Category: History
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Lokoja; the capital of Kogi State, a state carved out of Kwara and Benue State in 1991. The magnificent rivers Niger and Benue meet in Lokoja, forming the famous confluence from which Kogi derives its official sobriquet; The confluence state. Kogi is contiguous to nine states in Nigeria and is essentially a transit route to…
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Abdul Mumuni Aminu; Colonel in the Nigerian Army, one who personally arrested General Buhari on the coup day of August 27, 1985 that brought General Babangida to power[i]. Mumuni was the self-effacing, tall, dark and strikingly handsome soldier who formed the third leg of the pro-Babangida triumvirate. The original stock of the so-called “IBB Boys”…
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Peter Awelewa Adebiyi; clergy of the Anglican Communion, advocate of political restructuring, true federalism and good governance. Peter Adebiyi was for 14 years the Bishop of the Diocese of Lagos West; first Bishop the Diocese. His first three years were spent in Owo Diocese where he was Bishop. Peter Adebiyi, retired in 2013 as the…
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Al-Mustapha Hamza; Major in the Nigerian army, an otherwise unknown soldier who played a pivotal role in determining the country’s direction and future. Born July 27, 1960 in Ngiru, Yobe State, Al-Mustapha was appointed Chief Security Officer to the Head of State with a Special Strike Force Unit during General Abacha‘s military regime (November 17,…
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Nri; town, 20 miles south-east of Onitsha and three miles south-west of Awka, Anambral State, once a citadel of Igbo civilisation. Until 1911 when the British colonial administrators forced an Nri king to abrogate all codes of abomination nso ani binding the Igbo villages in Nri hegemony, Nri had the political and spiritual ascendancy in…
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Odumegwu Ojukwu; Army officer, listed in the Nigerian Army in 1957 and rising through the ranks to become the military governor of the Nigeria Eastern Region in 1966. Ojukwu was the chief secessionist of the defunct Republic of Biafra, which he declared shortly after failed effort to broker peace with Head of State, Yakwubu Gowon…
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Theophilus Danjuma; Military general who played crucial roles in the shaping of post-independence Nigeria. Danjuma who made huge fortunes in Nigeria’s extractive industry announced his foundation with the sum of $100 million in 2009[i]. The one-time Chief of Army Staff, COAS, and Minister of Defence is generally regarded as a doyen of military professionalism[ii]. Born…
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Third Marine Commando; Nigerian military unit and a major player in the Nigerian civil war, representing an important portion in the Nigerian history, especially between 1967 and 1970. Benjamin Adekunle, who was trained at Sandhurst, an excellent global military training institution located in the United Kingdom, raised and moulded into a credible fighting force the…