Tag: Aburi Accord

On Aburi We Stand!

The phrase ‘On Aburi We Stand’ is very common amongst scholars and students of the Nigerian Civil War historiography. This phrase is often cited by supporters of the Biafran nation as it implied that Ojukwu had done a great job at Aburi, especially with the resolutions reached in the Accord. Gowon’s betrayal of the contents of the agreement could be regarded as the immediate cause of the war. By so doing, he demonstrated that, indeed, the fears of Ojukwu and the Igbo nation were genuine. Before we discuss the standoff that led to the phrase ‘On Aburi We Stand’, let’s quickly take a look at the resolutions reached at Aburi and how Gowon went against them.

In the previous article, I made it clear that the Aburi Peace Conference was a meeting of the Supreme Military Council of Nigeria. Below is the official minute of the resolutions reached.

‘On Aburi We Stand’: Ojukwu unveils Biafran currency and postage stamps, January 29 1968

FINAL ABURI COMMUNIQUE
The Supreme Military Council of Nigeria resumed its meeting in Ghana on the 5th
of January, and continued and concluded discussion of the remaining subjects on
the Agenda. The Council reached agreement on all the items.
On the powers and functions of the Federal Military Government, the Council
reaffirmed its belief in the workability of the existing institutions subject to
necessary safeguards.
Other matters on which agreements were reached included the following:

• Re-organisation, administration and control of the Army
• Appointments and promotions to the senior ranks in the Armed Forces, the Police, Diplomatic and Consular Services as well as appointments to super-scale
posts in the Federal Civil Service and the equivalent posts in the Federal Statutory
Corporations. On the question of displaced persons, the Supreme Military Council
agreed to set up a committee to look into the problems of rehabilitation and
recovery of property. In this connection, the Military Governor of the East assured
the Council that the order that non-Easterners should leave the Eastern Region would be reviewed with a view to its being lifted as soon as practicable.
Agreement was also reached that the staff and employees of governments and
statutory corporations who have had to leave their posts as a result of recent
disturbances in the country should continue to be paid their full salaries up to the
end of March 31, 1967, provided they have not found alternative employment.

The Council agreed that the Ad Hoc Committee on the constitutional future of the country should be resumed as soon as practicable and that the unanimous
recommendations of the committee in September 1966 will be considered by the
Supreme Military Council at a later meeting.
The Council unanimously agreed that future meetings of the Council should be
held in Nigeria at a venue to be announced later.
The entire members of the Supreme Military Council expressed profound regret for the bloodshed, which has engulfed the country in the past year and avow to do all
in their power to ensure there is no recurrence of the unhappy situation.
The members of the Supreme Military Council place on record their profound
appreciation and gratitude for the constructive initiative and assistance rendered by the Chairman of the National Liberation Council, the Government and people of Ghana.

Statement by the Supreme Council on the Reorganisation of the Army,
and the Approval of Senior Appointments, and its Declaration on the use of force
I. The Supreme Military Council now meeting in Ghana has agreed on the
following reorganisation of the Army:
• The Army is to be governed by the Supreme Military Council the Chairman of
which will be known as Commander-in-Chief and Head of the Federal Military
Government.
• There will be a Military Headquarters on which the Regions will be equally
represented and which will be headed by a Chief of Staff.
• In each Region, there shall be an Area Command under the charge of an Area
Commander and corresponding with the existing Regions.
• All matters of policy, including appointments and promotions of persons in executive posts in the Armed Forces and Police shall be dealt with by the Supreme
Military Council.
• During the period of the Military Government, Military Governors will have
control over their Area Commands in matters of internal security. The following
appointments must be approved by the Supreme Military
Council:
• Diplomatic and Consular posts.
• Senior posts in the Armed Forces and the Police.
• Super-scale Federal Civil Service and Federal Corporation posts.
• Any decision affecting the whole country must be determined by the Supreme
Military Council. Where a meeting is not possible such a matter must be referred
to Military Governors for comment and concurrence.

II. We the members of the
Supreme Military Council of Nigeria meeting at Accra on 4th day of January, 1967,
hereby solemnly and unequivocally: DECLARE that we renounce the use of force as a means of settling the present crisis in Nigeria, and hold ourselves in honour
bound by this declaration. REAFFIRM our faith in discussions and negotiation as
the only peaceful way of resolving the Nigerian crisis. AGREE to exchange
information on the quantity of arms and ammunition in each unit of the Army in
each Region, and also on the quantity of new arms and ammunition in stock.

If you take the time to read the minutes of the meeting, you will notice that Ojukwu was very prepared. He spoke at length each time he had the opportunity to speak and spoke quite intelligently. Obviously only himself knew the constitutional implications of the document they had signed. When it became clear that the Aburi Accord was a major victory for Ojukwu and the Eastern province, Gowon decided to abandon the agreement because, according to him, Ojukwu
went to Aburi prepared while others were not (yes, Gowon actually said that).

In response to Gowon, Lt. Colonel Odumegwu Ojukwu, Military Governor of the Eastern Region of Nigeria, declared that the region would no longer recognise Lt. Colonel Yakubu Gowon as Head of the Federal Military Government on March 2, 1967. Lt. Colonel Gowon assumed full powers as Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces and head of the military government on May 27, 1967. Lt. Colonel Gowon proclaimed a state-of-emergency on May 28, 1967. Lt. Colonel Odumegwu Ojukwu, Military Governor of the Eastern Region, declared the independence of the Republic of Biafra in Southern Nigeria on May 30, 1967. This began the 30-month long Civil War popularly known as the Biafran war.

