The genocidal Biafran war still haunts Nigeria - Chinua Achebe | Welcome to Linda Ikeji's Blog

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Thursday 4 October 2012

The genocidal Biafran war still haunts Nigeria - Chinua Achebe

The 81 year old novelist, poet, professor, and critic wrote an article for the Guardian UK which was published on Tuesday 2nd October. In the article, Professor Achebe wrote - It is my impression that Awolowo was driven by an overriding ambition for power, for himself and for his Yoruba people - and he's being criticized for it. See the full article and tell us what you think...
Almost 30 years before Rwanda, before Darfur, more than 2 million people – mothers, children, babies, civilians – lost their lives as a result of the blatantly callous and unnecessary policies enacted by the leaders of the federal government of Nigeria.
As a writer I believe that it is fundamentally important, indeed essential to our humanity, to ask the hard questions, in order to better understand ourselves and our neighbours. Where there is justification for further investigation, justice should be served.


In the case of the Nigeria-Biafra war there is precious little relevant literature that helps answer these questions. Did the federal government of Nigeria engage in the genocide of its Igbo citizens – who set up the republic of Biafra in 1967 – through punitive policies, the most notorious being "starvation as a legitimate weapon of war"? Is the information blockade around the war a case of calculated historical suppression? Why has the war not been discussed, or taught to the young, more than 40 years after its end? Are we perpetually doomed to repeat the errors of the past because we are too stubborn to learn from them?

The Oxford English Dictionary defines genocide as "the deliberate and systematic extermination of an ethnic or national group ...". The UN general assembly defined it in 1946 as "... a denial of the right of existence of entire human groups". Throughout the conflict the Biafrans consistently charged that the Nigerians had a design to exterminate the Igbo people from the face of the earth. This calculation, the Biafrans insisted, was predicated on a holy jihad proclaimed by mainly Islamic extremists in the Nigerian army and supported by the policies of economic blockade that prevented shipments of humanitarian aid, food and supplies to the needy in Biafra.

Supporters of the federal government position maintain that a war was being waged and the premise of all wars is for one side to emerge as the victor. Overly ambitious actors may have "taken actions unbecoming of international conventions of human rights, but these things happen everywhere". This same group often cites findings, from organisations (sanctioned by the federal government) that sent observers during the crisis, that there "was no clear intent on behalf of the Nigerian troops to wipe out the Igbo people ... pointing out that over 30,000 Igbos still lived in Lagos, and half a million in the mid-west".

But if the diabolical disregard for human life seen during the war was not due to the northern military elite's jihadist or genocidal obsession, then why were there more small arms used on Biafran soil than during the entire second world war? Why were there 100,000 casualties on the much larger Nigerian side compared with more than 2 million – mainly children – Biafrans killed?

It is important to point out that most Nigerians were against the war and abhorred the senseless violence that ensued. The wartime cabinet of General Gowon, the military ruler, it should also be remembered, was full of intellectuals like Chief Obafemi Awolowo among others who came up with a boatload of infamous and regrettable policies. A statement credited to Awolowo and echoed by his cohorts is the most callous and unfortunate: all is fair in war, and starvation is one of the weapons of war. I don't see why we should feed our enemies fat in order for them to fight harder.

It is my impression that Awolowo was driven by an overriding ambition for power, for himself and for his Yoruba people. There is, on the surface at least, nothing wrong with those aspirations. However, Awolowo saw the dominant Igbos at the time as the obstacles to that goal, and when the opportunity arose – the Nigeria-Biafra war – his ambition drove him into a frenzy to go to every length to achieve his dreams. In the Biafran case it meant hatching up a diabolical policy to reduce the numbers of his enemies significantly through starvation — eliminating over two million people, mainly members of future generations.

The federal government's actions soon after the war could be seen not as conciliatory but as outright hostile. After the conflict ended, the same hardliners in the Nigerian government cast Igbos in the role of treasonable felons and wreckers of the nation – and got the regime to adopt a banking policy that nullified any bank account operated during the war by the Biafrans. A flat sum of 20 Nigerian pounds was approved for each Igbo depositor, regardless of the amount of deposit. If there was ever a measure put in place to stunt, or even obliterate, the economy of a people, this was it.

After that outrageous charade, Nigeria's leaders sought to devastate the resilient and emerging eastern commercial sector even further by banning the import of secondhand clothing and stockfish – two trade items that they knew the burgeoning market towns of Onitsha, Aba and Nnewi needed to re-emerge. Their fear was that these communities, fully reconstituted, would then serve as the economic engines for the reconstruction of the entire Eastern Region.

There are many international observers who believe that Gowon's actions after the war were magnanimous and laudable. There are tons of treatises that talk about how the Igbo were wonderfully integrated into Nigeria. Well, I have news for them: The Igbos were not and continue not to be reintegrated into Nigeria, one of the main reasons for the country's continued backwardness.

Borrowing from the Marshall plan for Europe after the second world war, the federal government launched an elaborate scheme highlighted by three Rs – for reconstruction, rehabilitation, and reconciliation. The only difference is that, while the Americans actually carried out all three prongs of the strategy, Nigeria's federal government did not.

What has consistently escaped most Nigerians in this entire travesty is the fact that mediocrity destroys the very fabric of a country as surely as a war – ushering in all sorts of banality, ineptitude, corruption and debauchery. Nations enshrine mediocrity as their modus operandi, and create the fertile ground for the rise of tyrants and other base elements of the society, by silently assenting to the dismantling of systems of excellence because they do not immediately benefit one specific ethnic, racial, political, or special-interest group. That, in my humble opinion, is precisely where Nigeria finds itself today.

177 comments:

Anonymous said...

Is this another attempt to make he Biafran war more relevant than it should be?

BONARIO NNAGS said...

As deep as the truth hurts, it appears easier for nigerians to believe that their predicament is politically rather than religiously or ethnically rooted. What amazes me is how much we have pulled aside in the curtains of our heritage -even as a Nigeria-, in the quest for the light that blinds us with the illusion of its brightness.
Am a Nigerian by choice, I pray my sons choose wisely.

~BONARIO~says so via NOKIA3310

Anonymous said...

well said. Thank God for people like you.

Anonymous said...

Gradually, the truth about Biafra is coming out...

Legend talk said...

I need a copy of cold coffee and a dictionary to re-read this debacle propaganda versuial lakein again. Lol.

Anonymous said...

Abeg park well oga

Anonymous said...

He's right.

Lola A said...

han?????? So na yoruba pple cause nigeria's problems???

Anonymous said...

It's not neuroscience. From the way you see triballists in the blogospehere abusing Igbos it's obvious they still hate Igbos and will do anything to get rid.

Anonymous said...

The Biafran war whether or not you admit is dark cloud that will continue to hang over Nigeria and cannot & should never be forgotten because it is part of our history. Just like the Jews were systematically cleansed during WW2, they never stop telling their story so that such travesty will never occur again, yet Nigerians remain in denial. The seeds that were sown by Gowon and his accomplices are now haunting Nigeria as Boko and in shame they (Gowon & Co) hide their faces in shame and remain mum.... The problem with Nigeria is we are too short sighted, myopic & trinalistic in our thinking to see stuff for what they really are and that’s the reason we find ourselves in the shit-hole today.
And to all you tribalist out there; your hate will only consume & destroy you. Yes, I am calling you all out on your ignorance because if you knew better you would do better

Anonymous said...

Many Nigerians (non-Igbo's) today still try to act as if nothing happened, even though they know fully well that what was done to the Igbo's was wrong on so many levels. You can actually liken the Biafran war to the Holocaust. Whether anybody likes it or not, the Igbo's are owed an apology and they should be compensated for their loss. If there is anyone who is still trying to convince themselves that the situation was not that bad, you are not only a liar but also a murderer because you can support such evil and not see anything wrong in it. Achebe has put it in the best way possible.

Anonymous said...

He has spoke very well jare.............d reason y i will never cast my vote for any middle belt or Northern Nigeria citizen let Jonathan be the worse president..

Anonymous said...

leave them until they beg the Igbo on the atrocity committed against them before the war, during war and till now it will be backward forever for them, two things beg and be forgiven or Biafran state.chikina

Anonymous said...

News for them the Igbos are still waxing strong they can only try but will not succeed

Anonymous said...

Brillant(as usual), straight to the point and extremely true

Anonymous said...

CHINUA ACHEBE HAS SAID IT ALL...THANK YOU SIR.

Abby said...

Wow!!!Well said Mazi Achebe,well said!As a young Igbo girl in my twenties,it is very sad to see what has become the reality of my people.Most Igbos are still haunted by the war.There is really no way to coat these things,it is just what it is.The hatred for Igbo people in Nigeria is just frightening.

God bless you sir!Biafra ga adi.

Anonymous said...

First time commentator on your blog Linda. Very many THANKS to Chinua Achebe for the TRUTH and a big thank you to Linda for sharing...May God help Nigeria and long live the Ibos.

Anonymous said...

rubbish don't declare war when u know you dont have strength to prosecute it, igbo's are all desame always looking foe someone to blame for their mistakes.i thought this man call himself intellect.he never mention the name of a jester (ojukwu) their'igbo' hero.
Igbinedo

Austin Uche said...

oya let d tribalistic bombing begin(dat is if it has nuh begun already)..... I see many sense(s) is wah dis man has said.... Many many sense.
#finally finally, God has d final say

Anonymous said...

hmm! talk itaff finish o! wisdom in age!

Anonymous said...

Oyibo ka nku biko....dis man sabi speak sha o

Anonymous said...

ghen ghen. funny enough i understood what he said. My english and comprehension teacher just got a kudos. Anyways, this is scary though. all the talk of biafra and stuff. Honestly, what i'm worried about is the loss of lives and the suffering that would come of this if this civil unrest that is simmering boils over

Anonymous said...

my second comment: i love this man btw. the great literary minds of Nigeria, Chinua Achebe, wole soyinka and the others. God bless them. I miss the days i used to go to my opupapa's (grandfather)house, open the big bookcase and look for Nigerian novels and books i could read. I had to return the ones i'm done with every weekend before i take new ones. And with all the novels and books i've read, They are still the best

miss lawyer said...

