By Charles Igbo
Former Nigerian Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon, has put the blame of the failure of the Aburi Accord which was meant to prevent the Nigerian Civil War on late Biafran Leader, General Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu.
Gowon who spoke on Arise Television in an interview with Charles Aniagolu, said that a disagreement between the two of them on the control of the Military caused the failure of the Accord.
According to Gowon, part of the reasons it failed was because Ojukwu wanted regional Governors to control the Military in their Zones.
Gowon explained that although both parties had an honest dialogue during the January 1967 summit in Aburi, Ghana, Ojukwu, who was the Leader of the Eastern Region leader, turned around to push for regional autonomy, a push which was not acceptable to the Federal Government.
His words: “Although we said that the military would be zoned, you know, but the control, he wanted, you know, those zones to be commanded by the Governors. Say you have a military zone in the North, it would be commanded by the Governor of the Military in the East, it would be commanded by, you know, by him. And, of course, we did not agree with that one.”
Gowon said that the reasoning was that the Federal Government Delegation to Aburi never felt that the meeting was a forum for constitutional restructuring or military devolution.
He said: “We just went there as far as we are concerned to be able to meet as officers now, and then to agree to be able to get back home and resolve a problem at home. That was my understanding. But that was not his (Ojukwu’s) understanding.”
The former Head of State also revealed that his health, on return from Aburi, did not help matters as it delayed his response to the terms which he alleged Ojukwu had unilaterally announced. The delay, according to him, created space for misunderstanding.
He said: “Unfortunately, I was having serious attack, kind of fever, or whatever it is, and I could not make a decision.”
Gowon blamed Ojukwu for allegedly making unauthorised statements about the Accord instead of waiting for clarification from both sides.
Gowon: “Ojukwu was the one who, when he came, he went and made a statement about the Aburi Accord.” That announcement, General Gowon said, caused confusion and in order to address the confusion, said Gowon, the Federal Government convened a follow-up meeting in Benin, and invited all regional governors so as to agree on the path forward. But Gowon said Ojukwu refused to attend.
His words: “We had to organise that, you know, a meeting of all the Governors. And he was invited to attend so that we can deal with the Accord. And we met at Nifo in Benin. And he did not turn up.”
If Ojukwu had attended the meeting, Gowon posited, both parties might have been able to avoid the escalation of the situation.
According to Gowon, much as the Federal Government was willing to work in the “spirit of Aburi,” it was not prepared to concede the control of national military to Regional Governors or the possibility of secession.
“The only thing that I added was that no Region, you know, will, you know, or can secede from the country.”
The Nigerian Civil War lasted from July 1967 to 1970. Millions of lives were lost on the side of then Biafran Republic, not a few of them, due to starvation.
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