HISTORICAL FLASHBACK: How Nigeria’s Regions Reacted to the 1966–67 Crisis — And Why Only the East Chose Secession

By Ezeikolomuo (Igbo Consciousness Teacher)

SCENE 1: The Northern Coup and the Aborted “Araba Must Go” Agenda

Nigeria’s second military coup, carried out in July 1966, was masterminded by Northern military officers seeking two key objectives:

1. To avenge the deaths of prominent Northern politicians and senior military officers killed during the first coup, and
2. To pull the Northern Region out of Nigeria in an operation known as “Araba Must Go.”

Under the leadership of Lt. Col. Murtala Mohammed, the Northern officers succeeded in avenging their fallen leaders. But when they attempted to activate the second phase — secession — a wave of senior Northern civil servants and foreign diplomats intervened immediately.

For nearly two days, these senior figures lectured, warned, and persuaded the young officers that dissolving Nigeria at that moment would unleash catastrophic consequences.
In the end, the coup plotters stepped back, not because they lacked power, but because superior argument prevailed.

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SCENE 2: How Yoruba Leaders Chose Restraint Over Secession

After Chief Obafemi Awolowo was released from prison by General Yakubu Gowon — who himself rose to power as a beneficiary of the July coup — many in the Western Region believed the Yorubas should follow the Eastern Region’s lead if secession occurred.

Sensing this dangerous mood, Colonel Robert Adebayo, the military governor of the Western Region, convened a major gathering of Yoruba Leaders of Thought in Ibadan.
Despite Awolowo’s overwhelming influence, Adebayo still invited him, understanding that only a respected voice could calm the tension.

At the meeting, Awolowo was instantly and unanimously recognized as the true leader of the Yoruba people. And with that authority, he advised caution — urging leaders and the populace to avoid rash decisions.

Awolowo further asked that Gowon be informed that the Yorubas wanted Northern soldiers withdrawn from their region.
Though the request was never granted, Yorubas were instead encouraged to massively enlist in the army.

Once again, a region on the brink of secession was guided back by the wisdom of an experienced voice, not by emotion.

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SCENE 3: The East — Mass Killings, Trauma, and the Final Push Toward Secession

While the North and West were being talked off the cliff, the Eastern Region faced a far bloodier reality.
Following the July counter-coup, over 30,000 Easterners—mostly Igbos—were massacred in various parts of Northern Nigeria.

In response, Eastern Nigerians were overwhelmed with trauma, fear, and anger.
The Igbo populace wanted out — and demanded their own country for safety.

Military Governor Lt. Col. Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu began consulting Igbo elites. The majority of seasoned leaders, including foreign diplomats, strongly opposed secession.

Yet Ojukwu did not consult the most experienced Igbo statesman, Nnamdi Azikiwe.
Even Ojukwu’s own wealthy father was denied access to Government House because he disagreed with secession.

By the time the Eastern leadership tried to persuade Zik to lend his name to the movement, the decision to secede had already been made — driven largely by the emotional demands of a traumatized populace.

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THE FACT

Between July 1966 and May 1967, all three major regions — North, West, and East — stood on the brink of secession.
But only the Eastern Region followed through, largely because:

• In the North and West, experienced elders successfully restrained the masses,
• But in the East, the leadership yielded to the emotional pressure of the people, rather than to the counsel of seasoned statesmen.

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TODAY’S REALITY: A Leadership Crisis Among the Igbos

Decades later, Igbo leaders still appear unwilling or unable to confront the Igbo masses in moments of tension or national crisis.

Many find it difficult to explain the truth — that while secession may sound noble or idealistic, its consequences are harsh, complex, and rarely romantic.

Since 1966, the Igbo nation has been torn between:

• The steady, reasoned voices of wisdom, and
• The emotional cries of victimhood and frustration.

Yet, time after time, the latter prevails, often to our collective detriment.

Atuolu omalu ọmalu, atuolu ofeke — ofeke yi isi na ime ọhịa.
(Advice to the wise is sufficient; give that same advice to a fool and they run into the forest.)