As always, it is always enlightening reading any narrative from the great Professor, but i definitely do not share his opinion about the re-integration of Ibos into Nigeria after the civil war.

Could any ethnic group be possibly more integrated in Nigeria than what we presently have? what else do they want? Maybe the then military administration were over-zealous in their actions, but decades after the civil war, have the Ibos themselves in form of their governors tried to rebuild and regain their lost glory. Surely some have tried but there has been a persistent failure by the South eastern governors to patch up their states. The same goes for the Northern part, a huge magnitude of ignorance abounds there and the ruling elites have tried to suppress the Northerns by ensuring that they are kept in the dark about a lot of things, but things are getting better now gradually i must add. The West is also picking up.

All in all, it is every man's duty to build and rebuild his community. it starts with us. We can no longer blame the Federal Government for the continued rot in our society. the rot has continued because good men like the Professor did nothing, he left Nigeria, left his people and writes from a foreign country. Nigeria may seem hopeless but we all cannot abandon it. We must all remember that evil abounds when good men do nothing.

A lawyer's 2cents. *bows out*

Anonymous said...

chai

Anonymous said...

I just dislike this "ofe mmanu" people,they always think they are wise!!! Ndi ara!!!

mewhoknowsyousowell said...

I'm Yoruba, and I kinda partially agree.

But the Civil War is in the past. We should look forward.

Anonymous said...

Totally agree. I have always believed Awolowo was the brain behind the war.

Anonymous said...

Baba, with this long speech is this an intention to make us stronger or break us?igbo pple and tribalism sha.
he said two things that Awolowo had intentions and he also talked about the northern islamist so is Awolowo a muslim.

one major question is who formed biafra and who started d war?

ebuka said...

He couldnt have said it better. My anger lies in the fact that it was still fellow Igbos that where used by d govt to continue further suppression of the igbos.check d list of information ministers.we have lost dt love amongst ourselves.i look at those still championing d biafran course & I ask;in whose interest? if all igbos are made to return home to biafra,where is d land?we travel a lot & igbos r pushin 4 somtin dt wld require us applying for 'visa' to tour naija.i'm stil a proud igbo boy!

Anonymous said...

Interesting and factual piece but the last has not been heard from this man. Nigeria is still a joke today regardless of the marginalization of the Igbos.

Anonymous said...

If and when Nigeria revisits the evil done to the Igbos during the Biafran war, and compensates the igbos, then Nigeria can begin to talk about moving forward and finding peace.

Anonymous said...

These people are trying way too hard to destabilize this country, haba i ask why now this story? Isnt it getting too obvious that all these BH atrocities and biafra references are specifically designed to balkanize this country with an oil for profit motive by inciting these biafra sentiments. Even when Rick Ross made his video the Biafra reference stuck out like a sore thumb. What are the feasible possibilities for redress almost half a century later? Besides one sinister rather obvious singular goal i see no other possible outcome of this statement. I do wonder how much Chinua Achebe got paid for his trouble...says L.A.S.T.M.A Killa

Anonymous said...

Here we go again,another post targeted at the Yoruba people. I've a lot of respect for Chinua Achebe but Igbos should stop playing the victim in this Biafra matter. You wanted a war,you got one n u cry foul! Were Igbos killed in the Southwest? No one touched them. What would the Yorubas have gained if they have joined in the war? Lagos was the seat of power and a thriving economic hub,it would v bn political suicide!
In spite of losing the war,dint Ojukwu still come back to reclaim his father's various properties in Ikoyi and it's environs?
I wish Chinua Achebe had written this book when Awolowo was alive.

Anonymous said...

Middle belt elements were their willing tools & some Yorubas (Awo & co.) their wicked strategists.
Today the game has changed in some respects; while Ndi-Igbo continue to be seen as the major targets of the Jihadists, their erstwhile collaborators are no longer spared. The message is simple: become Islamized or DIE!
The name may change from Maitatsine to Izala or Boko Haram but the AGENDA remains the same.
Udo diri unu.

The patriot said...

With due respect I do not agree with the views of Mr Achebe. While your literary exploits are laudable and deserving of every accolade, these comments sound caustic and seem designed to incite discord. These views reflect the thoughts of a man stuck in the past History has surely shown us different. Saying things like "his Yoruba people " especially after the celebration of independence truly disappoint and I expect better. I won't say much or launch a diatribe but God bless Nigeria.

Anonymous said...

This is my first time ever of commenting on this blog. I must lend my unreserved support to the opinion above that is credited to our dear father, brother and pacesetter - Chinua Achebe. His points are beyond argument and stand tall like the everlasting truth.

Unknown said...

The Igbos were not and continue not to be reintegrated into Nigeria, one of the main reasons for the country's continued backwardness. The Nation Nigeria had continued to regard the Igbos as their biggest treat yet when any government wants to further evil, they will use the igbos. Prof Achebe, you are my hero anytime, anyday, Up Biafra and Biafra lives.

Anonymous said...

Chinua Achebe's statement is neither apologetic to the ibos or overly in denigrative of any other ethnic group. It is rather a succint and well studied summary of our past, present and possibly (regrettably) the future of Nigeria.

The patriot is entitled to his own opinion, i must say. While his argument that the statement is capacable of causing discord is true, but, nonetheless it did not detract from the fact that Chinua's statement is true.
If you ask me, a 52 years old person is grown enough to be told some home truth. I rest my ask till such a time as i may convene the nation to discuss this issue again.

God bless you all
God bless Linda Ikeji blog
God bless Chinua Achebe
God bless Nigeria

Anonymous said...

Hey most times if u must just type rubbish, dnt do it reffering 2 someone like achebe

Anonymous said...

may i ask u where is my post linda, be a gentle lady and post my comment.
Igbinedon

Anonymous said...

It is regrettable that sometimes sentiment and discontent beclouds our judgment. I ask are ibos not entitled to vote? Run for office? Do business? Intermarry? Travel? How are ibos being discriminated against? The thing about the past is that it provides lessons from the future and unless you can show otherwise I firmly state that we have moved into past all this "biafra" crap. We are Nigerians no more no less. The patriot is right we expect better from the prof. A stalwart like him should speak of the future and not incite disunity from things that happened in the past. Awolowo certainly deserves his respect and not disguised slights.

Anonymous said...

the facts as portrayed by achebe doesnt seem to incite but to address.the one way we move forward as a nation is to follow the path of truth,and the truth is that we are trying too hard to stay together that we can accept lying to ourselves. Mr achebe raised pertinent issues that must be addressed before we can attain true national integrity. Lets stop trying to hide the painful truths so that we can move (the so-called)forward. Take a good look at our nation and tell me whether we have really moved forward. A part of the country is socially ,politically,economically marginalised and we cant talk about it,talk about it and u become an agent of disparity. We as ibos have payed the highest costs for this so called nationhood, wit our blood and we are still paying(ask ppl living in the north). So the sooner we address the issues raised by prof achebe,the better for our country. Thanks

Anonymous said...

Abeg make una helep me ans dis questions
1)who caused d war
2)why was d yoruba tribe blamed for not engaging and supporting biafra during d war?
pls d questions are honest one dat rilly need answers ooooo.

SAMUEL said...

This is a good eye opener. If I understand him right, Awolowo was the brain behind starvation that occur during the Biafran war which claimed more lives than the weapons used during the war. Yes I agree with him totally. The North saw Igbos as Progressives and Awolowo, let me not say Yorubas was so selfish to ill-advise the Military ruler at that time. This is the truth which those that fought and witnessed the war are afraid to tell. That same greed and selfishness still plays out even till today. I have been wondering and pondering on how people suffered and was ravaged by hunger during the war. Now I know it was the handiwork of Awolowo (the master strategist) but he forgot that he cannot suppress the enterprising nature of the Igbos with his evil policies/strategies as it has been ordained by God. No wonder they say "truth can only be denied for long but will certainly be said one day". Let me rest my case here for now.

Anonymous said...

I hope China Achebe is happy with himself imagine the discord on this blog already

Anonymous said...

This is culled from his book on Biafra. The country that never was.

Anonymous said...

How I wish and I so wish that one day and what a great day it would be, the Igbos rise up in fury, pack their things and secede.
Till then, no one is apologising to anyone, stop playing victim and let everyone get on with their lives. Articles like this, no matter how succinct or factual, are the nails that further drive discord into the coffin that is Nigeria.
Linda my sweetie, hope you are fine.

Anonymous said...

Targeted at yoruba ppl and igbo's playing victim ? You my friend are part of the ignorance plaguing Nigeria. I respect Awo for looking out for the southern region but that doesn't negate his role in the genocide that took place during the civil war, when it's time to call a spade a spade do that & the truth shall set you free. Please go read up on your Nigeria history and you'll stop spewing that garbage out of your mouth!

Anonymous said...

Sharrap & go hide your face, the truth is hard for you to swallow, isn't?

Anonymous said...

I respect C. Achebe but this is bollocks!
All this Biafra gist is in d past. Can we move forward already????? If d igbos want their state theyly should create one and stop playing d victim card every time. It has lost its effect,

And for those that are killed in d North;who forced them to remain there? If u value ur biz more than ur life;that's ur headache. Stay wit those animals and keep getting killed like flies. Your problem,

Anonymous said...

The Nigerian government tried to dialogue with the leaders of Biafra but kept encountering stumbling blocks. How then do you expect Gowon to provide aid to a people trying to disintegrate Nigeria? What plans did Ojukwu have for Biafra,post-war?
Chinua Achebe shouldn't blame Awolowo or the Yoruba people. Igbos have lived in the Southwest for years in peace but can they say the same about the living conditions in the volatile North?
Wole Soyinka will not write something like this,mind you,he's been fighting the endemic corruption n military for many years with his poetry and writings,even went to jail.
Ur beloved Chinua Achebe Siddon for Rhode Island,USA dey criticize,isn't that hypocrisy. Abeg Yoruba ppl r peace loving people and very accommodating. The only thing you can blame us for is that we are too enlightened,yes we are!
Blame the North for your woes abeg.

