By Suleiman Anyalewechi
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has described the January 15, 1966 coup ,the July 29, 1966 counter coup ,and the military annulment of the June 12, 1993 Presidential Election as some of the darkest moments in the evolution of Nigeria.
This is as he urged authorities to re-introduce history as a subject in the country’s educational curriculum.
Obasanjo who spoke on the occasion of the 60th memorial service in honour of Nigeria’s first Military Head of State, late General Thomas Ummunnkwe Aguiyi Ironsi on Wednesday in Umuahia ,the Abia state capital, also, blamed exclusion, destruction and divisive rhetorics for most of the problems besetting the country.
The former President who described the late Aguiyi Ironsi as one with an image of a father-figure in the military, recalled with nostalgia how he treated everyone, including junior and younger officers, with generous courtesy and care.
He noted that the late Head of State showed remarkable leadership qualities throughout his military career and service, including a very outstanding performance during the United Nations peacekeeping mission to Congo
Obasanjo appealed to Nigerians to draw valuable lessons from the experiences of January 15,1966 July 29,1966 coups ,and the June 12,1993 election, which he insisted remain very dark spots in the history of Nigeria.
“July 29 is one black day in the history of Nigeria. January 15 is another black day . The annulment of June 12 election is also a black day. But the question is: what lessons do we learn from them ?”
“Most of these black days excluded, destroyed ,and separated us. But we can learn the right lessons and draw inspiration for inclusiveness, construction , cooperation and bringing our people together” Obasanjo stated .
The former President emphasized the urgent need for the re-introduction of history in the educational curriculum for the purpose of exposing future generations to the mistakes of the past generations.
He expressed serious concern that future generations risk repeating past mistakes of previous generation if not exposed to those avoidable errors.
“Nigeria has many black days ,and because of these black days ,we must remember history to learn the right lessons” he added.
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