Below is Major Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu’s last interview with Mr Dennis Ejindu of ‘Africa and the World’ in April 1967, a few months before the outbreak of the Nigerian civil war.
Ejindu: I am glad to meet you, Sir. How would you feel if you knew that you are being regarded as a hero?
Nzeogwu: Very pleased naturally. But the truth is that I am not a hero. If there was a famous Major Nzeogwu, I would never have heard of him.
Ejindu: There are rumors that you have just finished a book. How it is?
Nzeogwu: Good, friendly! 99 percent of all the stories you hear in this country are false. I didn’t write books because there was nothing to write about. You can only write about completed work. However, this would have been a useful way to relieve the boredom, but was not carried out due to fears that the authorities would confiscate the documents. However, I had enough time to make detailed notes about what happened, which I can use if I need to write something in the future.
Ejindu: Before I went to prison, the clouds over this land were so bright that one could see far into the future. What do you see now that you’re gone?
Nzeogwu: Terrible work. If I may borrow your metaphor, the atmosphere is certainly a bit dark. But I don’t think it will rain. In fact, if you look further up, you’ll notice that the sun hasn’t set yet and may still be peeking through it. The problem is that people usually cannot distinguish which cloud is a rain cloud and which is not, and therefore often get confused. As you know, there is too much bitterness in the country today, and people used to think they could do without each other. But sooner or later the bitterness will pass and they will realize that they are not as self-sufficient as they thought. And they will want to be together. The same applies to northerners. It may be ten or fifteen years before they see each other again, but as far as I can tell, there is no doubt that they will see each other again. You see, in this world of imperfection it is sometimes very difficult to grasp the ideal. But we can at least start with a second choice.
Ejindu: Which is the second best?
Nzeogwu: Confederation.
Ejindu: Before we get back to this, can I look back to January 1966? What exactly happened at Nassarawa (the Prime Minister’s residence in Kaduna) on the night of the 14th?
Nzeogwu: No, no, no; Don’t ask me anything, I don’t want to remember.
Ejindu: Okay. Much has been said and written about the January coup. But how tribal was the idea and execution really?
Nzeogwu: In the north, no. In the south, yes. There were five of us and at the beginning we knew exactly what we wanted to do. We had a short list of people who were undesirable to the future development of the country or who had to be sacrificed for peace and stability because of their position at the time. At this point we have completely ignored tribal issues. But we had a mistake in the implementation. Both of us in the North (he and Major T.C. Onwuatuegwu) gave it our all. However, the other three units stationed in the south failed at the last minute due to incompetence and flawed thinking. The eldest of them (probably Major Emmanuel Ifeajuna) commanded the entire brigade and had all the pretexts and opportunities in the world to mobilize his troops anywhere, in any way and at any time. He was wrong. In Lagos the work was done poorly, even allowing for one or two genuine errors. The Midwest has never been a big deal. But virtually nothing was done in the East, our main target. He and others have failed us.
Ejindu: You should have known that General Ironsi would ultimately abandon you. Why did you send it this way?
Nzeogwu: I kept a clear head. The last thing we wanted was to waste our lives unnecessarily. If I had remained true to my ideas, a civil war would have broken out and I would have broken the loyalty of my people as an official military commander. Again, we must not forget that he was supported by the English and other foreigners. Our goal was to transform our country and make it a place we could be proud to call home instead of at war.
Ejindu: It is said that the general Ironsi is committed to getting the job done for you. Was there anything you didn’t like about his administration?
Nzeogwu: Yes, everything. First, he chose the wrong consultants for a job he reluctantly accepted. Most of them were average or completely unintelligent. Second, he appointed his governors on a tribal basis. Third, Decree 34 (which annulled the federal constitution and established a unity government) was useless and even stupid. Actually.
Ejindu: But you wanted a unity government?
Nzeogwu: No. No unity government as such. We wanted to see a strong center. We wanted to cut the country into small pieces and thus inevitably strengthen the center. We didn’t want to play with power and that’s what he did.
Ejindu: Tell me, what do you think of him as a soldier?
Nzeogwu: I’m afraid I can’t tell you. However, I must say that he was very popular as a man and that his orders as commander-in-chief were carried out quickly.
Ejindu: If he joined the army as a rifleman, must he have developed as a military strategist?
Nzeogwu: Yes, if he did, he could do it. However, he actually entered the army as a clerk and worked as a clerk most of the time.
Ejindu: What kind of Nigeria do you imagine given the current chaos?
Nzeogwu: Firstly, secession would be unwise, if not impossible. Even if the East fought a civil war and won, it would still not be able to secede.I personally don’t like secession and if this country collapses I will pack my bags and leave. Under present circumstances, confederation is the best temporary solution. In time we will achieve complete unity. Give this country a confederation and believe me, in ten or fifteen years the young people will find it intolerable and band together to change it. And it is clear that we will form a confederation or something like that.Nothing can stop him.
Ejindu: Do you think there will be a war?
Nzeogwu: No. Nobody wants to fight. The East, which is best equipped and prepared for war, does not want to attack anyone.The North cannot fight. And Lagos cannot fight now. If they had invaded the East in August or September it would have been a piece of cake. Today I don’t think it would be wise to try.
Ejindu: An Englishman recently told me that the best thing Ojukwu could do was to conquer Lagos.Do you think he could do it even if he wanted to?
Nzeogwu: Yes, I think the East is strong enough to do that if it wants to. But that won’t help. It can only be used to destroy life and property. You see, the real power is not in Lagos but in Kaduna and if you remove Gowon, someone else will take his place.Playing the South off against the North will only result in civil wars, disintegration and border conflicts.