the basest of our sentiments - ethnicity and religion. BTW when Dambazzau was COAS, he was, with a wry sense of humour in army circles, referred to as heading a Kano Pillars army. What is in place presently is an Enyimba army. To each, his own.

bestman09:

Is it now Ihejirika's turn?
There is this piece circulating online on army promotions under General Ihejirika. The author, apparently sponsored by faceless failures, alleged that Ihejirika was promoting his Igbo brothers over Northerners to achieve an "Igbo agenda".

Here is what I know. BY John Okiyi Kalu


Unlike other past Army Chiefs, Ihejirika insisted on competence and merit as a basis for promotion to very senior positions in the Nigerian Army. To give teeth to that policy and engender competence and professionalism, he invited an external body to administer promotion examination for those within the relevant cadres.

If Igbo or Yoruba man passed that exam and the author's sponsors fail to make it, should we promote the olodos and sacrifice competence and professionalism? All the while "federal character" and "we we" were used as basis to promote all manner of misfits in the army, how did Nigeria benefit? Apart from coup plotting induced pot bellies and class looting of the nation, what did we gain from past promotions?

Let the author of that vile piece summon the courage to publish all promotions made in the Army from 1979 to date. It will help the whole world see why everything is wrong with Nigeria. Don't forget that even out of power, militicians replaced themselves with their civilian minions made up of slightly more incompetent people at all levels. Even then they still find themselves retiring and contesting elections to continue the suffocation of Nigeria to death. To them, merit is haram.

For Christ sake people should also stop insulting our sensibilities by flaunting fake population figures in public discussions. We are not in the dark ages and anyone who cares to know the truth about Nigeria's population should simply go to google earth and see how many buildings are there from Abuja to Sokoto. Even the British have long accepted complicity in this census fraud. I challenge any living Nigerian to swear that those figures we bandy about as census figures truly represent Nigeria's population distribution. If you lie let your story be Nigeria's story. Great potentials but negative growth for 52 years.

Let it be known that any system that is based on merit will favor the Igbo man and competence driven Nigerians, naturally. If the rest of the country is not ready for merit based progress let them reconsider keeping Igbos in Nigeria. It is wrong to force them to remain in Nigeria while living in mortal fear of them. Like I've said severally, a key reason Nigeria is not moving forward remains her fear of the Igbo man. That mind set have led to a situation where every single national system must have a viral program that says "keep Igbos down". A country committed to keeping one section down will remain down to keep that section down. It is better to seat down and tell them to go and form their own country so that those who choose to remain will progress (or retrogress) without Igbophobia.

Even our national football team is now a victim of this "I love, I no love" attitude towards Igbos. One so called activist recently posted thrash on how the match allowance paid to the national ogbono team mean enriching the Igbo nation. The emergency activist forgot that the glorious USA 94 team was also an "Igbo team". With the exception of Yekini and 2 others,, the rest of those who made up the first team were of Igbo Origin. I can tell anyone without fear of contradiction that the team excelled because Westerhoff made his team selection based on merit. All the coaches after him were forced to operate under the "national agenda".

Not long ago, we saw similar propaganda being circulated against the former head of immigration. She was sacked two weeks ago. It was also deployed against Barth Nnaji and he lost out. Such propaganda is hardly deployed against the locust and cankerworm of the Nigerian nation. They can steal N37b police pension money and get 2 years with option of N750k fine. Billions of new naira notes can disappear at CBN and nobody will talk about the CBN governor but EFCC will look for Soludo over N750m contract awarded by Obasanjo.

Sincerely, if Nigeria is not ready for merit based growth and development, let's sit down and talk. Lord Luggard's 100 years expires next year, 2014. If because of hypocrisy we cannot shake hands and say "you are still my brother no matter your new republic" let us agree a regional government where each region pursues the type of development suited to it. While some might choose the Sharia model, others will be free to pursue Awolowo style development socialism or apply the American Capitalist model based on merit and competence. If one region is making progress others will copy or at least visit that region to borrow wisdom. Who knows, after AD 2140, our great grand children might decide to come together and propagate and pursue merit as a basis for reward, promotion and appointments..

God forbid that my children will belong to a country where merit and competence are punished.


This post was posted to my FACEBOOK page and i agree absolutely with the author!

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