Chuks, i disagree with you totally on Awo, and the appreciation of our Midwestern cousins of him.
1. While at the University of Glasgow in 1983, before the elections, a Yoruba ibadan friend was critical of Awo and bad-mouthing him. Then a Delta friend who was slightly older than us, intervened and asked him to shut up !.
He lectured us of how he waded through swamps to Attend Awos free primary school, go to Dispensaries built by AG, AND THAT WERE IT NOT FOR THAT AG -FREE EDUCATION, WE WILL NOT BE
AT GLASGOW UNIVERSITY TO OBTAIN HIS PHD degree. This man was so passionate and we had to prevent a fight erupting ! I had never seen such a spectacle of a Delta person ready to beat up a Yoruba boy for attacking Awolowo, a near deity in Yoruba land !!!
2. If Awo's AG was useless to the non Yorubas IN THE OLD WESTERN REGION, how come Old Bendel STATE voted overwhelmingly UPN IN 1979 ?
3. If anybody is to complain about the citing of a university at Ife, it should be the Ekiti and Ondo peoples. They provided the majority of the Cocoa money that the West relied on, but had no major industry or landmarks sighted in their homeland.
Awo concentrated development at Ibadan, and not even his own Ijebu or Remo division. We understood this.
For your information, the first registrar of the then University of Ife was Chief AY EKE, a Midwesterner. Registrars unlike VCs then serve until retirement.
4. Ife University from its origin had a merit only admission policy. State of origin had no place. You were admitted from anywhere, if you could pass the Ife concessional entrance exam, or had the A-level direct entry grades.
Even after Midwest Region's creation, a chunk of students came from the East (Igbos, Ibibios, Efiks, etc) Or Midwest especially Edo ad Delta states.
Amma Ogan -First female head of service in Nigeria graduated with First class honors at Ife.
Mrs Abubakar (Wife of Head of State Gen Abubakar -graduated Law degree from Ife_) -when it was still owned by Western Region
Igbo students regularly competed for Presidency of the student union -because of their numbers at Ife-both before and after the war.
5. Awolowo's closest personal friends were Deltan Itshekiris- The REWANES -both the ologbotsere and Alfred Rewane
You talk of transfers to the Midwest in 1946, well Awo became leader of Government business in 1951/2. He was not responsible for that.
I have family members who taught at Sabongida -orra and other parts of the Midwest in the 1930s and 40s under British colonial rule.
You may dislike Awo for many reasons, but no other Nigerian is a peer to him with regard to his impact on education.
Cheers
Melchizedek
-----Original Message-----
From: Chukwuemeka Okala <reukal@yahoo.co.uk>
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Sent: Thu, Oct 14, 2010 3:09 am
Subject: [NaijaPolitics] Re: [NaijaObserver] Re: [TalkNigeria] PROF. JOSEF STALIN IGIETSEME: PhD, CDC, ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, NTA, FOX, APC- UNN, AU, OXF, CAMB, HARVARD:ON Awolowo would have made a difference in Nigeria
IBK,
Thanks very much indeed for your comment.
Like you suggested, I agree that we stand down the debated on the area of our disagreement for another day, but not without point out to you that neither Okpara nor the NCNC in the coalition was a part of the orchestrated plan to destroy the AG. For selfish reasons, the NCNC went into a coalition with the NPC mainly to share governmental positions, even though they became the junior partner in that arrangement. But on the other hand, NPC needed an agent in the West to control that region and destroy everything Awolowo. They readily found that agent in the person of Akintola whose mission at the time was to form an alliance with the NPC to grab whatever he could grab for himself without minding the plight of the people that he was leading. NPC's overtures to Akintola was purely unilateral and partisan, and had nothing to do with the coalition. NCNC was not part of it.
Any way let me leave it at that until we talk.
Take care
Emeka Reuben Okala
London, UK
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From: Ibukunolu Alao Babajide <ibk@usa.net>
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Sent: Thu, 14 October, 2010 8:23:06
Subject: [NaijaObserver] Re: [TalkNigeria] PROF. JOSEF STALIN IGIETSEME: PhD, CDC, ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, NTA, FOX, APC- UNN, AU, OXF, CAMB, HARVARD:ON Awolowo would have made a difference in Nigeria
Pastor Reuben Okala,
Excellent intervention! Except for the small part of you hating Tafawa Balewa, SL Akintola and still hero-worshipping the brash hot headed coup plotters, we are one on this one. We shall both revisit that our little matter privately lest vicious animals like Chuckwuma Agwunobi start barking and biting trees.
