Okonkwo to Tinubu: It Was a Military Coup, Not an Igbo Coup – Apologize to Ndigbo
On behalf of the Federal Government, Nollywood icon Kenneth Okonkwo has urged President Bola Tinubu to apologize to the Ndigbo for the crimes committed against them.
According to sources, Okonkwo stated that he had made it plain that it was incorrect and misleading to label the 1966 coup as an Igbo coup.
The former leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) praised General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (IBB) for the disclosure in his book “A Journey In Service” in a statement posted on his 𝕏 handle on Saturday.
Barrister Okonkwo went on to say that the IBB’s disclosure further demonstrated the unwarranted nature of the July 1966 vengeance coup and the ensuing 1966–1970 civil war against the Ndigbo.
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He said that Ndigbo should be treated with dignity and should continue to be an agent of progress.
“In my interviews, I have consistently stated that the events of 1966 were a military coup rather than an Igbo coup. The pogrom, the July 1966 vengeance coup, and the ensuing civil war against the Ndigbo were all unnecessary. From now on, Ndigbo people should be acknowledged and respected as development agents in Nigeria.
“The Federal Government, led by Tinubu, ought to take advantage of the IBB’s disclosure to formally apologize to the Ndigbo for all the crimes committed against them during that troubling period in Nigerian history and to find appropriate reparations to make up for the needless and preventable harm done to them. He said, “It’s better late than never.”