Proud Yoruba girl.

That Girl said...

D Yorubas and d Igbos planned 2 secede 2geda buh when d war broke out, the Yorubas left d Igbos @ontheirown.#truestory.
Funny enough, d Yorubas aint changed, still d same..

Olumide said...

I'm normally contented with reading comments on this blog but I'll break my rule for once. Regardless of what Achebe says, the Civil war was prompted by Ojukwu upon declaration of Biafra's secession. U do not try to break way from a republic and expect to be left alone. Millitary action (war) was needed to deal with the secession attempt. The Igbos were just unfortunate to be on the other side.

sQo said...

Make dis baba go sleep inside somwhr jare.
The real culprit of Civil War was Ojukwu. Go and read books about d civil war. Books written by Ojukwu's pple and by others.
And still, the useless Ojukwu was pardoned.
Ask Mr Achebe, how many pple frm Ojukwu's Nnewi died?
How come their lord Ojukwu r an away when they needed him the most.

Abeg Abeg

Anonymous said...

Igbos..typically couldn't wait to get a dig@Awolowo..and Yorubas..u got Ministers all over the place what are they doing??..abi still haunted by Biafra sotey dem they still as much as the rest..if it wasn't Chinua Achebe..would have so denegrated his who repose..save that for later dismantle the whole theory..still sad what happened during the war but u cannot hold a nation to ransom for that..after all u are exercising ur full constitutional rights..

Anonymous said...

igbos's are been denied of de access to presidency.They are been killed in all de northan part of de country.they are been marginalise,humiliate and killed politicaly,economical,sociallx and otherwise.This is a calculated planned deal by Awolo and northan leaders,specifically de hausa's duelly signed.they said dat as long as dis nation Nigeria exist

CT said...

I believe the Biafran war is over lets move forward and make the next president an Igbo man

Anonymous said...

igbos's are been denied of de access to de presidency.They are been killed everyday in all de northan part of de country 2day.they are been marginalised,humiliated and killed politicaly,economical,socially and otherwise.This is a calculated planned deal by Awolo and northan leaders,specifically de hausa's duelly signed.they said dat as long as dis nation Nigeria exist dat an igbo man will never rule as a president of dis nation.Igbo man is in every part of Nigeria building,promoting commerce and Industries in Nigeria.because Igbo people believe dat wherever a man found himself is his home.Nigerians committed an abormination 4 shading de blood of innocent Biafrans.they nid cleansing in dis nation to move forward.Equality,love and peace is all we need in dis country.long live Nigeria.

seymore said...

Oh puhleez...they started the war didn't they? You start somthing that amounts to treason and expect to be treated with kids gloves, How? If the want Biafa by all means they are free...let's see who would be worse for it.

Anonymous said...

As a Yoruba lady, I have to agree with this statement to an extent. I have always thought Awolowo was over ambitious man who let his ambitious for power get the best of him. As a history student, I never saw Awolowo as a leader who had the best interest of his people but his own thirst for power, same act caused the drift between him and Akintola. I agree that Ibos were treated unfairly and the mistakes of Awolowo has cause a great deal of discord between the Yoruba tribe and Igbo tribe till today. If we can't talk about the mistakes of the past and find solutions to them, we will not move forward as a nation. Change is a big challenge to Nigerians, if we can change our thinking and ways of doing things, I am sure our country will be better.

ebeano said...

so u want achebe to keep quiet so nigerians will happy i think?we all knew what happend during the war some yoruba landlords in lagos re living in a house built by igbo person after the war goverment gave it out to yorubas as abandoned properties,today gowon people is paying the price in jos with thier blood benue state too is paying the price,

Anonymous said...

Soooo it appears to me that Mr. Achebe wants to incite rather than enlighten. If he wishes to enlighten, he should do so and stick to that rather than throw unfounded and unproven accusations. He should by all means re-write his history books rather than speak ill of a man that is not here now to defend himself. Nigeria is ONE country and will remain ONE country God willing. If any tribe wishes to pull out and form a country then they should apply via the prescribed channels and hope their request gets granted by the powers that be. In the interim, all Nigerians should work towards the improvement of this nation.
I expected more from this great man and will consider this article a mistake that anyone could have made.

AJ said...

My consolation is that, just like the Jews, we emerged stronger... People saying we wanted war, go and read your history books and find out what caused the Igbos to get angry. If you cannot read those books, look for literary books like novels that talk about it.

Why is it always mostly Yorubas that accuse us of being tribalistic?

Igbos are the most 'untribalsitic' people in Nigeria today. I mean, we are not even 'tribalist' enough. We hardly 'send' our own, not to talk of discriminating against others.
You call us tribalistic because you only see things in tribal colours...

Thank you Achebe.

Anonymous said...

What. Truth you fool

Anonymous said...

People saying that Ojukwu caused the war ar just off and this is why, when the life and property of the Igbo people could not be guaranteed in the north, Ojukwu asked the Igbo people to come back home and they subsequently succceded from nigeria Gowon and his Nigerian forces were the first to shoot.

And those saying Biafra jist is history, do we all really know about our history in Nigeria, how much of our historyis been thought in school accurately. The history most of us know is the experiences our parents and grandparents had at those times.
I believe the only apology Ngeria can give th Igbo people is to accurately tell these story and and build the second Niger bridge that has been promised to the Igbo people by every government in power.

Anonymous said...

@Olumida Please don't be silly. If a particular group of people are not happy being with the rest of the country, why force them to stay together? Either way, there would have still been resentment towards each other if the Igbo's never liked the other tribes. You cannot blame the Igbo's for trying to stand on their own once they had the chance to (after independence). Take Sudan for example, is the fighting as much as it was before they split into North and South Sudan. Most definitely not! They may still not like each other, but they sure have no reason to be fighting each other now.

Anonymous said...

What do u expect? They are too afraid to face the hausas na. They forget that they were the ones who planned d first military coup. They killed hausa man, killed yoruba man, the igbo man (Michael Opara) that was supposed to be killed, was given prior info, and he quickly left the country, saying he was going to do masters. A whole premier going for master. He escaped, and igbos in the north kept taunting the hausas with flyers and passports of how they killed their leader like a goat. Hausas retaliated, and it was so bloody. Instead of igbos to face them, they pushed the blame to the tolerant yorubas. Hausas killed dem in their thousands, and loaded their dead bodies in a train back to the east (My father was a witness to it all). Was it not Zik who betrayed Awo, simply bcos he had an advantage over Awo (he grew in the North and speaks hausa fluently). Hausas dey pepper igbos on a daily basis, but na yoruba their dem fit dey flex muscle with. God dey.

Str8FrmDaHips said...

War is a terrible thing..but there would always be victors and vanquished..and would carry on as long as men rule the earth..read your bible..go thru the history books..nuff slaying and enslaving..look at the current trouble spots in Africa..9ja..Sudan..Somalia..Mali..Libya..Uganda..Congo..remember Rwanda??..
No point rehashing old wounds serves no purpose whatsoever in 9jas current context..unless he's pushing for a split and fanning the flames.
Igbos have the resoueces..their call on the way forward.

Now to dismantle a few myths as they say 3 sides to every story

1.Nzeogwu & his predominantly Igbo group in the Army were the catalyst of the war.
2.Ironsi an Igbo and highest ranking Army Officer became Leader didn't play his hand or puninsh the coup ochestrators as a consequence got killed.
3.Nzeogwu and his buddies wanted Awo as Prime Minister that was the plan
4.They spared influential Igbo leaders of that time..made it look like a Igbo ochestrated coup detat
5.Igbos had the most senior Army Officers and Civil Servants@that time..so tell me how come they weren't victimised then.
6.Igbos were long settled in Hausa and Yoruba land going about their business before the war..without being victimised..
7.Yet Achebe would have us believe that the other main ethnic groups had it in for the Igbos from time
8.Igbos spefically Zik delayed independence because of the perceived threat of the Yorubas instead allied himself with Hausas..
9.All in history books if you bothered to listen to class or pick a book on the history of Nigeria!!
10.How come Ojukwu with his ruthless ambition is coming out of this smelling of roses...didn't he systematically finish off Nzeoguw..Banjo and the rest??
11.Awo's imprisonment for Treason..was that an agenda against the Igbos that got him there??
12.The Hausas never forgave killing most of all Sarduana Ahmadu Bello..
13.No one's blameless..Lets work together or split up whichever way its a win win for Southwest..already the most integrated of the lot!!..no matter what you say..!!

Str8FrmDaHips said...

Had nuff typos\spelling mistakes in there..but ay!!..thats so irrelevant..bite me like Tonto!!

Anonymous said...

I think all these comments on how yorubas are the enemies and igbos are the victims is quite stupid. I don't know this man but this article made me lose any respect I could have had for him. It's more like he's out to divide the nation than to unite it

Anonymous said...

It's difficult to say 'just move on' because nobody has moved on. If igbos had moved on we wouldn't be talking about being marginalised because of our tribe. If other tribes had moved on they wouldn't be quick to say things like 'igbo people are materialistic' and blah blah. If the rest of the country had moved on and left igbos behind the NIGERIAN civil war would be part of the history curriculum in secondary school. Hasn't anyone ever wondered why we talk about colonialism in social studies but never about the war or any of the stuff that followed? It's because it's still treated as a sensitive issue for everyone. Once we accept that we'll all know how to start healing as a people and to proceed as a country. Like it or not we're stuck together.

Anonymous said...