Opara was part of the NPC/NCNC coalition that caused all the trouble in the first place and the fact that they later found out their error after the harm was done to form UPGA, is not enough to excuse them from harm's way, if the brash and hot headed coup plotters were genuine. Think about that.
Cheers and please have you a great time.
IBK
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Received: 10:06 AM EAT, 10/14/2010
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Subject: Re: [TalkNigeria] PROF. JOSEF STALIN IGIETSEME: PhD, CDC, ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, NTA, FOX, APC- UNN, AU, OXF, CAMB, HARVARD:ON Awolowo would have made a difference in Nigeria
My Dear friend, Chukwuma Agwunobi,
You have been missing for sometime, where have you been?
Do you think Joseph Igietseme deserved all the swipe you took at him? I don't think so. As far as the Nigerian history is concerned, his excerpted commentaries borders much on the truth.
Yes, Awo was an advocate of state creation, and no one can deny that. The records are everywhere for whoever cares to see.
The creation of the Mid-West state was not only the result of the Mid-West Teachers' agitation. After all the Mid-West teachers' agitation was nowhere stronger than the agitations of the Middle-Belt people under Joseph Tarka for the creation of a Middle-Belt region, and the agitations of the Eastern minorities for the creation of a COR (Calabar-Ogoja-Rivers) region at the time. But whilst the coalition (NPC/NCNC) federal government under Balewa saw it plausible to excise the Mid-West from the West, they considered it superfluous to listen to the agitations of the Middle-Belt and Eastern minorities by keeping the North and East intact.
Do not forget that going by the statistics of that time, the West was the smallest region, compared to the North and East, yet it was divided into two.
The only reason the NPC/NCNC coalition government had for creating the MId-West region was to destroy the power base of Chief Obafemi Awolowo. Notice that when Mid-West was created and they ganged-up and heartlessly put Awo in jail for committing practically no offence against Nigeria, Mid-West became a free-for-all fight between the NPC and NCNC that finally placed that region under the control of the NCNC in a general election that followed.
Nigeria was simply not mature for a parliamentary democracy of the Westminster model where Awo provided a quality Opposition that was misinterpreted by Balewa and his cohort to mean an intention to bring down his government by force. I thank the brains that moved us away from the parliamentary democracy to the present presidential system. It really helped to avoid a repeat performance of the 60s. Given our mentality, I can't just see an average Nigerian prime minister taking the heat of a serious Opposition, the type that was exhibited by Awo against Balewa. He would arm the militants to the teeth to eliminate the opposition Leader.
Sometimes it's good not to re-open the old wounds of Nigeria, because when we do, it makes people like me to continually hate the likes of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, S.L. Akintola and the Sarduna of Sokoto, Sir Ahmadu Bello. They really invited the problem that befell and nearly consumed Nigeria. And the three masterminds (Nzeogwu, Ifeajuna and Ademoyega) of the 15 January 1966 coup were no idiots. They clearly understood everything about the injustices in the polity at the time, and knew the brains behind the poblems. Never mind that their mission was later bungled for logistics reasons. The rest is history.
Sometimes people ask why Dr. Okpara was not killed in the East, and I'm wont to ask what for? Was he a part of the Abubakar/Akintola/Bello gang-up to liquidate the power base of the West that favoured Akintola? Should Okpara be wasted for no reason just because he was a premier? Was the coup staged against the premiers?
Please let's just forget about this issue and look for a away forward. What has happened has happened, and it was unfortunate.
Calm down, and take it easy.
Emeka Reuben Okala
London, UK
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From: Chukwuma S. Agwunobi <agwu22@yahoo.com>
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Sent: Thu, 14 October, 2010 5:23:26
Subject: [TalkNigeria] PROF. JOSEF STALIN IGIETSEME: PhD, CDC, ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, NTA, FOX, APC- UNN, AU, OXF, CAMB, HARVARD:ON Awolowo would have made a difference in Nigeria
| 1. Awo was among the FIRST Nigerian leaders to advocate State creation, as a mechanism for accelerated development, minority empowerment and Nigerian unity. The TRUTH about the case of Midwest was that, some other politicians believed State creation (as advocated by Awo) had to start with splitting the Old Western region; Awo was principally for State creation, especially as a general National program, not one to start from his own Western region because he wasn’t sure whether the other politicians had bought the idea or they just wanted to target and dilute his area of governance. That was the point that is often misrepresented.
