After 54 years, General Yakubu Gowon makes a shocking confession on live TV, admitting he started the Nigerian-Biafran Civil War.
In a revealing statement, Gowon opens up about the misconceptions surrounding the war’s origins, surprising many with the revelation that he initiated the conflict as the Nigerian Head of State.
This confession sheds new light on the historic event, challenging previous beliefs and highlighting the complexities of the war’s narrative. including the crimes against women and children.
Mr Gowon who ruled Nigeria between 1966 and 1975 made the admission that he Started Civil War while addressing newsmen after he visited President Tinubu at the State House in Abuja on Wednesday
The former Head of State told President Bola Tinubu not to be worried about the criticisms of Nigerians on his performance since he assumed office in May 2023.
He said that as a former leader of the country, he also faced the same situation when he started the Civil War in 1967, which many Nigerians thought would destroy the country but his government succeeded.
Gowon also begged Nigerians to give President Tinubu more time to solve the socioeconomic problems in the country.
He said, “I was telling him that there’s no Nigerian leader that can get there, that will not get all of these; all that is being said about him.
“But certainly, there is no doubt about all what one has heard and seen from various media. I think the government is trying its best to deal with the various problems of the country.
“But with Nigerians, don’t you worry you will get criticised, but people who get there know better than you know. I think all one can say to Nigerians is that they have to give the President time to get things really done and it is too early to sort of say perfect result will be achieved. That is my opinion.
“At least, if I remembered, I was told that I was too slow, fighting the war and that probably Nigeria would not make it and that we should seek for discussion. Well, did we do it or not? They probably did not know the problem there on the ground there.
The late Odumegwu Ojukwu always asked Gowon to speak the truth about who started the war. Well, Nigerians heard it, finally!
Gowon also said, “I think all one can say to Nigerians is that they have to give the president time to get things really done and it is too early to sort of say perfect results will be achieved. That is my opinion.”
Last year, Mr Gowon dismissed the Nigerian Civil War that claimed close to three million lives “a little fracas.”
Former President Muhammadu Buhari, who fought on the side of the Nigerian Army against the Biafran agitators, estimated the number of those killed during the Civil War to be over one million.
The Nigeria-Biafra war broke out in 1967 following the South-East’s secession from Nigeria. The war lasted over 30 months, ending in 1970. But agitation for secession still lingers in the South-East.
An estimated three million people were reportedly killed during the war, many rounded up by Nigerian soldiers and shot at close range while hundreds of thousands were starved to death.
Although the war was not properly documented, several accounts with substantial corroboration indicated how Nigerian soldiers massacred Igbo civilians in Asaba, Onitsha, and Enugu, amongst other communities in the region.