• He lied over purported reconciliation with Ojukwu –Onoh
From Magnus Eze, Enugu and Jude Owuamanam, Jos
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has made a startling revelation that he was not aware his predecessor in office, Gen. Yakubu Gowon, pleaded to late Gen. Sani Abacha not to execute him when he was implicated in an attempt to topple his administration.
Gowon, at an interdenominational Christmas Carol organised by the Plateau State Government on Friday in Jos, revealed how he wrote and sent a letter to Abacha through his wife, Victoria, pleading that Obasanjo’s life be spared.
However, speaking at the continuation of the event on Saturday, Obasanjo expressed surprise that Gowon, whom he referred to as his boss, pleaded on his behalf.
“I want to acknowledge my boss, General Yakubu Gowon. Yesterday, he gave us a revelation, and I have to thank him especially for that because when I came out of prison, I had friends inside and outside who contributed to the appeal to pray for my release from prison.
“And I went around the world, thanking those that have been pointed out to me as appealing and praying for my release from prison.
“I did not know that you wrote a personal letter for my release until you said it yesterday. I thank you for that.”
In a separate reaction, a brother-in-law to Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, Dr. Josef Onoh, faulted General Gowon’s claim that he reconciled with the former Biafran leader, Ikemba Nnewi.
Reactions trailed Gowon’s claim that he reconciled with the late Biafra leader, since Saturday Sun published the excerpts of Mike Awoyinfa and Dimgba Igwe’s interview with the elder statesman.
Onoh said there was no such reconciliation. Instead, what happened was a chance meeting during a condolence visit by Gowon when his father and Ojukwu’s father-in-law, Chief C.C. Onoh passed on.
According to Onoh, the former head of state’s narration about his purported reconciliation with Ojukwu in London was not as correct as he recounted it. He stated with exactitudes that he was a witness to the chance meeting between Gowon and Ojukwu both in Enugu and in London.
To Onoh, Gowon substituted a condolence visit with reconciliation, noting that because Gowon has started telling ‘lies,’ he would need subsequent lies to go on with his crooked narratives.
“Gowon’s narration of his meeting with Ojukwu is a lie. That wasn’t how it happened because I was there. And it wasn’t in London, rather it was in Enugu in March 2010, and I received him. Part of the reasons for his visit was to pay condolences on the passing of my father, Ikemba Ojukwu’s father-in-law, who passed-on in May 2009, but Gowon was not in the country and couldn’t make it for the burial.
“I was present at the meeting; I served him and he told me he doesn’t take alcoholic drinks and opted for water or orange juice. He brought up the importance of reconciliation and Ojukwu made it clear that he holds no grudge against him and that as soldiers, they did what they believed was best at that time for their country and that he (Ojukwu) didn’t support another Biafra that will be achieved with bloodshed and massacre of the Igbo.
“Gowon left and Ojukwu promised to honour him with a visit and he said he was most likely to be out of the country and Ojukwu replied ‘even during the Civil War, I knew your every movement and location and since I’ve promised to honour you with a visit as you did me, I’ll find you even if you are in the moon.’
“We all laughed and escorted him out. Ojukwu said a closing prayer in Latin at the amazement of everyone present, including Gowon. We admired the two men whose actions shaped Nigeria. Ojukwu was fluent in Hausa, French, Yoruba, English, Latin and Igbo and in every way his image and oratory dominated the moment, hence, I understand the reason Gowon is attempting to change history by giving a wrong narrative of events.
“He, Gowon, has always suffered an extreme high level of inferiority complex around Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu and even in death, he’s unable to rise above that shackles of inferiority, which was still manifest in his condolence message and tribute to Ikemba Odumegwu-Ojukwu.”
Onoh also spoke on the London meeting between Ojukwu and Gowon, disclosing that Gowon exhibited his highest form of insecurity with Ojukwu, particularly when he noticed that Ojukwu’s biographer, Author Fredrick Foresight, was in the vicinity of their meeting in a London hotel.
“It was two months after Easter of 2010 that Ikemba said since we were in London, let’s pay a visit to Gen. Gowon and I recall asking him, ‘EzeIgbo, who do we call to get his address or phone number? He smiled and said I have it right here in my pocket.’
“I was the one that called using my T-mobile Uk number, Gowon’s wife picked up and I informed her to hold on to speak with Ojukwu. The chat was brief and Ikemba said we should proceed to the hotel. It was two days later, at about 4pm that Gen. Gowon came and I’m amazed at all his narration of how, ‘if he was going to be assassinated and other nonsense, like a James Bond fiction movie. Frederick (Foresight) wrote what he witnessed during the war and I don’t expect Gen. Gowon to like his narrative because Fredrick portrayed him as he was at that period.
“Finally, out of respect for Gen. Gowon, who was a good friend to my late father and also my late brother-in-law, Ikemba Odumegwu-Ojukwu, I shall refrain from saying much for it will reopen old wounds, especially some sensitive issues that were raised by Ojukwu and it was Gowon that refused to have a sincere and candid discussion with Ojukwu during his visit in the UK.
“In Gowon’s words ‘Frederick will now go out and write I came to apologise to Ojukwu.’ He was very nasty on that visit, especially towards Frederick, but I’ll leave the rest to history and all that was said. But, I urge and respectfully plead with Gen. Gowon not to alter stories to make himself appear a victor because he feels Ojukwu is dead and no one, not even Ojukwu’s children will come to alter his wild inaccurate stories, I was close to Ikemba in his lifetime and he fondly called me ‘My most wonderful brother-in-law.’
“I can tell a billion fantastic stories of that great son of Africa (Ojukwu) that most people haven’t heard. I can tell stories from his lips to my ears that will leave a lot of people in shock. Gen. Obasanjo remains one of the very few officers he had tremendous respect for and you can never hear Obasanjo attempting to sing like a canary in the media to discuss their military exploits, the men and comrades they lost, nor attempt to score cheap goals by giving false narratives of fellow comrades.
“To Gowon, I say, ‘The dead don’t talk,’ but I’m privileged to have heard him talk while alive. When you lie, you have to tell another lie to cover the first lie, then another lie, and so on. It is so much easier to tell the truth than it is to lie because I was there and the truth shall set you free.”