In commemoration of Emeka Ojukwu,
I am compelled to write a piece about him today 4th November being
his birthday.
The tales of Emeka Ojukwu
can never be exhausted through the pens of men lest they fade in the lines of
history.
Stories of this great
African son will forever be told to generations yet unborn for he has earned a
place in the court of the gods like the Greek hero Hercules who defended his
people against oppression.
It is no coincidence that Chukwu
the almighty destined two great Igbo sons in the person of Zik and Ojukwu to be
born in Zungeru, the Northern part of Nigeria at different years and in the
month of November.
Stories of Emeka can never
be completed without mentioning his father Sir Louis Ojukwu. According to
Fredrick Forsyth, Louis was Africa first black millionaire and the first
President of the Nigeria stock exchange. He held sway as a board member in leading
companies at that time before his death in September of 1966.
Louis had the Midas touch, his wealth was made
from the transport business during the outbreak of World War two (WWII). When Victoria
Island was underdeveloped he had acquired most of the land there before the
Nigerian government decided to turn Victoria Island into a diplomatic quarters.
My visit to Nnewi Building at Apapa truly convinced me that Louis was truly
ahead of his time in the world of business.
Young Ojukwu was born on the 4th November 1934
when his family was on a business trip to Zungeru, he was baptised at the local
Catholics church in Zungeru as it’s the norm for Catholics.
As a ten-year old boy in
form one at King’s College Lagos, he had already joined the anti-colonial
struggle.
That year, he joined senior
students like Tony Enahoro and Ovie Whiskey among others, to stage an anti-war,
anti-colonial protest against the colonial administration, for which some of
the students were reprimanded, and from which people like Enahoro emerged into
national limelight.
Ojukwu was tried as a
juvenile in a Lagos court for his participation in the protest. Immediately
after the crisis he was sent to Epsom College, England to further his
education. Emeka, later recalled that his first impression of Britain was a
sense of being completely lost ‘amid this sea of white faces’. Driven in on
himself he developed a private philosophy of total self-reliance, an unyielding
internal sufficiency that requires no external support from others.
At the age of 18 he moved to
Lincoln College Oxford to study Law but
after the statutory one year, Emeka moved to study modern day history. It was
here he had his first clash with his father who wanted him to study law at all
cost. But Ojukwu being himself would never yield to the pressures of his father
as he has always been a self-reliant and independent person who would not
easily succumbed to the will of his father.
Returning in 1956 to Nigeria,
Emeka Ojukwu helpless father tried to lure his Oxford-educated son to become a
Director in one of his company but his restless son chose to join the civil
service.
Seeing that his mind was
made up, Sir Louis went to his friend, the then British Governor-General, Sir
James Robertson to help him speak some sense in to his son and convince him not to start a
career in the civil service.
Sir James Robertson offered Emeka
any job of his choice including working as a senior assistant secretary in the Governor-General’s
office. Ojukwu rejected the offer, and on his own terms secured a rural posting
to Udi, in the Eastern regional civil service. It was at Udi according to
Ojukwu that he understood the way and thinking of his people the Igbos.
The name Ojukwu chased him around
because of the popularity and fame his father has gained over the years. Nothing
came his way on merit and this greatly angered him and out of frustration he
left the civil service.
He entered the Army as one of the first
Nigerian university graduate to earn a commission. At a time when the military
was not attractive as it was considered to be the last resort for drop outs.
Ojukwu, apparently with an eye on history,
sought a commission in the army knowing that one day the army will play a major
role in Nigeria politics.
His influential father once
again intervened to stop his son, using the Governor-General to block Ojukwu
commission in the army. Failing to earn an officers commission, Ojukwu decides
to go through the lowly route - he joined as a private not minding that he is a
graduate with a Master’s degree in History from Oxford.
He was commissioned in 1959
as a second lieutenant where he rose very fast to the rank of a Lt.Col. In 1963
he was part of the United Nation (UN) peace contingent to the Congo on
returning he was posted to the 5th Battalion Kano as the commander.
The coup of January 1966 came to him as a surprise and unaware of its
imminence.
A lot has been written about
the events that lead to Nigeria- Biafra civil war. To so many pundits he wanted
to carve an Empire for himself and his people but he will forever remain in the
hearts of his people for standing up against an unholy alliance of the Anglo-soviet
backed feudal Nigeria that was poised to wipe up his people the Igbos.
Like all men he had his
short comings, which was why Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe said he had to stop supporting
the Biafra cause because of Emekas all-knowing attitude.
When he
saw that the war was lost instead of being captured or assassinated he fled to
Ivory-Coast in 1970 where he stayed until he was pardoned by President Sheu
Shagari in 1982.
His kins men the people of Nnewi gave him a Chieftaincy the now
famous title of Ikemba (Strength of the People) ,while the Igbo nation took to
calling him Dikedioramma (beloved hero of the masses).
In politics he was not successful, the ruling party,NPN, rigged
him out of the senate seat, which he purportedly lost to a relatively little
known state commissioner.
The second Republic was truncated on 31 December 1983 by Major-General
Muhammed Buhari. The military government arrested and kept Ojukwu in Kirikiri
Maximum Security Prison, Lagos alongside most politicians. He was released on 1
October 1984, alongside 249 other politicians of that era.
After the death of Abacha, he played a significant role in
Nigeria’s return to democracy since 1999 (the fourth republic). He formed the
All Progressive Alliance (APGA) where he contested the last three of the four
elections.
At the age of 78, after a protracted illness he died in the
United Kingdom.He was accorded the highest military accolade. He was buried on
Friday,2 March 2012.
His name will forever be remembered in the annals of history.
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