Former Nigerian Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon (rtd.), has insisted that the Biafra War was never aimed at the Igbo people but rather against those who took up arms to break Nigeria apart, blaming the late Biafran leader, Chief Chukwuemeka Odimegwu-Ojukwu for its outbreak.
Speaking during an interview on Arise News, Gowon explained that the war effort under his leadership was directed at stopping secession and preserving the country’s unity, not targeting any ethnic group.
He said the Nigerian military was given strict orders to protect civilians, especially women and children, while engaging only those who posed a threat by taking up arms against the government.
“I had a responsibility and duty as a loyal Nigerian to keep the country whole. From the beginning, I ensured that this was not a war against Igbos as such, but one to stop the breaking up of Nigeria.”
“I gave a code of conduct of how the operations were to go; soldiers on the Nigerian side were to protect the people, especially women and children, and take up arms only against those who had taken arms against them. The number of people who were casualties of the war is not in millions. The other side also refused all attempts to send aid into their camp.”
“I think I have said that if the East does not break up from Nigeria, yes, and that was what I kept on saying, what I keep on saying, that if the East does not break up from Nigeria, I say, no, I have a responsibility to keep Nigeria, and as far as I’m concerned, that is my teaching.”
“And I won’t, but if the situation gets to this stage, when I have to choose between allowing the people to break up, you know, or having people to stop it, well, it would freeze the country. You know, I know where my responsibility is, because I have my loyalty, that loyalty, to the country.”
On the ill-fated Aburi Accord, Gowon explained that although both parties engaged in sincere dialogue during the January 1967 summit in Aburi, Ghana, the Eastern Region leader, Ojukwu, later pushed for a form of regional autonomy that the federal side could not accept.
“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 governor. 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,” Gowon said, “And, of course, we did not agree with that one.”
Gowon stated that the federal delegation never viewed the Aburi meeting as a forum for constitutional restructuring or military devolution.
“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 is not his understanding.”
Gowon also revealed that upon returning to Nigeria after the summit, he was ill and unable to immediately respond to the terms Ojukwu had publicly announced. This delay, he said, created space for misunderstanding and unilateral declarations.
“Unfortunately… I was having serious attack of kind of fever or whatever it is, and I could not make a decision.”
He accused Ojukwu of making unauthorised statements about the Accord without waiting for joint clarification.
“Ojukwu was one who, when he came, he went and made… a statement about the Aburi Accord.”
To address the confusion, Gowon said the federal government convened a follow-up meeting in Benin, inviting all regional governors to agree on the path forward — but Ojukwu declined to attend.
“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.”
Gowon insisted that had Ojukwu attended the Benin meeting, the parties might have been able to avoid escalation.
It could be recalled that the Biafra War, also known as the Nigerian Civil War, lasted from July 6, 1967, to January 13, 1970.
It began after the Eastern Region of Nigeria, led by Lt. Colonel Odumegwu Ojukwu, declared independence as the Republic of Biafra following ethnic violence and political unrest, especially against the Igbo people.
The Nigerian government under Gowon rejected the secession, leading to a brutal conflict. The war caused widespread devastation, particularly in Biafra, where a blockade led to mass starvation.
Over 1million civilians, mostly children, died from hunger and disease, and total casualties are estimated between one and three million.
Despite strong resistance, Biafra surrendered in January 1970. The federal government declared “no victor, no vanquished” and initiated a reconciliation process.
However, the war left deep scars and long-lasting ethnic and regional tensions in Nigeria, especially among the Igbo, who felt marginalised before, during, and after the conflict.