2. The relics of Awo’s leadership of the Old Western Nigeria are still there today: the roads, the tap water, the schools, the FREE Education program was not limited to Yoruba areas. It was FELT and practiced even at Agenebode! Awo had a national developmental vision for Nigeria but the enemies of Nigeria derailed it because they were afraid of him. By Josef Stalin Igietseme
Professor Josef Stalin Igietseme, PhD, CDC, ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, NTA, FOX, APC- UNN, AU, OXF, CAMB, HARVARD: Come on, everybody should stand up and clap for this our brother. He have done what anybody have not done. Lord Have Mercy. Look at all his Degree. In short, who will doubt what he wrote about anything. Josef Stalin Igietseme, you are a piece of educated trash. You are a shameless maggot and senseless huger mugger that parade yourself as intellectual with bloated ego, lies and stupidity. Honestly, if you are standing in my face right now, I will slap your face with hot slap to start a big fight with you. I have never seen and educated buffoon like you until I met you in NAIJAPOLITICS. Josef Stalin Igietseme, the Kukuruku Boy, how are old are you when Mid-West was created in 1963? What led to the creation of Mid-West? Don’t go and copy NOWA or Ngbati, Ngbati people Harvard Theory History of Mid-West because you will piss me off and I will come back to forum to torment and torture your Kukuruku ass. The simple truth behind the creation of Mid-West is based on four words “WICKED & VICIOUS NGBATI TRIBALISM of Mid-Westerners at IBADAN. Tell me how many known Ngbati Primary School Teacher you saw in Rural or Local Areas of Mid-West when they were under Western Region? Tell me one Agenebode person or Edo person that benefited from Awo Tribal Free Education? I don’t known of any in Mid-West Igbo. The truth I can scratch off my head as the reason behind creation of Mid-West was because of the treatment the Mid-Westerners were getting from Ibadan especially the Teachers from the Ngbatis. Tell me why my own mother was transferred from St. Theresa Primary School, Ogwashi-Uku to Ado-Ekiti in 1946 but no Ngbati person was been transferred to any old Mid-West areas? The Ngbatis at Ibadan were reckless, wicked and mean spirited to Mid-Westerners especially the Mid-West Igbos they regard as Igbos that led to the agitation for the creation of Mid-West in 1952 under some name like Mid-West Association or so. Many of the Teachers and civil Servants protested the naked discrimination they were getting from the Ngbatis at Ibadan. The Ngbatis pass them up for Pay Raise, Promotion and Scholarships and gave to the Ngbati, Ngbatis. That is the damn facts sucker. Josef the educated imp, it was the Mid-Westerners that stick the word “Tribalism” on the neck of the Ngbatis because of they as minorities suffered in the hands of Ngbati, Ngbatis at Ibadan. A bloody educated liar like you. You think you can fool us with your half baked stupid History of Mid-West if you append a PhD after your name. As I was saying, Awo and the Ultra-Conservative Ngbatis were against creation of Mid-West.. The agitation and protest started with the Mid-Western origin Teachers and Civil Servants at Ibadan in 1952. It was here Oba Akenzua, Omo Oagie (BINI), Osadebay, Onyia (Aniocha), Idafe, Oputa Otutu (Ukwuani), Otobo (Urohobo/Ukwuani) and other names I forgot from Edo North championed and led the Creation of Mid-West. Awo was jailed in November 1962 because of him refusing to accept the authority of Balewa. He was so angry that he have to tie Bomb on his waist on suicide mission like Arab Terrorist to kill Balewa and Saduana. It was the influences of Zik and Igbo intellectuals in NCNC that made the creation of Mid-West possible because of their working relation with Balewa NPC Government. Mid-West became reality in October 01, 1963 and Nigeria became Republic that day. Young Chukwuma Smart Agwunobi was in Primary 3 that year and we were given Plastic Grey Cup with Nigeria Flag on it and new Nigeria Flag on Parade Ground at Akure. Josef Stalin Igietseme the Stingy, cunny, quitter and popularity chaser, how old is your damn Kukuruku ass in 1963? What is the Color (s) of Nigerian Flag before 1963? Josef you deserve my slaps on your face and breaking of your fingers for typing nonsense about Awo and Mid-West Kukuruku Josef, what do you know about Awo Free Education? I was severely punished by EDO Lower & Upper Six Students when I was in Class 5 in 1973 for saying that Awo gave Free Education to Mid-Westerners. They made me to Pick-Pin for 30 Minutes and walk to the Class Room on my Kneels. You are lying through your