IBB's Shocking Revelation: Ohanaeze Ndigbo Demands N10 Trillion Compensation, Apology from Tinubu

The apex Igbo socio-cultural group, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, has issued a strong demand for an official apology and N10 trillion in compensation from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu following former military leader General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida's (IBB) declaration that the 1966 coup was not an "Igbo coup," as previously alleged.

The group insists that the misrepresentation of the coup led to decades of ethnic targeting, culminating in the Nigeria-Biafra War, where an estimated three million Igbos, including women and children, were massacred. Ohanaeze states that Babangida's revelation should serve as a catalyst for long-overdue justice and restitution.

In a statement obtained by All Facts Newspaper on Sunday, the Deputy National President of the Ohanaeze faction, Okechukwu Isiguzoro, asserted that Babangida's disclosure debunks the decades-long narrative that the coup was orchestrated solely by Igbos.

He pointed out that Babangida's account highlights the involvement of multiple ethnic groups, including the Yoruba, and also exposes the tragic fate of many senior Igbo military officers who were victims of the coup, contrary to widespread assumptions.

"The misrepresentation of the January 1966 coup as an 'Igbo coup' was the spark that led to the counter-coup of July 1966, resulting in the gruesome assassination of the then Head of State, Major General Aguiyi Ironsi, and other Igbo military officers,ÔÇØ Isiguzoro stated.

"This false narrative fueled ethnic animosities that eventually led to the Biafra War, where over three million Igbos, mostly innocent women and children, were slaughtered in what remains one of the darkest chapters in Nigerian history.ÔÇØ

Ohanaeze emphasized that Babangida's admission now provides Nigeria with an opportunity to address these historical injustices. The group maintains that President Tinubu must seize this moment to extend a formal apology to the Igbo people on behalf of past military regimes, particularly General Yakubu Gowon's administration, which led the Nigerian Civil War against Biafra.

Ohanaeze reiterated its long-standing demand for N10 trillion in reparations, emphasizing that the figure is not arbitrary but a symbolic recognition of the losses the Igbo people have suffered.

"The Federal Government, under Gowon, carried out indiscriminate bombings in Igbo territories during the Nigeria-Biafra War, leading to widespread devastation,ÔÇØ the statement read.

"The consequences of those injustices persist today, seen in the systemic marginalization of the Igbo people, from the denial of political opportunities to economic exclusion, such as the shutdown of seaports and the lack of functional international airports in the Southeast.ÔÇØ

The statement further accused successive Nigerian governments of deliberately sidelining the Igbo in governance, citing the few number of states allocated to the region, as well as the implementation of quota systems that disadvantage the Southeast.

Despite these grievances, Ohanaeze extended an olive branch, stating that the Igbo people forgive those responsible for the tragic events of the Biafra conflict, including Babangida and others who played roles in the war. However, the group insisted that this forgiveness should not absolve the Nigerian state from taking responsibility and implementing corrective measures.

"The time has come for the Federal Government to not only acknowledge these historical wrongs but to act on them,ÔÇØ the statement concluded. "The path to genuine reconciliation and unity lies in truth, justice, and reparations. We demand that President Tinubu addresses this matter urgently.ÔÇØ