The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig - Politics - Nairaland
Nairaland Forum / Nairaland / General / Politics / The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig (3621 Views)
Photos Of National Funeral Ceremony Of Late Dim Chukwuemeka Odunmegwu Ojukwu / Biography Of Chief Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu / Ojukwu (Dim Chukwuemeka Odimegwu) Is Dead (2) (3) (4)
| The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by ulonnaya21: 3:27pm On Feb 23, 2012 |
For many great men who had traversed the planet earth, hardly did any of them have more than two very important dates in their lives. Ordinarily-speaking, man born of a woman is naturally associated with two eventful dates; the day of his birth and the day he joins his ancestors in the world beyond. But in the case of the former military governor of defunct Eastern Region of Nigeria; Late Dim Chukwuemeka Odimegwu Ojukwu, there exists an outstanding difference. Because of the distinctiveness of his rare and unique personality, it stands evidently incontrovertible that late Emeka Odimegwu Ojukwu had, willy-nilly, unprecedentedly contributed immensely in shaping the course of Modern Nigeria. His social and political engineering in the firmament of the Nigerian dynamics was inevitably captured and recorded by history and unequivocally constitute landmarks in Nigeria's March to Nation-hood. Many contemporary writers and commentators have already written and said much about Ojukwu's date and place of birth, his privileged family background; with a golden spoon, not silver, and, of course, the bourgeois elitism that surrounded his brilliant academic career, culminating in his displayed astuteness in intellectualism and capped his pursuit with a masters' degree in History. With his rare intellectual background, Dim Ojukwu, driven by a combination of vision, selflessness, determination, 'patriotism and humility willingly resolved to enlist into the Nigerian Army as a mere recruit. By that singular act, Dim Ojukwu carved a niche for himself as the first University graduate of African extraction to join the British Colonial Army as an ordinary recruit. Some writers, purely for selfish destructive reasons, had insincerely and most unpatriotically labeled Dim Ojukwu as a rebel and an ethnic jingoist. This is an indecent and unacceptable manifestation of parochialism of an intolerable dimension. Such narrow-minded writers had pitiably failed to appreciate the fact that the Late Dim Ojukwu, as a Battalion Commander of the Nigerian Army in Kano, as at January 15, 1966, had bluntly and successfully refused to recognize the military coupd'etat plotted by the late Major Patrick Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu. He condemned the coup as he reasoned that, even though the political conflict, intolerance, and rivalry between the Late Chief Jeremiah Obafemi Awolowo and Late Chief Samuel Akintola had turned the defunct Western Region of Nigeria into a regional disaster and catastrophe, resulting into uncountable deaths and equally threatening the corporate existence of the new Independent Nigeria, Military Coup was not the solution to be applied to the 'Wild West'. When the Late First Military Head of State and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Nigeria; Major-Gen. Johnson Thomas Umunnakwe Aguiyi-lronsi, eventually took over the reins of the country after Late Kaduna Nzeogwu had surrendered to espirit de corps of military regimentation and superiority, history recorded another significant date for Dim Ojukwu as the first military governor and Chief Executive of the defunct Eastern Region of Nigeria. On July 15 1966, Nigerian Military Officers of Northern Nigeria extraction, led by the then major Theophilus Danjuma, staged a counter-coup, during which they killed Major-Gen Ironsi who was a guest of the Military Governor of defunct Western Region, Lt. Col Fajuyi. The Danjuma-led coupists also killed Fajuyi who had attempted resisting the killing of Gen. Ironsi as his official guest. As at the time of the Northern-plotted -Danjuma led coup in July 1966, the most Senior Nigerian Military Officer, after Gen. Ironsi, was Brigadier Ogundipe, of Yoruba extraction. In the established culture of military leadership and sequence, leadership of the Nigerian state should have naturally been trusted upon Brig. Ogundipe. But the Northern Military Coupists installed Lt Col Yakubu Gowon, a relatively Junior Officer to Brig. Ogundipe. This act was, for sure, not acceptable to Dim Ojukwu, who saw it as a contravention of military discipline and ethics. As a well-bred intellectual and quintessential soldier, this was an overt injustice and flagrant display of indiscipline and its attendant impunity that had to be resisted. With the successful over throw and killing