The phrase ‘On Aburi We Stand’, was the title of Ojukwu’s broadcast delivered on the 27th of February, 1967 (a month after the signing of the Accord). Thanks for reading throug&h. If you enjoyed this piece, kindly give us a like and comment below. Do have a lovely day.

25th April 2022
Prelude to War: The Aburi Accord

In our last article we explained Decree 34 as a precursor to the counter coup and by extension the Civil War. Already quite a number of Easterners in the Northern Region were being massacred, in fact about 115 individuals, mostly ethnic Ibos, were killed in political violence between May 28 – June 2, 1966 due to the unpopularity of the Decree promulgated by an Ibo Head of State. Hence the Counter Coup which was Mainly led by Northern officers ousted Gen. Ironsi and replaced him with an officer of Northern Origin, Lt. Col Yakubu Gowon. It is important to understand that Gowon was more than 3 ranks below Ironsi, therefore following the regular hierarchy of the military, he shouldn’t have ascended power but one thing was clear, ethnic and emotional sentiment had once again prevailed not just in Nigerian politics but also in the military. Foremost amongst these Coup plotters were, Lt. Col. Muritala Mohammed and Lt. Col. Theophilus Y Danjuma who later ousted the same person they brought in nine years later.

Lt. Col. T. Y. Danjuma

Lt. Col Muritala Mohammed

The counter coup therefore launched fresh rounds of massacres, about 30 individuals were killed in political violence in Lagos between July 29-August 1, 1966, infact within the same period Nigeria had no Head of State for three days (July 29-31) till Gowon was sworn in on August 1. Realizing that their safety could no longer be guaranteed, some 250,000 ethnic Ibos fled the Northern Region to the Eastern Region.

The military governor of the Eastern region, Lt. Col. Odumegwu Ojukwu, had already become somewhat disillusioned with the military government, in fact he refused to recognize Gen. Gowon as Head of the National Military Government due to the circumstances surrounding Gowon’s appointment. He had persistently refused to attend meetings of the Supreme Military Council (SMC) anywhere outside the Eastern region. A major argument of Ojukwu, was that his personal safety could no longer be guaranteed outside the Eastern region. According to the Daily Times, dated Tuesday, August 2, 1966, Ojukwu had, in a speech broadcast across the Eastern region, suggested that negotiations be held to allow the people of Nigeria determine the nature of their future association. Series of Conferences were held within the country with the objective of redefining the form of government acceptable to all sections of the country; the various regions took different positions with the Eastern region opting for a confederation. At the end it became clear that Ojukwu was planning the secession of the East from the federation, however, Gen Gowon kept looking for a way to pacify Ojukwu which would at the same not threaten the authority of the Federal (central) government. In search of a place agreeable to Ojukwu, the military leaders met at Aburi, Ghana the result of what popularly became known as the Aburi Accord. The Chairman of the Ghana Liberation Council, Lt. Gen. J.A Ankrah presided over the gathering.

The Aburi peace conference, lasting two days, was the final attempt by both parties, that is the Federal Military Government of Nigeria and The Government of the Eastern region, to find a solution to the ethnic cleansing perpetrated against the Easterners resident in the north amongst other issues of national importance. We understand that many Nigerians who at one point in time heard about this meeting do not really know the specific details of issues discussed, in order to clear the air we took special care to highlight them.

The Aburi Peace Conference could be regarded as a meeting of Nigeria’s Supreme Military Council at Ghana. In attendance were Gowon, who was Supreme Military Commander at the time, His Vice President, Commodore Joseph Edet Akinwale Wey, Governors of the four regions and Lagos State – Lt.-Col. David Ejoor, Lt.-Col. Hassan Katsina, Lt. Col. Chukwuemeka Ojukwu, Colonel Robert Adebayo, and Major Mobolaji Johnson. They were joined by their secretaries and the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Cabinet Office, S. Akenzua, who would ascend the throne of Benin as Oba Erediauwa 1.

According to official records of the minutes of the meeting kept by all sides, many issues formed the agenda, but only three of these would have ramifications on the future of Nigeria, and consequently, the civil war. The Armed Forces’ recruitment scheme had given the North an unfair advantage that became evident after the first coup. Ojukwu believed a re-organisation of the armed forces was necessary. Some decrees also vested absolute power on the federal government, Ojukwu and many of the regional governors wanted this condition to be reversed. The Kaduna pogroms that had displaced many Igbo from around the country were also, of course, a matter of necessity, on the table. In the aftermath of the July 29 counter coup many officers and civilians of non-northern origin, particularly the Igbo were being targeted for massive maiming and massacre.

After initial pleasantries, Gowon took charge of the meeting. Gowon and Ojukwu addressed suspicions that they were stockpiling weapons for war – a plane had crashed near Enugu carrying new weapons from a foreign supplier. The Federal Government was also amassing weapons in Kaduna, deliveries from purchases valued at over three million pounds. The council then adopted a declaration proposed by Lt.-Col. Ojukwu, that all members renounce the use of force to settle the Nigerian crisis.

Even though Gowon was the head of the Supreme Military Council, he showed an unusual willingness to agree to nearly all requests made by Ojukwu and the other regional governors. In fact, in the eyes of the other governors, especially Ojukwu, Gowon’s posture raised questions about whether his concessions were genuine, or the meeting was simply a ploy to bring the regions to the negotiating table as part of ‘due process’, to explore the option of dialogue, especially since most of the recommendations and agreements reached were never implemented.

One major defect of this peace accord was that both parties misunderstood the terms of agreement. While Gowon and other members of the SMC saw this as a meet up with Ojukwu to douse tensions in Eastern Nigeria and other regions, Ojukwu saw it as a platform for constitutional amendment.

Thanks for reading through. Let’s know what you think in the comments.

18th April 2022