Retired General Alabi Isama, who fought on the Nigerian side during the Civil War, has shared his thoughts on one of the major mistakes made by Biafra’s leader, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu. Speaking in an interview with Edmund Obilo, Isama explained how the decision to appoint an Igbo governor in Benin after the city was captured by Biafran forces fueled resentment and suspicion among the local people.
He recalled how the Oba of Benin once thanked him for preventing Biafran troops from completely taking over Benin, noting that many lives could have been lost. According to Isama, the people of Benin did not want to be ruled by Biafra, and Ojukwu’s choice of governor only deepened their fears.
“At that time,” Isama said, “Ojukwu allowed the governor to be an Igbo man. Couldn’t he have taken the son of a politician there, or even the son of the Oba of Benin to be governor? Even if it was for two or three months, the people would have said, ‘since our own man is governor, we will follow him.’”
Isama stressed that many non-Igbo communities already felt the Igbos were trying to dominate their lands. By appointing an Igbo man as governor in Benin, Ojukwu, in his view, worsened the distrust.
For Isama, this decision was a lost opportunity for Biafra to win support outside the Igbo heartland. Instead, it created division and made it easier for the Nigerian side to gain allies in the war.
