CHUKWUMA KADUNA NZEOGWU – THE MAN WHO STARTED IT ALL IN KADUNA
CHUKWUMA KADUNA NZEOGWU – THE MAN WHO STARTED IT ALL IN KADUNA 🇳🇬💥
Who was he?
- 28 years old, Igbo born in Kaduna, raised in North, spoke Hausa fluently
- Major in Nigerian Army, trained at Sandhurst, UK
- Called himself “Kaduna” because Kaduna was his home
WHAT HE DID ON JANUARY 15, 1966 – KADUNA OPERATIONS:
While other majors went to Lagos and Ibadan, Nzeogwu took charge of Kaduna – the heart of the North.
Around 2AM, he led soldiers to:
- Killed Sir Ahmadu Bello – Sardauna of Sokoto, Premier of North, at his house No 1 Rabah Road, Kaduna – with his wife Hafsatu
- Killed his wife Hafsatu Bello
- Killed top Northern officers – Brig. Samuel Ademulegun and his wife, Col. Ralph Shodeinde
- Seized Kaduna Radio and declared coup – His voice: “Our enemies are the political profiteers, the swindlers, the men in high and low places…”
Nzeogwu controlled Kaduna successfully. He announced on radio that the Army had taken over.
But in Lagos, the coup failed. Ironsi – the man in this photo – stopped the Lagos majors.
So Nzeogwu, after killing Sardauna, waited in Kaduna for Ironsi’s order. He later surrendered to Ironsi in Lagos and was detained, then later killed in 1967 during Civil War at Nsukka.
He was 30 years old when he died.
Why he did it?
He said: “I did it because our politicians were corrupt, 1964 election was rigged, Operation Wetie burnt houses, Western Region lawmakers jumped through windows. Nigeria needed to be cleaned.”
But his cleaning led to counter-coup July 29, 1966, where Ironsi (man in this photo) was killed, and then Civil War where 1 million died.
One Major from Kaduna started a fire in 1966 that Nigeria is still smelling today.