of Gen. Ironsi, the North broke lose and embarked on a rampage that ended up as a pogrom targeted at ethnic cleansing of the people of forrrier eastern Region of Nigeria, especially Ndi Igbo, resident in such Northern cities as Kano, Kaduna, Maidugiri, Bauchi, Sokoto, Jos, Zaria, Markurdi and the smaller towns. As the Military Governor of former Eastern Region, that period was the most challenging in the life and times of Dim Chukwuemeka Odimegwu Ojukwu. He found himself between the devil and the deep blue sea. He was principally committed to the Unity of Nigeria but at the same time he had to do something in order to stop the orgy of wanton massacre of Easterners in the North. The situation in the North compelled Dim Ojukwu to embark on wide consultations. The outcome of the consultations with leaders of the defunct Eastern Region was the declaration of the Federal Republic of Biafra on 30th May, 1966. This date became water shed in the political history of Nigeria. http://www.abiastate.gov.ng/2012/02/the-significance-of-late-dim-chukwuemeka-odimegwu-ojukwu-ikemba-in-the-political-evolution-of-nigeria/ |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by Dede1(m): 4:02pm On Feb 23, 2012 |
@OP Everything in the post is worthy of second glance except this fallacy – “The Danjuma-led coupists also killed Fajuyi who had attempted resisting the killing of Gen. Ironsi as his official guest”. This is a damnable fallacy created by western government publication of 1967. Please edit out the position from you post because it almost the article worthless |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by nduchucks: 4:19pm On Feb 23, 2012 |
Dede1: There is nothing wrong with the historical fact in bold above. This fact has withstood the test of time and remains very valid. Revisionists will not be allowed to distort our history without challenge. The fact remains that Fajuyi's action was heroic and very commendable. If you can provide us with evidence to dispute the said historical fact, lets hear it. I will not entertain wishes and revisionism on this matter. |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by ulonnaya21: 4:25pm On Feb 23, 2012 |
ndu_chucks: Yes I quite agree with you. History has it that Fajuyi as brave as he is resisted the arrest of Ojukwu and he died in the process. He is the bravest Yoruba man I've ever seen |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by T9ksy(m): 5:44pm On Feb 23, 2012 |
ndu_chucks: Are you new on this site? You must be else you won't be asking "Prof" dede for proof to back up his claim. Dede don't deal in concrete evidence rather he relies on "school of thought", unsubstantiated claims, and some other BS like that. I have been waiting since last October for "Prof" Dede to provide me with his proof of the election won by zik in western nigeria in 1951. |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by jchuckc(m): 1:39pm On Feb 24, 2012 |
Dude dont waste ure time, lest u get caught up in someone's monologue Dede1 = ndu_chucks |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by Lasinoh: 1:44pm On Feb 24, 2012 |
I thought as much! All these NL Abijan cowards that will never stick to one handle! Not to mention the Otapiapia suicidal ones! Sheeeeeesh!!!  |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by slyopez(m): 1:53pm On Feb 24, 2012 |
Yoruba ppl una don see am? Ojukwu wanted the installation of Gen Ogundipe as the head of state thats what prompted the civil war and killing of Ndi Igbo in the north. |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by Businesstools(m): 2:12pm On Feb 24, 2012 |
Ojukwu played an unprecedented role in the History of Nigeria. |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by aribisala0(m): 2:29pm On Feb 24, 2012 |
Well,Ojukwu is a man whose name or struggle cannot be missing from any authentic history of Nigeria. Multilingual,urbane and well spoken he was a controversial figure who evoked and still evokes extremes of passion in many. It is unlikely that his place in Nigerian history will cease to be debated ever. It is improbable that he will get a fair review without hyperbole or vituperation while any of those living today are still around and then maybe not for generations,if ever. |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by HighChief4(m): 2:33pm On Feb 24, 2012 |
Posterity will always be kind to Ojukwu, he really wanted Nigeria unity. Its so sad that Nigerian govt and the West fed the gullible Nigerians with lies and made them hate this man. Gowon's coup was the point things started falling apart in Nigeria. Ojukwu was fighting for a Yoruba man to be installed as the President, but today they loath him. RIP Ikemba |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by aribisala0(m): 2:42pm On Feb 24, 2012 |