Thank you!!! Igbos have this very dirty habit of looking for trouble, and when dealt with, they go to one corner to act like the victim. The Nigeria of today, who made it a centralised system? Igbo man (Aguyi Ironsi) they tot by having a centralised system, they can manipulate the entire nations funds in their favour, and it worked. Igbos were the majority in all government parastatals..... They kept rubbing it in other peoples faces (people have not forgotten, that's why they are so hated) my grandma used to tell me a story of how the igbos in our town (owo) will go about bullying youths at the stream, and when fought back, they go and report u to their brother in the police force to come and get you arrested. The same igbos tried to scatter the centralised system they formed (Ojukwu being the main culprit) when the system no longer favoured their greedy interest; as Hausas took full control of the system. Nigeria was better off with the regional autonomy fully in place. They put us in this mess and as usual, are trying to pass blames. I really tot this Chinua was educated.... Smh. I guess someone needs to shake his brain back to literacy.

Anonymous said...

Too many dumb and dense people reading this blog.apparently,most of them are westerners.short-sighted and spineless lot they are.

Anonymous said...

To be sincere,uncurtailed ambition and anger caused the war.......l
2)Awolowo never planned to actually secede but he acted like he was allied to the east but in the end he betrayed them
3)the over ambitious nature of Awo was what forstered the tribal hatred that still exists now
4)he never attained the height he sought even to his death
5)when people die,the story tends to change to immortalise them as heroes but the truth of the matter remains that,these dead heroes,these people we eulogise were men like us.they saw the same sun which we see today,ate like us,had flaws like us.these men may have had visions but were not less ambitious than normal men.they too tasted for greatness and the gains of power.Ojukwu,Awolowo ,zik,Ironsides,nzeogwu,Gowon....all men of flesh and blood.So let's stop deceiving ourselves with hero worship
6)the war started long before it happened,far before independence.with the amalgamation and divide and rule techniques of the British.they set we Africans up against each other and we fought each other.
7)igbos are not tribalistic by nature.some are but majority of Igbo people do not hate Yorubas.they just distrust or don't care about them much but in reality,Yorubas dislike igbos.i can't point out any reason but they jus like to victimize them and say hateful things about them.its an established fact.even on this blog and it's just sad.not saying the ibos are innocent too
8)life goes on but the reality of the war must never escape us.many people here talking do not and cannot imagine what starvation means,waiting on the edge of death,losing your whole family,hiding,getting raped,killed,mutilated.it is the blood of these people that fed the soil that is Nigeria.many mothers wept,many families wailed,many waited for years till they finally lost hope of ever seeing thier sons,the sons that didn't return we're buried without their bodies,while many decayed on the road,in the bush,in pits,in unmarked graves n mass pits.pls don't come here to take it lightly.it is no joke what happened an these people should be remembered along with all heroes of all tribes that died.
The truth is the truth,it can't be hidden.it should be embraced.just like the apartheid,the Bolshevik revolution,black slavery,holocaust.Its our history

Anonymous said...

@Anon 5:57 STFU!!!! U ungrateful bitches should go and face the hausas who slaughtered you animals like chickens. Idiots!!!! Why una dey fear those ones? Yoroba wey do 'non aligned' and accomodte una, na im una wan dey pour shit for their head. *i spit* I blame the yoroba people wey no kill una. Maybe una for dey fear dem like how una dey fear hausa. Disgusting animals!!! Even we in ND can't stand ur offensive asses. Tueh!!! Efian!!!

Anonymous said...

The prof article is an after thought by a man desperately in need of an identity.Painfully the prof is stucked between d events of yesteryears still playing in his aging mind.He should remember that,Yorubas never wanted d war.Ojukwu's legendary greed whc he inherited from his father caused d war.Prof should spend more time praying for Nigeria,instead of d cry baby he has become.

Anonymous said...

While I will always respect the genius that is Prof. Achebe and in his body of work, he has never really quit his job as a Biafran propaganda writer. I believe we are less than a generation away from a repeat. Learn from the last time, do not bomb Lagos, do not claim Lagos. Greed ends all things

Anonymous said...

You're a bladdy FAFO!!! During the first military coup planned by all tribes, who ended up dead and who escaped? Hausa (dead men) = Ahmadu Bello and Tafawa Balewa......... Yoruba (dead man)=Akintola........ Igbo (escapee)=Michael Opara. All these regional governors were to be killed, but somehow, Mikkey just packed his load fews weeks to d coup and went for Masters.... Worthless MOFOs yet you wonder why you're so hated. I had my secondary skool edu in Delta state.... I read the kinda history books filled with LIES your leaders give the eastern students to read. Animals..... May God continue to punish you people severely. It's no coincidence that your lands are the only ones down south with no access to the sea, yet erosion keeps invading whatever little lands you have left... Hence the beastly scuffle and sometimes gruesome murder by families over land prevalent in the East. Pack your bags and leave already!!!! From the lil I've seen of you evil lot here in Lagos, you don't even like yourselves. Move over to the left please!!! And stop invading our space.

Anonymous said...

The seeds of discord and disunity are being sowed every were at every giving opportunity,why are people like this man still alive? Is it only for him to become a willing tool in the hands of those seeking to recolonise Nigeria,or is it not enough that our so called founding fathers succeded in disuniting us because of political power which eventually led to the death of most of them. yet this old paaapa is still pointing an accusing finger on the dead who is surpose to be resting in peace. Thus i have one question for this tribalistic old skull paaapa...,who ploted and executed the 1966 coup,and how did Nnamdi azikiwe escape.at least we know hw Awolowo survived.

Anonymous said...

This is just 'The genesis'...now that we have arrived at 'The revelation', I humbly suggest that we proffer solutions for the way forward, instead of throwing unwarranted tantrums at each other. Arise! Oh compatriots!

Anonymous said...

come let me tell you people war is a terrible thing to witness let us face the challenges we have as a country, we should try to make sure that something of biafra nature don't happen we have children ahead to think and give them the vision of a better nigeria. stop boiling the heart of men, words are powerful .one nigeria

Anonymous said...

Look at this igbotic fool hiding under yoruba cloak as usual. If you're yoruba, den I'm igbo. Eze ndi ara. Biko si eba puo. Onu nkapi.

Anonymous said...

Plz read chimamanda's review of d book.d war came n we suddenly forgot dat a lot of igbo lives had been wastd up north.declaration came wen govt simply refused to intervene.lets hope dis wld provoke gowon to write his own story.

Anonymous said...

Lmao @ "igbos are the most untribalistic people in Nigeria today" abeg no let me swear for you. How many non igbos can live freely in your lands the way you live in other peoples place? Let me not start yarning about my experience in igbo land for less than a year before I ran away. But I'll say this one time, any igbo person on this blog living in yoruba land, and saying rubbish about yoruba people, Trailer lo ma pa e!

Anonymous said...

What have we learnt as a people? I am referring to nigerians as a whole. What have we learnt from our past and is there any concerted effort to prevent this mistakes from happening

Anonymous said...

A da fun e

Anonymous said...

Leave dem with their fake history books their spiteful monkeys like Chinua gave them. I've lost every iota of respect for this old fool.

Anonymous said...



To think that the Igbos lost all their money and properties to the war and still today they have a better wellbeing index figure than all the regions is mindbuggling.

They are indeed a unique race

Anonymous said...

We can cuss each other out but does that change anything? One solution to our problems is for us to ensure that all this venom does not infect the younger ones. Its the adults that like emphasising on these so called differences and make nigerians seem more tribalistic than we really are. I am igbo but I do know that breaking up this country is not a solution to its problems. It is too simplistic to be offered up as a solution to Nigeria's complex problems. We need a wholistic change that will deal with the corruption and selfishness which seems to have become the bane of our existence. Even if we create a state of Biafra, does it really mean that corruption and greed would be stamped out for good? Why is it only one eastern governor is giving free education and the rest are not? Is his allocation so much higher than others? The poet raised an important point but we should not allow the answers to be clouded with sentiment. Thanks

Anonymous said...

@anon 5:57
Since you are a historian ,why don't you enlighten me? Who provides aid to a warring side that is threathening to disintegrate a nation? Was Gowon going to play father Xmas and give out food to a people who no longer regarded themselves as Nigerians? Of course not, in war,you use all the tactics available to come out victorious.
It is unfortunate that a man of repute like Chinua Achebe would incite discord at a trying time in Nigeria's unity. Ojukwu went to war with no properly laid plans n led a lot of ppl to their untimely deaths. He was nowhere in sight when Biafra surrendered n even got a hero's welcome upon his return. Why dint he bequeath his entire estate to Biafra if he loved his ppl so much?

Anonymous said...

Great Awo,a leader and a visionary. He loved his Yoruba ppl ooo. How many leaders can boast of providing free education to an entire region? What did Ojukwu do? What legacy did he leave behind but to incite strife in the hearts of the Igbos.
Chinua Achebe is an elder,a Mazi,he shouldn't be writing this abeg. Why blame a man who isn't alive to defend himself. That's too low abeg.

Anonymous said...

The Problem Nigeria is going to suffer in the long run is that our youth do not have a sense of history. Its not entirely our fault but its due to a number of factors which should be the topic for another day. I am 23 years old and luckily i grew up in an environment where history was well documented;history texts, pictures, articles back from the 60s were kept by family members. It is painful to see people comment that ojukwu 'started' the way. If you understand the dynamics of the effects of what played out in the january 1966 and july 1966 coups, your opinion might change.The massacre of the ibo people after the July coup and the inability of the federal government to protect them coupled with the ego tussle between ojukwu and gowon which led to the creation of 12 states are accountable for the immediate causes of the war.There are so many facts that people want to pretend do not exist.for example, my mother Anambra state, she was a child during the war and some redcross workers and missionaries had attempted to build a makeshift school to shelter the kids when their mothers went to farms and their fathers were away at war, one day, the Nigerian planes came very low and shot most of the children(who were excited to see the planes and didnt understand what was going on). After the war, Nigerian soldiers still came, dug graves and buried surviving soldiers alive. Ask men like TY Danjuma, they'll shed more light on this. these r not textbook stories, these are real life stories of people who lived it. Indeed, Awolowo was the man behind the starvation policy, but then i was born after he died so i am unable to judge his motives because i never met him personally. before you stand up to insult Achebe, pls do a little research so you can understand where he is coming from. Nigeria will never grow until we learn and accept the truth and until we stop living in self denial about the historical facts that will never go away.

omoyibo said...