teeth about Mid-West I spend all my life after the war. Awo and the Ngbatis gave you free Education but refused to convert Mid-West Institute of Technology to full fledge University. Awo and Ngbatis gave you free Education but refused to cite present UNIFE to Mid-West area when it was moved from Ibadan the present day Ibadan Poly. He knew they already had two in his area. Mumu, Omodo, Boi, Boi, Ewu, Ewure, Ewe. You are known for writing opposite what the average Mid-Westerners know about old Mid-West. The same educated baggar like you told us that Auchi Poly was the handiwork of Awo. In short Kukuruku Josef, you deserve a hot slap for been a compound Mumu. I see why Jimi Lawal and Ngbati Bolekaja Aluko not only used your ass like a fool, they also abused, molested you and raped your mumu Kukuruku ass because you actually deserved to abused, molested and raped. . Kukuruku Boy, how many times am I going to tell you that my mother was a Primary School Teacher from 1946 – 1983 when she died? Since I was born, I never see any Ngbati Primary School Teacher in Mid-West. Even when they come there, they will post them to Cities like Benin, Sapele, Warri or Asaba from Ibadan. Compare that to Igbos who went to Mid-West rural areas like Patani, Okpai, Aboh, Ossissa, Oko, Obetim, Isele-Egwu to teach and educate the people. Josef, the Kukuruku Boy your education is a useless one. You are nothing but full of hate. Your article below is to take a snipe on Igbos who educated your ass when you are in the jungle of Kukuruku with Raffia Palm around your waist dancing and playing with Deers who almost bite off your John Thomas. Let me hear you talk about Awo the man who brought Sorrow, Tears and Blood to Nigeria, I will come back in full to the Forum and use your ass to (Gbale) sweep NAIJAPOLITICS & TALKNIGERIA. Dare me Sucker. And with this, I rest my case.
Chukwuma "Vicious Animal" Agwunobi Seattle, Washington U. S. A
--- On Wed, 10/13/10, Igietseme, Joseph (CDC/OID/NCPDCID) <jbi8@cdc.gov> wrote:
From: Igietseme, Joseph (CDC/OID/NCPDCID) <jbi8@cdc.gov>
Subject: [NIgerianWorldForum] RE: Awolowo would have made a difference in Nigeria
To: "naijapolitics@yahoogroups.com" <NaijaPolitics@yahoogroups.com>
Cc: "nigeriaworld" <NIgerianWorldForum@yahoogroups.com>, NaijaObserver@yahoogroups.com, "nidoa nidoa" <NigerianID@yahoogroups.com>, "USA Africa Dialogue Series" <usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com>
Date: Wednesday, October 13, 2010, 11:44 AM
FOI, Beyond the Regional internal issues such as what you would find among the Binis, Esan and Afenmai in today’s Edo State, it is FACT that any Governor elected (irrespective of the Dialect) looks out for all people in the domain. Likewise, beyond the usual suspicions that leaders will favor their Ethnic bases, the following are known and recorded for Awolowo: 1. Awo was among the FIRST Nigerian leaders to advocate State creation, as a mechanism for accelerated development, minority empowerment and Nigerian unity. The TRUTH about the case of Midwest was that, some other politicians believed State creation (as advocated by Awo) had to start with splitting the Old Western region; Awo was principally for State creation, especially as a general National program, not one to start from his own Western region because he wasn’t sure whether the other politicians had bought the idea or they just wanted to target and dilute his area of governance. That was the point that is often misrepresented. 2. The relics of Awo’s leadership of the Old Western Nigeria are still there today: the roads, the tap water, the schools, the FREE Education program was not limited to Yoruba areas. It was FELT and practiced even at Agenebode! Awo had a national developmental vision for Nigeria but the enemies of Nigeria derailed it because they were afraid of him. Take care. JUI
Remember Awo refused to let midwestern region go, and up till now nothing was given (assets) to Midwest. Even the university of Ife was supposed to have come to Benin but was diverted to punish Midwest What do we say to that.
FOI
OF COURSE, Chief Obafemi Awolowo as President would have made A HUGE DIFFERENCE in Nigerian development and progress! Some of the people have abetted the inept leadership Nigeria got instead of the Capable Awo would want Nigerians to believe that Awo insistence on probity and effectiveness in Governance could have compromised Nigerian Unity; but such thought process is both FLAWED and IRRATIONAL because it would suggest that Nigerian unity is antipathic with visionary and effective leadership. WE miss Awo! Joe Igietseme
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