You are guilty of everything you accuse people of ;generalization of a whole people . This tells me one thing YOU loath Yorubas,as you call them and psychologically expect the same. Psychiatrists call it PROJECTION(you might benefit from seeing one,on second thoughts perhaps not) The govt of Lagos is hosting his body and that is not a sign of loathing. Some may loath him but many do not. Ojukwu himself was a member or the Trustees Board for Awo's foundation You are stuck in a very bitter place and even if you eat a box of sugar daily nothing will change that. Ojukwu was a man and so he was not perfect. Many Yorubas accept that,the fact that they do not eulogize him like his people does NOT mean they loath him. I have no doubt that there are many who do loath him among the Yoruba and certainl some Igbos too! High_Chief: At the bolded; It really is too early to be drinking! |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by tatosh: 3:09pm On Feb 24, 2012 |
No significance!! He was a war criminal |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by hardbody: 6:24pm On Feb 24, 2012 |
^^^^Define a war criminal and what usually happens to war criminals. Juxtapose your definition and assessments with what is now happening to Ojukwu even in death and thereafter call youself an appropraite name. lilliputians in the brain will never stop parading their idioc.y |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by jpphilips(m): 7:06pm On Feb 24, 2012 |
enough of this ojukwu n0nsense, he was just smart not a hero, most of the people blowing today's ojukwu trumpet dont even know him. @ hardbody forgive me to ask, are you a mouse? |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by ekwynwa: 7:15pm On Feb 24, 2012 |
jp philips: see craze  Ojukwu is a HERO, u can take an undiluted otapiapia for all i care  |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by Dede1(m): 7:49pm On Feb 24, 2012 |
ndu_chucks: You have sent a dose of a chill crap through my spine with this ill-informed post. Did you once say you passed through Zaria? Anybody who passed through the regiment of Boys Company must know that coup plotters do not give their targets the option to live or die. It is rather silly to even insinuate that Francis Fajuiyi stood up resistance against coup plotters when the only persons armed among them during time of their arrest were Flt Lieutenant Andrew Nwankwo, Ironsi’s ADC, and group of soldiers with Danjuma. Again, Nwankwo was numerically outgunned and numbered. At the moment when Ironsi and Fajuiyi were arrested, Fajuiyi has no gun or command of a soldier. Even Fajuiyi’s ADC, Lt Umar, was among the coup plotters. It was an idiocy of highest order the western regional government publication of 1967 had the audacity to spew such propaganda. What a shame. I know Yoruba are very classical in such childish prank but to reduce innuendos to this depth is criminal. |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by jpphilips(m): 9:02pm On Feb 24, 2012 |
@ ekwynwa good for you but he is not mine. for the ff reasons ojukwu's finger prints are all over kaduna nzeogwu's coup, you seriously dont think it is a coincidence that such hit pulled by his kinsmen could be largely successful without the blessing of an influential one of them highly placed in the army that was functioning like a cult? you could remember that the progrom started in the army where some people thought it was a mere rival military cult skirmish. it is commonsensical to assume that ojukwu a historian from oxford is aware of the UN resolution on genocide enacted in 1950 shortly after the second world war. a tool that could bring gowon to justice if he really cared about the ibos ojukwu's father was one of the few Africans that enjoyed royalties from british oil companies in the late 50's a feature people like me thought he could have explored to use the british influence to put gowon on a tight leach a move that could have saved countless igbo lives, it is no news that he pulled the same strings during the hunger era of the war. ojukwu's agenda at the aburi conference has no single ibo interest. by bamboozling gowon to ratify confederation is an act of WAR an oxford graduate should know better. how it saves the progrom is what eludes albert einstein. if the hit in the army had succeeded, the ojukwu boys could have been in total control of the army, since his father has the biggest economic interest in the country, oil and gas not excluded, the smart historian could take a political stage. does the picture fit? army plus economy equals, oh!! i forgot to add that he wasnt a member of the supreme military council which robs him the right to decide for them who should be the next head of state. lastly my heroes dont run, i will chose a hitler anyday over a gallant soldier who forgot his purse on the last plane from Uli enroute ivory coast, lest i forget, my heroes die in the struggle for what they believe in, for one that has wasted as much lives and took to his heels? hell no!!! he doesnt qualify, i believe he will learn a lot from real heroes in the great beyond. adieu!!!! Emeka can u pass the coffee please. |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by jpphilips(m): 9:06pm On Feb 24, 2012 |