I am reading a lot of comments here and can't help but shake my head by the ignorant statements being made. The problem is a lot of us weren't around to experience the Biafran war. I wasn't born then but my granny, uncles & family members narrated the story because they lived in Northern Nigeria then and experience the war first hand unlike those of you spewing rubbish. I have some questions to ask the imbeciles claiming that Ojukwu caused or started the war; Do you know the reason Ojukwu as the premier of the former eastern region ordered the ibo's back to the east? Are you trablist aware of what the Aburi accord signed in Ghana was all about & how Gowon failed to keep his part? So, before you open your mouths and try to be an authority on a subject that surpasses your myopic minds, I suggest you know the facts before opening your mouth and proving what we already thought of you. Go ask Jack a.k.a Gowon why he keeping num while the seeds he & he cohorts sowed(BH)under the pretense of one Nigeria is ravaging his home turf & the rest of the North.

Bature said...

What exactly caused the igbo lives to be wasted up north? Did we just wake up one morning to start killing you? When will you igbos ever learn honesty? Why not tell the world the one thing that led to another? Why must you always want to play the role of a victim? You all should go away with your iska. Mai wahalas

Anonymous said...

It is my belief that Mr. Achebe is unfair to both The Yoribas and Chief Awolowo. Awo at that time was the commissioner for financefor the federal govt, hence was part of Gen. Gowon's cabinet. As you all probably know, Awo was an extremely brilliant person.As a result, most of the policies for the war were designed by him. As a matter fact, it was Awo who defeated Ojukwu & not the military.As stated above, since Awo worked for the federal govt,he had the responsibility to be loyal to his employer. So, do not blame for any thing that happened during the war. War is ugly. Awo did what he had to do as an employee of the federal govt. Mr. Achebe failed to mention that before d war Awo made it known to the world that if East should sececde, that SW will also secede. That does not sound like a man who wants to exterminate his opponent. This was a man who wanted to keep Nigeria one.Chinua Achebefailed to mention that Wole Soyinka ( a Yoruba man)was jailed by the govt of Nigeria for going abroad for soliciting for money and armsfor the Biafran cause. Also, Mr. Achebe failed to mention that Banjo(a Yoruba) was the person picked to lead the war against the Nigerian govt. Hewas on his way to Lagos, when he changed his mind about the war. As a Yoruba man, he decided he could not wage a war against his own people. So, the military part of the war stopped (at least on Ojukwu side). But it was the massive starvation that made the Biafrans to surrender.

BEEBEE said...

Anon 10:55 u r a big fool,we wanted 2 leave y did u stop us.U people r just fools,I av bin wit yorubas 4 long nd I hate dem 2 and b4 u talk go get ur facts write abt nigeria ,I read books from all over d country .so stop saying trash u disgust me.And yes I am a proud igbo gel and wouldn't mind us leaving dis deathhole of a country

Anonymous said...

its so hard to comment here, where some people have the guts to talk abt this man in a derogatory manner, anyways some of you really dont actually know him we just heard about him and his works thats why we feel free to curse him as we like. its ok, i just wonder if anyone is annoyed by what he said why not go get the facts right before raining curses and further showing how much you hate this tribe he is talking about, and if you so hate this tribe why not let them go if they want to? smh....which way nigeria...

Anonymous said...

Chinua Achebe's piece sounds as prejudiced as Howard Webb is to Manchester United. It is a concoction of melodrama, mendacity and propaganda.By the way, why does he give the impression that it was only the Ibos that died in the war? What about the Ijaws, Kalabaris and the rest in the South-South? He talks about jealousy arising from the fact that the Ibos were the most prosperous in the country! So untrue. Wake up Prof. Achebe!!! And the talk of holocaust is as silly as imaginable. Did the Jews go to war against Hitler? While it is true that the nation has not done enough to redress the excruciating past, such as putting the war in school curriculum,Farce like Achebe's will do nothing to help the situation.

Anonymous said...

@Anon 10:36pm May God forgive you and may your hate not consume you.

Anonymous said...

Its so sad that people who know nothing about Nigerian history will spew their ignorant comments on this blog.The only way to progress as a country is to recognise mistakes of the past and learn from them, and thats all Achebe is trying to point out.

Ikeokonta said...

With much respect to Mazi Achebe, Yoruba people are not our problems, our greed in the east is our problem. As of today all Igbo properties in Yoruba land has been returned to the Igbos that own them, but the same can not be said of the east. Till this day there are still properties belonging to fellow Igbos that has not been returned to the owners. We may want to blame Awo and Yorubas for our woes. But Awo from onset understood that education was key to dominating the country, he introduced free education for the western region, what did our leaders do for us, nothing. During the second republic the UPN states enjoyed free primary and secondary education, what did the NPP states do for us, nothing. Oh wait they gave us something to celebrate, the gave us Jim Nwaobodo and his flanboyancy, spending states money on his numerous lady friends and we celebrated him. Papa Achebe, you have given us many great literature material but this is not one of them. I would have loved that you said this 30 or 40 years ago not now. Please Papa enjoy you retirement and let us forge our future going forward

Ikeokonta said...

With much respect to Mazi Achebe, Yoruba people are not our problems, our greed in the east is our problem. As of today all Igbo properties in Yoruba land has been returned to the Igbos that own them, but the same can not be said of the east. Till this day there are still properties belonging to fellow Igbos that has not been returned to the owners. We may want to blame Awo and Yorubas for our woes. But Awo from onset understood that education was key to dominating the country, he introduced free education for the western region, what did our leaders do for us, nothing. During the second republic the UPN states enjoyed free primary and secondary education, what did the NPP states do for us, nothing. Oh wait they gave us something to celebrate, the gave us Jim Nwaobodo and his flanboyancy, spending states money on his numerous lady friends and we celebrated him. Papa Achebe, you have given us many great literature material but this is not one of them. I would have loved that you said this 30 or 40 years ago not now. Please Papa enjoy you retirement and let us forge our future going forward

Anonymous said...

Why shouldn't reference be made to achebe. He decided to make a public statement and he'll get public criticism. Some people sef. Is he God? Or you think what he said is correct. Who started biafra and wanted to decide nigeria. Ibos always thinking its all about them

Anonymous said...

Why is this man bringing all these stories now? Its uncalled for. I beg just go and discuss it with awolowo in heaven or wherever he is. We are the new generation. We now live in peace and harmony. We don't want your inciting history.
Mtchew.

Anonymous said...

Just as everybody no like una..... U people will put hand inside somoenes eye and play the victim! Terrible people.

Anonymous said...

Nigeria, as it is presently constituted, is a farce. The earlier all actors in this collective charade decide to acknowledge this truth, the better. The only thing keeping Nigeria together is the collective greed of an indolent, inept, selfish, and highly hypocritical rodent class obsessed with carting away the vast potential of an industrious people and handing it over, on a platter, to all who wish them ill. How uncommonly stupid. How sad.

Anonymous said...

I agree, our problems are more ethnic n religious but we conveniently lump it on politics. If u doubt me watch d news n look at those in key positions of d federal govt. Grade dem by religion n tribe n u'll c dat we r far 4rm achieving federal character.

Anonymous said...

Wake up! wake up! wake up! We aren't happy abt wat hapnd 2 d ibos but how dare u lump it on evry1 lyk ur d only one's who are goin thru hell look around u n tell me dat u haven't observed d systematic wiping out of christians all over thru boko haram, hav u heard anytin abt a compensation? We r not there yet. D killings are still goin on dey've simply taken on a new dimension- I attribute 3/4 of Nigeria's problems 2 religious extremism- corruption, looting n d lack of federal character are simply off-shoots

Anonymous said...

Na that ofe mmanu wey una no dey chop na im make una women hairy Pass monkeys (bia bia ladies) with man body. With that una leg wey dey be like dwarf weightlifter own abi na footballer leg I go call am. Yeye dey smell.

Anonymous said...

No1's supporting wat was done 2 d ibo's but u guys are beginin 2 get on my nerves, hav u 4goten how ibos reigned as kings and treated ppl lyk dung? Oh u'all cnt rememba dat. How short memories can get wen its no more working in ur favour. Nobody is supportin d genocide but if ibos had not been broken a bit, Hausa man has not even done half of wat d ibos wud hav done 2 minorities. Let's just find a way 4ward pls.

Anonymous said...

Ova sense my bro. Open ur eyes wide ppl n u'll c soon bokoharam will evolve. However- may I remember u all dat d first coup in Nigeria was started by col. Kaduna Nzegbu where a lot of northernerns were killed wit only one yoruba b4 a revenge coup brought Gowon in2 power. Ibos shud go bak 2 history n undastand dat regretablyit is d ibos dat taught d Northernerns or triggered dia greed 4 power. Wateva hapnd in dis nation must b traced 2 dat first coup. Stop whining n let's move 2geda our problems r now more religious dan ethnic.

Anonymous said...

You are crazy. How can you disregard a war like this. ANY war no matter what should be analysed and prevented from reoccurring. They are all "IMPORTANT". Linda how could you approve such a comment?

Anonymous said...

U wud b most stupid 2 say Ibo's hav not been re-integrated in2 d general populace. In d deepest darkest villages u hav ibos, in d cities all over r ibos so wat exactly is integration 2 u? Handing over d govt 2 u on a platter of gold? No u hav 2 go thru process lyk evry1 else. If u feel isolated, then its all in ur head. As a matter of fact we had dis sayin in regards 2 d ibo hustlin spirit dat anywhere u go n u can't find one ibo man, leave dat place, its uninhabitable

Ezekwesili said...

YOUTUBE! YOUTUBE! YOUTUBE!
Thank God for Youtube! Before judging to side with either Achebe or his crassly ignorant critics,let someone log on to Youtube and type in 'Biafran War'. Tears, kwashiorko, blood spills, starvation and pains. A land where the Sun rises from the sea of blood- Nzogbu-Nzogbu, enyimba! enyi!

