By Ayodele Oni
General Yakubu Gowon has accused the late former Head of State, Major General Murtala Muhammed, of disobeying command orders during Nigeria’s Civil war. That disobedience, he said, led to the invasion of Asaba by federal troops and subsequent massacre.
What is now termed ‘Asaba Massacre,’ has been described as “deadly onslaught perpetrated by the Nigerian Army, specifically the Second Infantry Division under the command of Murtala Muhammed targeted the people of Asaba, mostly Igbo people. Not a few people call it genocide.
These were contained in Gowon’s autobiography, ‘My Life of Duty & Allegiance’, a rare personal insights into the rivalries, battlefield mistakes and political tensions that shaped the 1967–1970 civil war.
General Gowon also reopened some of the deepest controversies of Nigeria’s Civil War, revealing how the late sage, Chief Olusegun Awolowo, stepped in to save late military ruler, Gen. Murtala Mohammed.
Gowon revealed one of the sharpest revelations in the memoir which concerns the failed federal attempt to cross the River Niger from Asaba into Onitsha, an operation long regarded as one of the war’s most controversial military decisions.
Gowon said Murtala ignored repeated warnings against the operation because of rivalry with another Commander and his determination to claim battlefield glory.
“As the C-in-C, I considered his plan quite suicidal,” Gowon wrote.
According to him, Army Headquarters warned that rebel forces could destroy the Onitsha Bridge and trap federal troops during the crossing.
Gowon stated that he advised Murtala to approach Onitsha through alternative land routes already secured by federal forces, but the commander refused.
“His pride did not allow him to wish to pass through 1 Division area owing to his rivalry with Colonel Shuwa,” he stated.
The former Head of State pointed out that the operation ended in disaster after Murtala pressed ahead with the river crossing.
“Murtala did not accept my advice and did exactly as he had proposed, to cross the River Niger by boats and barges, but with catastrophic consequences of the loss of men and equipment during the failed river crossing,” he wrote.
“The war also exposed deep fractures inside the federal command.”
Gowon recounted how Murtala once sent him what he described as an insulting signal from the battlefield during intense fighting.
“In a fit of anger, he went beyond the bounds of reason or military decorum to send me, his Commander-in-Chief, an impertinent signal that I should get my fat butt off my chair to sort out things in the battlefield, instead of giving orders from the comfort of my office in Dodan Barracks,” Gowon wrote.
The former wartime leader said the message angered him so much that he considered removing Murtala from command immediately.
“His unconscionably rude signal to me from the war front made me angry enough to consider removing him from command with immediate effect,” he stated.
But Gowon said Awolowo stepped in before he acted. “Chief Awolowo noticed the depth of my anger with Murtala after I received the signal.
“He promptly intervened on his behalf and pleaded that I should not respond the way I had intended,” he recalled.
Discover more from The Source
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