@ ekwynwa good for you but he is not mine. for the ff reasons ojukwu's finger prints are all over kaduna nzeogwu's coup, you seriously dont think it is a coincidence that such hit pulled by his kinsmen could be largely successful without the blessing of an influential one of them highly placed in the army that was functioning like a cult? you could remember that the progrom started in the army where some people thought it was a mere rival military cult skirmish. it is commonsensical to assume that ojukwu a historian from oxford is aware of the UN resolution on genocide enacted in 1950 shortly after the second world war. a tool that could bring gowon to justice if he really cared about the ibos ojukwu's father was one of the few Africans that enjoyed royalties from british oil companies in the late 50's a feature people like me thought he could have explored to use the british influence to put gowon on a tight leach a move that could have saved countless igbo lives, it is no news that he pulled the same strings during the hunger era of the war. ojukwu's agenda at the aburi conference has no single ibo interest. by bamboozling gowon to ratify confederation is an act of WAR an oxford graduate should know better. how it saves the progrom is what eludes albert einstein. if the hit in the army had succeeded, the ojukwu boys could have been in total control of the army, since his father has the biggest economic interest in the country, oil and gas not excluded, the smart historian could take a political stage. does the picture fit? army plus economy equals, oh!! i forgot to add that he wasnt a member of the supreme military council which robs him the right to decide for them who should be the next head of state. lastly my heroes dont run, i will chose a hitler anyday over a gallant soldier who forgot his purse on the last plane from Uli enroute ivory coast, lest i forget, my heroes die in the struggle for what they believe in, for one that has wasted as much lives and took to his heels? hell no!!! he doesnt qualify, i believe he will learn a lot from real heroes in the great beyond. adieu!!!! Emeka can u pass the coffee please. |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by Ojiofor: 9:34pm On Feb 24, 2012 |
Fajuyi(rip)resisted arrest with his mouth, please Danju dont kill me, please Juma spare my life, please remember the good old days we had together, that was how brave he was, oh before i forget in the cause of his resistance he killed Juma while Danju escaped! |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by HighChief4(m): 10:22pm On Feb 24, 2012 |
aribisala0: There is what is called "Lip service and scouting for votes and support". In democracy today, most politicians will do anything to get votes and that does not translate to love. So hosting Ojukwu's body could be another ploy to get support from Ndigbo. When Ojukwu needed them most, nothing was done, so it means nothing now. And for the records, I do not hate the Yorubas(the reasonable ones thou), I have so many close Yoruba friends and I also chill with some Yoruba gals anytime I visit naija. |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by Oeclaw: 11:31pm On Feb 24, 2012 |
IKEMBA we know for sure that Nigeria History will never be complete without mentioning YOU. We LOVE YOU. |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by BlackPikiN(m): 12:24am On Feb 25, 2012 |
jp philips: This guy na real hediot! |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by SNCOQ3(m): 5:44am On Feb 25, 2012 |
jp philips: Your conspiracy theory is in want of coherence - Nonsense. |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by Diligence: 10:40am On Feb 25, 2012 |
Ojukwu came, saw, conquered and even still conquers in death! Adieu Great Ojukwu! Fajuyi was brave and worthy of reference/commendation, for some are still living, but are actually dead, while some that are dead still live very much like they never were dead! |
| Re: The Significance Of Late Dim Ojukwu; Ikemba, In The Political Evolution Of Nig by aurenflani: 2:27pm On Apr 24, 2012 |
@DELIGENCE - Please be deligent in what you say in public less it comes to haungt you! What in dis world did Ojukwu conquered except Bianca who also outlived him? Truth be told Ojukwu could not even conquer his fear and so awol himself even though being the C in C during d war he started. Pls u ppl should |
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