Indeed I have seen a miracle in my lifetime - that the wealth of a people can be reduced to twenty pounds and just within a few years, the same people will have a great command of wealth. I think that essentially, all you need is 20 pounds and a lot of determination.

Thank God for Youtube, why we struck, divided we stand, the last flight and other titles like that. History/Youtube/Biafra.

Unknown said...

@Ireti, You have a distorted idea. please get it straightened.

Anonymous said...

@steph if the truth wey I talk pain u too much, then u can like to go and masturbate with stripper pole. Nansense!!!!! U lot don lay una bed, una suppose lie on am, but everybody quiet. Una still dey yarn balls... Thunder fire una there.

Anonymous said...

BEEBEE you people should move now, and see if anyone will stop you. You leeches will be doing the rest of naija a huge favour. Animals.... Thunder fire ur gutter flea infested monkey brain. As for hatred, don't get it twisted... D feeling is very much mutual, but we yorubas have learnt to tolerate your BS even after the nonsense you animals have been saying about us. Awon ewure oshi alaye baje... Wayray bo si nu konga.... Asi ere jati jati ni gbo gbo yin. In the other comment I made, Linda refused to post it. I'll say it again, if you're igbo and staying in Yoruba land, and you're yarning trash about us, trailer lo ma pa e....
Linda if u like no post am.... Maybe u are joining the igbos staying in yoruba land to insult us anyhow here. If you no post am, na u go take head carry d curses.
This chinuas or chimpanzees article and the following comments have really pissed me off. He should keep writing half baked truths like this, and slighting a true hero....You igbos will soon know that yorubas are not as stupid or spineless as you think.

Anonymous said...

wake-up nigerians,wisdom is of the lord,its only a fool that forgets to correct his past mistakes,words of this nature does not warrant insults or praises but thinking if you are a true statesman or citizen,..on 3rd of oct i spoke to a national figure about nigeria and his last sentence was"as a nig i dont trust this country anymore"how sad i was to hear that.....so nigerians we are on a wrong part lets think of correcting it rightaway.

Dede Okezie said...

The comments here really offends me because I know most of them are true. Mazi Achebe should never have written something like this at this time. No. Ndi igbos are hated almost everywhere. My kinsmen on this blog, let us check our self. There's no smoke without fire. Let us jointly put our hands together to speak against those who have brought disrepute to our tribe. I have just returned from ghana. I went there for my annual leave, but I couldn't stay. I go to a bar, I hang out with people there, but the moment they know I'm Nigerian, they ask if I'm igbo, I ask why, they don't say. They just start acting funny afterwards. I became uncomfortable there, and hurriedly booked a flight on aero back home when I got a bit lonely. Here on Linda's blog again, I find hurtful comments directed at us.
I noticed on the post about jimo ibrahim, most yoruba people did not spare him or mince words in condemning the kind of things he does. My Bible tells me, that he who covers his sin will not prosper. Let us learn from all these things. However hurtful the truth is. We can still make a change. God bless Nigeria.

Anonymous said...

wake-up nigerians,wisdom is of the lord,its only a fool that forgets to correct his past mistakes,words of this nature does not warrant insults or praises but thinking if you are a true statesman or citizen,..on 3rd of oct i spoke to a national figure about nigeria and his last sentence was"as a nig i dont trust this country anymore"how sad i was to hear that.....so nigerians we are on a wrong part lets think of correcting it rightaway.

Anonymous said...

This is exactly why I know it is best for Nigeria to disintegrate. The war and events surrounding it is not known and is likely to repeat itself, and the next time it would not be just the Igbo. After all Awolowo's group first planned the take over of power from civilian govt. If he had gone thru wit it what happened to the Igbo would have happened to d Yorubas instead.
Nigerians still see the Igbo as a threat. The Igbo are not integrated into the mainstream. We are only sought when other parts of Nigeria need help, votes, money, infrastructure, favor, etc. When Nigeria breaks, this is the best option instead of another war, the east would prosper chasing capitalist policies that made the old Eastern region the fastest growing economy in the world even in Awolowo's time. Notice how our continued involvement with Nigeria frustrates this. Obasanjo's involvement with Anambra politics caused nothing but strife in d east, kidnapping in the Niger Delta which has been rewarded by govt has been exported to d east. If we controlled our currency, manufacturing, commerce, politics, etc u wuld see progress. The rest of Nigeria knows this and are threatened by this.
Talk of the future shld stay squarely on a divided Nigeria. Most commenters here are young Nigerians and express d same hated their forebears had 2wards d Igbo. Biafra is d future.

Omo Baba Olowo said...

@Omoyibo.....mumu. read some of the comments and see why the Aburi conference was not honored by Gowon and the Hausa people.Like someone commented earlier, most of these probs of today can be traced to the first coup organized by Nzegwu. Two Hausas renowned leaders were killed, One yoruba was killed, name the igbo leader that was killed at this time?....... i'm waiting. igbos in the north did not let the matter rest. Hausas were humiliated and constantly reminded by the igbos of how their person killed hausa leaders. that's more like pushing their luck and shoving the hausas to the wall and the reaction was bloody. now tell me this, if it was hausas or yorubas or any other ethnic group for that matter, that planned a coup, and spared their own men at the expense of the Igbos, WILL YOU IGBOS HONOR THE ABURI AGREEMENT? be honest. If not that your soldiers were outnumbered, your plans were to take over Lagos before na. If you had succeeded, Nigerian will not have heard the last of it.
take the truth for what it is, you guys were the vanquished in a war you didn't prepare adequately for before you launched an attack. Stop playing the victim card it's as stale as Methuselah's fingernails now.

Anonymous said...

wot do you xpect from an Igbo writer about Biafran war? ask a Yoruba or an Hausa writer to write about Biafran war,i guess we ll be having the story from another perspective.

Anonymous said...

I am not crazy and I am not disregarding the war. No one is. My point is it is being made more relevant than it should be. War is important. The consequences are important. I am merely questioning the relevance of Achebe's article in modern day Nigeria. Articles are open to criticisms whether or not an almighty Igbo man writes them.

Anonymous said...

A little history lesson for ignorant elements. Who started the war? Nigeria of course. There was an agreement - the Aburi Accord - between Nigeria and eastern Nigeria duely signed by both parties to ease tension. What did Gowon do? He reneged on d agreement and created more states with a sole aim of sequestering Ojukwu's authority in the east. Ojukwu did what any proper leader who would not take rubbish would do. He declared independence. This was the only action to take at d time. Nigeria had shown the Igbo they were not interested in unity. They did not stop d killings in d north or conduct any investigation and now they were going back on a witnessed and signed agreement.
Following this, Gowon declared what he called a police action - actually a declaration of war - against Biafra underestimating Biafra's will to defend herself. Britain claimed neutrality bcos dey expected Nigeria 2 win in short time. When Biafra fought Nigeria to a standstill and even claimed some territory Britain started actively supporting Nigeria bcos they wanted to further their own interests. They need a big for nothing Nigeria to have in their sphere of influence and had not forgiven the Igbo for their part in the independence movement (it was even called the Igbo movement by British officials).
I believe d argument surrounding this topic shld move forward and include the reasons for the continued existence of Nigeria as a country. I think Nigeria has gone beyond its expiry date. We shld b talking abt d new nations borne out of its corpse. Biafra is one of them consisting the 5 south eastern states and the Igbo parts of the Niger Delta. Other regions shld begin having this conversation among themselves b4 they are dashed to neighboring countries like Bakassi.

Anonymous said...

This is not a tribal war neither is it a reprisal directed to anyone or any ethnic group. If some of you could read in between lines, you would see that the Nobel laureate is stating the reasons why Nigeria in anarchy. Please look up the meaning of 'Genocide' before some of you start criticizing. A 100,000 to 2million people is not war, but mass murder. If you have ever been to Israel (the country with the largest Jewish population) or had anything about them, you would know that the tears of World War II are still flowing in their rivers and cries are heard from the walls. This is a constant reminder of what they went through and ensure that such thing is not experience by any of their generations to come.
So far, the members of Boko harram have attacked mostly non-Muslims. Linking religion with Nigerian tribes, these victims are majorly yorubas, ibos, and people of the southern Nigeria.
At times, its good for us to state things the way they appear and not fight ourselves because of our tribal differences.
Sir M.

Ikenna said...

Thank you, my learned Professor. Your constant courage and erudition excite me all the time. Thanks for always being on the truth's side. WE LOVE YOU!

Anonymous said...

For crying out loud this same Achebe (a Biafran Ambassador) took part in Nigerian politics immediately after the war. I guess he wanted to have his cake and eat it.

He is accusing Awolowo of looking out for the Yoruba's when Achebe himself was an Ambassador for Biafra.

This Biafra poison is beginning to really piss me off.

When the region of Biafra broke away from Nigeria in 1967, Achebe became a supporter of Biafran independence and acted as ambassador for the people of the new nation. When the Nigerian government retook the region in 1970, he involved himself in political parties.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinua_Achebe

This man Achebe schooled and was welcome at the University of Ibadan just like Ojukwu was welcome in Lagos.

Why are the Ibo's such incurable ingrates ???

The "hitherto" well respected Chinua Achebe is trying too hard to spoil his good reputation by writing such divisive articles especially when he knows that Awolowo can no longer defend himself. Why didn't he write such when Awolowo was alive to give him a rebuttal ???

He should just live out his last days in America instead of trying to poison the next generation about the unity of Nigeria.

What continues to baffle me to this date is how highly educated Ibo men could be this divisive and tribal in their thinking ???

Achebe has had his time, he should let the new generation determine the future of Nigeria instead of pouring Biafra poison onto Nigerias future at every opportunity.

NIGERIA WILL SURVIVE IN SPITE OF BIAFRAN POISON !!!

Anonymous said...

