Thread by @friarsomadina

Just read Philip Efiong's small work, Integration: True or False.

Efiong was a General in the #Biafra army & was second to Ojukwu in Biafra's leadership hierarchy.

I found certain information in the work revealing, like Gowon's reply to Efiong's memo to him.

[Thread]

After Biafra’s ‘surrender’, Efiong requested that undamaged airports in #Biafra be used for daylight & night flights for bringing in food & other supplies into Biafra.

He made d request to Gowon bc the humanitarian condition during d tail end of the war & after was catastrophic.

Immediately after the #Biafra - #Nigeria civil war, people were dyeing of hunger and the was a general lack of medical supplies.

But Gowon says no to Efiong's request that undamaged airports in Biafra be used for relief flights. A way of saying ‘If you are dyeing die'.

Gowon said that ‘for political reasons & internationalisation of relief situation’, relief flights to undamaged airports in Biafra would not be allowed.

This surprises me & should shock d conscience of any human person - especially one who like Gowon professes d Christian faith.

That Gowon would allow citizens of 'defunct' #Biafra to die AFTER THE WAR by refusing to allow relief flights through undamaged airports because of - to use his language - 'political reason' forces me to ask whether he has any moral authority to preach 'national' reconciliation?

Philip Efiong says dt after d war, Nigeria soldiers were roaming d streets & by-ways of #Biafra 'commandeering & carting away young girls & ladies as well as ...cars of those returning home from their place of refuge or endeavouring to report at their place of work as broadcast'

Bc of d above atrocities committed by Nigerian soldiers in #Biafra after d war, Effiong recommended to Gowon that soldiers be withdrawn to their barracks & be replaced by d police. Gowon refused bc of what he describes as 'feelings due to what has happened during d past 3 years'.

It baffles me dt Gowon because of 'feelings due to what has happened during d past 3 years [referring to the period of the war]' allowed d military to go ahead with their serious crimes against humanity directed at 'defeated' but innocent #Biafra civilians. Where is conscience?

Efiong reminded Gowon dt d people of #Biafra suffered many losses like d dispossession of their movable & immovable property due to d war & d 1966 crisis & were severely hit by d currency switch in Nigeria bw 1967-68; their only asset after d war was in d form of Biafran currency

Gowon replied Efiong that there was no way d Biafra pounds could be exchanged for what Gowon called 'a so called Biafran currency'.

Gowon thus cared little about d penury of d returning 'Biafrans'. What dy are today is purely from God & their effort. Gowon's govt never cared.