Pa Ayo Opadokun, veteran pro-democracy activist and former General Secretary of the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO), has made a historical claim about Nigeria’s early post-independence political crises, stating that the late Colonel Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu once sought political backing to stage a coup following the controversial 1964 general election.
Speaking during an interview from 13:29 on Arise Television, Opadokun said the events occurred after the collapse of the 1964 federal election, which was widely disputed and plunged the country into political uncertainty. According to him, Ojukwu initially approached Nigeria’s first President, Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, in a bid to secure political legitimacy for a planned military takeover.
Opadokun explained that Azikiwe, popularly known as Zik of Africa, rejected the proposal outright, refusing to associate himself with any plan to overthrow a civilian government. He said Azikiwe’s refusal forced Ojukwu to seek support elsewhere within the military hierarchy.
According to Opadokun, Ojukwu then turned to General Yakubu Gowon, his classmate at the time, hoping to gain his backing for the coup plot. However, Gowon also declined and took the matter a step further by reporting Ojukwu to the British military authorities who still exercised significant influence over Nigeria’s armed forces in the immediate post-independence era.
The veteran activist stated that Gowon’s decision led to both officers being summoned and warned by the British commander, who reportedly placed them under surveillance afterward. Opadokun said this intervention effectively stalled the alleged coup plan at the time.
In his exact words, Opadokun said: “Nobody had ever linked Major Chukwuemeka Ojukwu with that 1966 coup. And I am saying to you that after the 1964 election failed, he went to Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe to give him political support to stage a coup in 1964. Because Dr Azikiwe refused his offer, he went to General Gowon who was his classmate. Gowon is still alive. Gowon told him that he was going to report him to the British commander and he did. They were invited and they warned that they would keep surveillance over them.”
Opadokun stressed that his account was meant to clarify historical narratives that have often focused solely on the January 1966 coup without examining earlier tensions and aborted plots within the military. He argued that Nigeria’s political instability did not begin with the 1966 coup but was already brewing due to unresolved electoral disputes and regional power struggles.
The January 1966 coup, which resulted in the assassination of several political leaders, has historically been associated with a group of young military officers, and Ojukwu’s name has rarely been directly linked to it. Opadokun’s comments, however, suggest that coup discussions and military interventions were being contemplated earlier than commonly acknowledged. See More
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