Maybe the Ambassador in the Biafran Govt (a.k.a Achebe) should have advised his CIC Ojukwu not to embark on an unnecessary, tribalistic, secessionist war they could not win in the first place.

The Ibo's are suffering for their inherently crafty and divisive spirit.

Okubo said...

Wonderful piece but wat exactly is he tryin to say? No pun intended and I get all his talk bwt d Igbo ppl bin mistreated but will Nigeria improve if d Igbo man is in a place of power? I dnt get his " one of d main reasons for the country's backwardness." Dats(the war) all in d past. Let's move on.

Anonymous said...

Someone please show me the biafrian genocide on this page http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genocides_in_history and we can discuss further.

Anonymous said...

To be honest the yoruba's will have to pa for past mistakes. after abandoning the igbos in an attempt to split the country, we are now stuck in a country with two majorly opposing religions, and its only going to be so long before some fighting breaks out. Do you think all of this boko haram terrorism would still exist, if the Igbos and Yorubas had separated from the Hausas?

That Girl said...

Achebe is a truth-teller, take it or leave it!
Never u make plans wit d Ofe-Mmanu ppl,cos they will leave u in d lurch when it's tym 4 d execution of d plans, like they did @ d tym of d Biafran war.
D fool dat talkd abt history bks,why dnt u ask old folks what d Yorubas did 2 d Igbos in Lagos,just bcos they didn't want 2 b associated wit d 'Bloody Biafrans'? You don't need history bks 2 learn dat, Asinine Bas...
Anyways, I will nt blame u- ur ppl's motto is 'All Talk n no Action'.Yoruba ppl ar always quick 2 cuss Igbo ppl out,evn on blogs prolly cos d average Yoruba man is lazy-a man who can stay up 2 35 yrs in his parents' house eating ofe-mmanu.
I 'thank God for God' cos after e'rything- d starvation,humiliation,rejection,20 Pounds in d bank(not withstanding d amt deposited in d bank b4/after d war), the Igbos still grew 2 become what they are 2day:-
Commerce- check (C'mon, we d best in d game)
Entrepreneurship- Check
Intelligence- check(remember d Ogbunigwe?)
Beauty-check(need I remind u dat Igbos have won beauty contests more than ppl 4rm other tribes?)
Prosperity- pls I have 2 stop cos I dnt want 2 infuriate some/more ppl hahahahaha).
In fact,Igbos are 'over-takers',Go 2 'reasonable' institutions in Nigeria n u'll find dat d Igbos are on top menh!!! Go 2 d big Shops/mkts/plazas in Abuja,Lag n u'll c wat I'm talking abt-they'v practically chased 'd rest' away.
WHO GOD HAS BLESSED, NO MAN CAN CURSE! FULL STOP!
WE TAKING OVER- ONE CITY @ A TYM o

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
omoyibo said...

To all the ibo haters, all I have to say to you guys writing baseless crap here about the Biafran civil war & the ibo's is for you to go on YouTube & search for videos about the biafran war & the events leading up to the Nigerian independence. You'll realize that the country called Nigeria ought to never have been but no thanks to the Brits we are paying for the shit today & generations to come will pay if we don’t change our thought process. Please research for yourself & see who made up the bulk of the civil service (igbo's) & held admin jobs all over Nigeria (igbo's) during the colonization period, also research what tribe had the most amount of professional senior military officers (igbo's) not referring to recruits/ non-commissioned, so you see when your hate and tribalism distorts your view, all you need to do is search for the information but then majority of you will not because you’re scared to learn the truth but would rather continue to puke some horse shit as if you were an authority on history.
You can see where myopic views has led Naija, just look at Nigeria from top down, all you see mediocrity, ignorance, tribalism, incompetence on levels because that has been the status quo and reading the comments on here is quite sad because these are supposedly the generation that will lead Nigeria forward and yet the hate won’t allow them to see beyond their own nose……

Anonymous said...

i am Otunba Babatunde. i must say that i am impressed by the directness of the Professor. We the yoruba's especially the younger generations have been fed with a lot of things about our ancestors heroism, some of which are correct, and some of which are not, but the marginalisation of the ibos in this country is what we can all see, and if Awolowo had helped in defeating the ibos by unconventional means, i can only ask, to what ends has that gotten the yorubas into?

Edson said...

My respect for Prof. Achebe just quadrupled..you indeed are a man that deserves respect, maximum respect, I dare say. Long life and good health, Sir.

Anonymous said...

Your ignorance is overwhelming! How dare you compare yourselves to those who went thru the holocaust? You started a war and are now crying foul

Unknown said...

awolowo, ojukwu, gowon are of the same faith. what does dat signify?

Str8FrmDaHips said...

Since when did being ambitious become a crime..All this stuff about Awo being ambitious and wanting the best for his people..tell me who isn't ambitious.??..who doesn't want the best for their family..unless you lazy..how would the world have transformed from our days in the cave??..pleeeze!!

Anonymous said...

Hausas are not overtly educated..deeply religious...ruled by a select few the Fulani Caliphate..some say docile..don't ask me it seems to keep them in check+works for them..then u turn round and kill not just a High ranking hausa..but a RELIGIOUS leader SARDUANA..and by chance didn't kill yours..that's a declaration of war!!..and the consequences..well u know..shebi u all got CNN..u watching Syria right??..Remember Ghadaffi??

Anonymous said...

My generation frightens me. Wow. The problem with Nigeria is not GEJ. I'm starting to even wonder whether it was Abacha or Babangida or anyone else or if it's really the average Nigerian. When will we learn? These posts are so depressing to read. The thieves are thieving regardless of their tribes, banking on the fact that we'll come to LIB and spew insults at each other while they continue to steal and they know that if one gets up and says 'let us go' that tribe will follow like mugus and get nothing out of it. You're here o, spewing hateful rubbish, making Linda rich (lol) while you wallow in your bitterness and while other African countries tap into all the economic and technological potential in Africa that the world is starting to recognize. All the time you spend fighting for Zik and Awolowo and Ojukwu who are dead and gone and have left unfinished paths for us to chart the right way.. Giant of Africa indeed. Na agbaya we be. I wonder the kind of tragedy it will take to truly unite Nigerians for once without resulting to inter-tribal insults. I pray that it never comes to that.

Anonymous said...

The nobel laurette is right; u can't deny d fact dat lessons havnt been learnt.However, Nigeria's problem was the 1st coup.If only Nzeogwu & his cohorts had allowed a nascent independent state to grow out of its can of worms.Rather, they intervened in politics ushering a series of ill fated military abuse.The decadence we see today started wit those guys, friends.I weep in my heart 4 my country.Over 3 decade of corrupt military regimes at the expense of a successively growing democracy.Hmmmmmm.WAZOBIA

Anonymous said...

@Str8frmdahips
If u read d article and understood d content u wuld understand dat Achbe is not criminalizing ambition. After all if I had a penny 4 every Yoruba person telling me the Igbo are too ambitious, I wuld be a billionaire already. What he is against is morbid ambition dat drove him to cooperate with a genocidal Nigerian govt and enact his own genocidal policies during d war and deleterious economic policies against d Igbo after d war.

Anonymous said...

what about the atrocities against niger delta...

Anonymous said...

"Why is this man bringing all these stories now? Its uncalled for. I beg just go and discuss it with awolowo in heaven or wherever he is. We are the new generation. We now live in peace and harmony. We don't want your inciting history.
Mtchew.

October 5, 2012 6:42 AM" the answer to your question in your first statement is , its history Achebe isnt inciting anyone he is just educating us on what we should know, the history of nigeria whether you like it or not is never complete without that war..now if you want him to go join awolowo well no law says because he is 81 he will see awolowo first. might see awolowo before him. mtschew i wonder you so called new generation that is living in peace and harmony..pls Linda post my comment...

DeeAdeniji said...

Why are some Nigerians so ignorant? Achebe is not trying to deride any ethnic group or deface it. His point is that tribalism, the belief that my ethnic group is better than any other ethnic group is the result of our problems. And until we, Nigerians, see ourselves as one and stop segregating into Yoruba, Igbo,and Hausa,we won't move forward. America was able to move forward after the war because they believed in each other and in one America. Instead of we LIB readers to read and comprehend Achebe's article properly, we are apportioning blame to each other. Yoruba this, Igbo that. Enough!

Anonymous said...

this is total rubbish, no One should blame Awolowo for the war, the igbo's are known to have big eyes, they was some form of revolution then, they were meant to kill the top leaders in the North, West and East.The igbo's were in charge of the execution, they killed the top leaders in the north and west and didnt kill there leaders in the East. They went on to add more salt to injury, by making fun of the top Northern leaders which they killed, this got the Northerners angry and they had to fight back.The people in the East wanted to leave the republic of Nigeria and form Biafra because of their selfish interest. How can you blame Awolowo for the war, when even the late Ojukwu called Awolowo, the president Nigeria never had. The igbo's should stop hating on the yoruba's they did nothing wrong, it was a Northerner that was the president when the war was on. They igbo's do not like the yoruba's, that's why they blame them for the war, they should stop this nonsense and move on.

Anonymous said...

It's funny how we all tend to belief what we have being told by our folks,the prof was not right with his assessment of Awolowo,thinking that it was because the people of the eastern region did not vote for him thats why he did what he did during the war,it's a far cry from that,i belief that when you declare your self independent and war breaks out,you should simply defend your territory and not cross the river Niger into Benin and Ore,maybe if the biafran forces had cross the Niger towards present day kogi,I would va supported the prof,but they didn't,they were on their way to Lagos and the Prof expect Awolowo not to do anything about that?,have students of history forgotten that laying a siege is part of strategies of winning a war?Awolowo used his brain rather than his brawn no matter anything any one says about him,he is the greatest Nigerian ever,dead or alive,he brought in most of the first in the country,educated a whole generation.....first sky scraper,first tv station,one of the best well planned varsity of it's time,well planned industrial estate in ikeja,which was part of the old western region,imagine what it would have being if that man was the premier or the president.but y'all just love to hate him,even those of you young ones who never knew him.

