It was on Sunday, April 22, 1990, then I was still in Junior Secondary School at Brigadier Maimalaria Secondary School in Maiduguri, the once peaceful capital of Borno State, in the far North. I was living with my Elder Brother & his family - an Army Officer then at One of the Military Baracks,when suddenly martial music floated into the Nigerian airwaves. A group of middle-level military officers had commenced a military rebellion against the regime of General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, a puppet of Hausa fulani Oligarchy
My Elder brother who was still in active duty, was on transfer to Minna- Niger State while his Wife remained in Maiduguri waiting for him to return back for onward movement to the new place. It was our Neighbor, one Lieutenant [Name withheld] from Delta Igbo area whom woke us with the strange news that there was a coup. He handed me the key of his house key and rushed into an incoming Military Jeep to answer the call of the then 21 Amour-ed Brigade Division Commander, the then Major. Gen. Abu Ali.
The Coup as I learnt later then was led by one fearless and patriotic Major Gideon Gwaza Orkar, who led the operations at the Dodan Barracks in Ikoyi, the then seat of power, and made a broadcast that, some said, helped the rebellion to fail. He announced the excision of the people of Nigeria’s Muslim North from the country until they purged themselves of what he termed “their dominative tendencies”. States affected in his speech includes, the North East States of Borno, Yobe, Adamawa which incidentally today are the bedrock of Bokoharam Insurgencies.
Most Nigerians attributed the fall of that Coup to the 'untimely' and 'ill' conceived plot to excise the Muslim North by the midle aged Major. That singular coup would have aborted and prevent the deaths of Nigerians who are dying daily of this Boko haram insurgencies if Nigeria were to be honest and sincere with themselves, rather most Nigerians call for the head of this selfless and patriotic Young man.. If such plot had received the backing of majority of Nigerians, the Bomb-blast in Nyanya, Mararaba and other places would have been longed prevented.
Orkar is now dead but what he saw over two decades ago is now rearing its ugly head to our utterly regrets. To me, this rare patriotic Major Gideon Orkar lived ahead of his peers and mates. As I lament over the waste of Innocent Nigeria citizens by those on the payroll of Bokoharam and their paymasters, I remember this very Visionary Nigerian, whom gave all he had to build a better Nigeria but was rejected by ever coward and 'good for nothing' Nigerians. As I sum up this piece permit me to pay tribute to Major Gideon Orkar as another "Ojukwu" who saw what many of us fail to see.
Adieu Gwarzo!
By Comrade Biafra Diboh
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