Anonymous said...

But why is it that when elections come in,the Igbo people are always aligning with the Hausa?right from the first republic even till now,most of the stalwarts in pdp are from the north and the east,I do not understand why igbo leaders cannot do without the Hausas and align with our fellow southerners,southwest and south south,evidently the northerners hate us,why must we blame the yorubas for our woes every time,they don't kill us the northerner do,let's stop supporting any party that they are dominant.

Anonymous said...

It is very obvious u re a yoruba claiming to be an igbo person just for u to criticize the igbos. U re just a shameless lunatic for u to have done dat. May God forgive u.

Anonymous said...

As much as I know dat de yorubas are spinless and arrogant my problem is with de hausas and their continued killings in the north, maybe they shud try seceding n having their own country free to do what ever dey like I.e not going to school or church. As for the yorubas we are better than u people even in your place so deal wit it

Anonymous said...

U just said it all my sis/bro. With time, some of them will understand. God bless u and God bless Nigeria.

Anonymous said...

Nobel Laureate? Achebe hasn't won it. Soyinka did.

That Girl said...

Hey u, Achebe rejected d Nobel prize,that was why it was given 2 Soyinka!Get ur freaking facts right!

Anonymous said...

Hahaha u wish u were. Let naija split and you'll see your selves naked. Many of you will die of kwashiokor hahahahaha..... There'll be no need to fight you guys. Except u try to start coming to take over our lands like u tried during the war. Hunger will be a good enough weapon hehehehe.

Anonymous said...

You forgot to add 419 - check, kidnapping- check, armed robbery -check.rituals-check! Ooogh have u been to ghana and south africa. They now differentiate btw a nigerian and an igbo man. U people don't tell yourselves the truth. That y I love yorubas, they say things as it is. If naija should break na una go suffer pass. U people have spoilt this countrys name everywhere! Una yansh go open like fowl. See as God has forsaken u people. U will forever be dependent on my people in the south-souht and south west. Sea-port una no get. Erosion has finished your land. U think if naija should break, igbos will be safe. Do u people have home? What do u have in your states. I want naija to break. So everybodys weaknesses will come out. Just go to ghana and see what igbos are doing. U people are terrible. That's why nobody likes u. Nobody is scared of igbos. People just tolerate u people. That's why u are hated! U say ure industrous, add "by hook or by crook" They give u one step u take 10 steps. Illiterates and crude human beings. No value. Nothing! I hate u people. Infact its because of u people I want naija to break up. U can't try what ure doing to the yorubas to we from delta. We will give u fire for fire. Yorubas to dey accomodate! Tsheeeeeew.

Anonymous said...

Shut up idiot. Soyinka won it before that idiot achebe. He is just a nuisance. Old fool speaking ill of the dead.

Anonymous said...

That girl you can abuse sha. Take it easy biko. You were wrong. Achebe never rejected the nobel. Now get your facts right.
Anon October 6, 2012 12:45 PM there was no competition and you don't know your history too. It's only Soyinka who has won it. You are angry because Achebe spoke the truth. Omashe. Stay untutored forever.

Anonymous said...

U questn d relevance of d article in modern dy naija?dat means u questn d importance of history in 2dy's modern wrld.its also lyk questning d relevance of d egyptian mummies in modern in 2dy's egypt.ignoramus lyk u

Anonymous said...

Achebe isn't a Nobel Laureate abeg,Wole Soyinka is.

That Girl said...

Gosh! Never knw someone 4rm d Niger Delta wud lambaste d igbos. Hey Mr/Mrs/Miss, I have few questions 4 u!
Have u 4gotten dat kidnnapping in Nig. started in d Niger-Delta n is still on? Have u 4gotten that although there is oil in d Niger- Delta,ur ppl live in squalor n actually 'enjoy' living like dat? Have u 4gotten that d worst thieves come 4rm there too ?e.g Ibori,Alamieyesegha(?),Jonathan etc Have u 4gotten dat ur ppl even steal d oil in ur area e.g Asari Dokubo and his mindless minions, including u?Have u 4gotten dat ur thieves always fail 2 keep d '11th commandment' which says-'Thou Shalt Not Get Caught'? Have u 4gotten that no matter what fools 4rm ur end say/do d tribes in d Niger-Delta are MINORITY ethnic groups(minus d Igbos there)?
U mentioned Erosion? Have u 4gotten what oil spillage/gas flaring has done 2 ur land/environment?Have u 4gotten dat ur ppl leave ur end 4 other places just 2 exhale/breathe out? Have u 4gotten dat oil has been found in some eastern states (and that we are waiting 4 urs 2 get finished b4 we start using ours)? Have u 4gotten dat ur ppl don't 'control' d major businesses in ur area?
Have u 4gotten dat d average Niger-Delta girl is into prostitutn? Have u 4gotten dat teenage prostitution should b an issue 4 concern there n shud b addressed properly?
Pls I'm in support of ur 'motion' that Nigeria shud split, so we wud knw who d 'true breadwinner' is.

That Girl said...

It's obvious Anon 12:45 is nuts-ppl pls read his second sentence.Also, read d last sentence. D'u nw believe he's nuts?

Anonymous said...

haba that's harsh you don't speak to people in a vulgar manner. Achebe has said it all. Even my Dad still speaks of the war. how the Nigerian soldiers buried people alive killed alot of people no water no food they had to hide in the forest..using cassava leaf to cook that is when they find any.. My grand father was lost in the war while protecting my dad. it painfully actually. But the fact remains that the Igbos are not unite. if they speak in one voice they will break bond...
the war can never be healed.

Anonymous said...

haba that's harsh you don't speak to people in a vulgar manner. Achebe has said it all. Even my Dad still speaks of the war. how the Nigerian soldiers buried people alive killed alot of people no water no food they had to hide in the forest..using cassava leaf to cook that is when they find any.. My grand father was lost in the war while protecting my dad. it painfully actually. But the fact remains that the Igbos are not unite. if they speak in one voice they will break bond...
the war can never be healed.

Anonymous said...

haba that's harsh you don't speak to people in a vulgar manner. Achebe has said it all. Even my Dad still speaks of the war. how the Nigerian soldiers buried people alive killed alot of people no water no food they had to hide in the forest..using cassava leaf to cook that is when they find any.. My grand father was lost in the war while protecting my dad. it painfully actually. But the fact remains that the Igbos are not unite. if they speak in one voice they will break bond...
the war can never be healed.

Anonymous said...

The biafran war is just another misfortune that nigeria has to bear till today,with killings of women and children that could have determine our collective bright future.supposed our leaders have the love of liberty,for love of liberty is the love of others which heals our wounds,we could have been in the midst of the elites nations.

Babajide said...

the past is done, can we move forward please? its so sad we are still all naive. for those that are venting so much anger on this blog site; do you guys want a repeat? do you want to kill your perceived enemies? will you all allow the past to dictate your future? (don't give me the 'you mustn't forget your past' speech) isn't there enough death and destruction already? no light, no food, no work and all you can focus on is 'the yorubas are bad' or the 'ibos are terrible'. while most people only make there living in Lagos (a yoruba land) yet you find it convenient to say so much hateful things about the land and people that have 'fed' you. please, please lets all move forward
Linda please state your 'own view' afterall its your blog

Anonymous said...

@That Girl...... Ur idiocy is very much commendable. Cos e no easy to take the cake for stupidity in a depraved state of mind. Some igbo states have oil? Hahahahahaha..... Is it the oil coy u thieves in ur usual cunning way, went to build in Kogi state and quickly put Anambra as one of the oil producing states....hehehehe. Choi! If there was oil in ur lands, why didn't the oil wells dug on the Anambra side yield anything? Such that you criminals had to go set up the coy on (Abaji) land? Abaji is an LGA under Kogi state... Why did Anambra state govt front with the coy? . There's nothing you guys do with clean hands....... Tueh!!! Tueh!!! Tueh!!! Lemme see what you guys will claim when Kogi people blow up that coy... @ least, na their land the thing dey. Okpo oji people.

Anonymous said...

Mr Achebe is obviously senile. Ethnocentric article. Disgusted at the claims especially in these times when Inos have turned Lagos to Onitsha. Kindly keep your musings to yourself sir and stop engendering ethnic tensions.

Anonymous said...

I've been reading this story from other blogs since y'day...& i've read this bloggers too... It's depressing...I grew up listening to my dad saying: "no one should discuss biafra in his home"..it's certain he still sees it in his dreams, in reality, in life...my dad was already prosperous..but had to run back to the east during the war...yes, he discussed the war a little, but u cld still see tears roll...my own people of same blood were killed in the north, bcos of the evil perpetuated by d military..until y'day, i've nvr gone to Youtube to catch-up on d story, i have now, and it brings tears to my eyes...n i can see the pain in some of our writers' books, like 'half a yellow sun', 'a country that nvr was'...d pain is there, we hv to discuss it...d govt has to discuss it..Gowon has to discuss it, Babaginda, Obasanjo, etc...they all hv to discuss it..and until it is discussed and everyone decides to go bck to d Aburi accord, i'm sorry to say, but Nigeria will nvr b...We cn all c it from d elections...evryone is marginalized...evn d Northerners wld say same thing...i rilli want to ask, why are we fighting to hold Nigeria as one...funny that my youthful generation(all of us commenting on this blog i mean), want to go separate ways, but the govt has cunningly declined...evn the United Nations refuses to discuss it...evn my father refuses to discuss it...So if we all want separate ways, why is d govt trying to hold-on to the tension...some yrs back, whn Boko-Haram arose, separation was brought up agn...still, d leaders are shying away frm it...why hold people bck for so long blving that they will soon forget what they are hungry for?..i am igbo, i hv all types of tribes as friends...i love them and i still want dt rltnship, evn if d country splits, we'll continue to b friends...i sincerely hope that someday, d desire of the regions dt wish to disintegrate from Nigeria comes true, bcos, without dt, there rili is no way forward.. once agn, i thank Achebe for his words...

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