News Editor
By Ezra Yakusak, Ph.D
General Yakubu Gowon’s 90th birthday has come and gone; however, the memories will last a life time. The calibre of Guests at the birthday reflected General Gowon’s esteemed reputation among Nigerians. Of most importance were the speeches and encomiums poured on the General.
Given my understanding of Nigerians, celebrating a 90- year-old leader who relinquished power 49 years ago would have attracted sharp criticisms if he had been found wanting. Satirical speeches laced with subtle innuendos would have been delivered at the event. If General Gowon’s character had been iniquitous or fraught with inconsistencies, there was no way his birthday would have been celebrated without some scathing remarks about his person from critics, social commentators or those that speaks truth to power. In Nigeria, these people are not in short supply.
Who knows, may be General Obasanjo would have written him a fifty page “letter” as a birthday gift. The likes of Col Dangiwa Umar rtd or Professor Wole Soyinka would have probably taken a daring swipe at the nonagenarian to commemorate the day. Instead of a letter, General Obasanjo opted for a personal military salute and boldly declared Gowon “a man of destiny worthy of national celebration while still alive”. On his part, Col Umar stated that Gowon is “a bigger statesman than Mandela”. Professor Soyinka simply said of Gowon “Don’t mind that man. I was never his prisoner. He was merely my rent-free landlord in Kaduna”. As for General Ibrahim Babangida, “Gowon is a very decent man that is free from disruptive influences” while former President Buhari described him as “a man of credible integrity that understood the problems of Nigeria more than most Nigerians. The accolades were more. These notable Nigerians cannot be all wrong.
The consensus at the three day event was that, General Gowon is an honest and detribalised Nigerian leader, who is widely seen as the propelling force that cemented Nigeria’s unity and executed several infrastructural projects that accentuated to fiscal and economic development of the nation. No wonder, various speakers suggested the need to study, review or revisit Gowon’s economic trajectory. The lesson learnt is hinged on the fundamental and biblical truth that “a good name is to be chosen rather than great riches”.
Every opportunity I have ever had to sit before General Gowon has been a mixed bag of reverence, inspiration and mentor-ship. Each moment with the General reminds me of those nostalgic memories of my childhood in the village, where we used to sit on the bare floor round the fire place listening to my late Mother as she reeled captivating and intriguing folk-tales about life. Coincidentally, one of the stories she shared of Kings and Queens reflected the life of General Gowon and his wife, Mrs. Victoria Gowon. In my wildest dream, I wouldn’t have imagined I will one day meet this great couple that were like a fairy tale in a far away land.
Any one that has interacted with General Gowon will concede to the fact that he lives a simple, austere and humble life. He diffuses some fragrance of humility that is worth not only emulating but researching upon. His interaction with people has been projected from the lens of our common humanity. Shortly after leaving office, Gowon shocked the world when he was sighted queuing to purchase food at a cafeteria in Warwick University where he was a student.
I have had the opportunity of seeing the humble side of General Gowon which left me stunned. Years back, the General had expressed the desire to see one of the Honourable Ministers on a personal matter. When the Minister was contacted, he opted to visit General Gowon instead. Gowon however insisted he had to go to the Minister since the visit was at his behest.
On the scheduled date, General Gowon told me to personally drive him to see the Minister. Suddenly, I started laughing hysterically. To me it was a huge joke. He smiled handsomely but remain firm and resolute. At that point reality set in. I began to quiver. I was enveloped with a mix feeling of uncertainty, awe and confusion. Suddenly, my hands became dampened with sweat. How can I explain to this man that my car had no air-conditioner. In what language should I tell him that the brushes of my kick starter were worn out and could seldomly establish a solid connection with the communicator to kick start the car? Abeg which kind wahala be this?. I wondered.
As I gathered some courage, I muttered an apology. He asked me “What for?” I told him that the car had no AC and there was no way I could drive him without an AC or with the car windows wound down. He responded “who told you I needed the AC? After all the weather is not hot. More ever, if you can use the car without an AC why can’t I?” I had prepared my next line of defence, “Sir apart from the AC, I am having issues with my kick starter and I think the battery is a bit down”. He quipped “Oh so you think I am not strong enough to push the car right? Come along, let’s go”. Before I could make further excuses, he opened the car door, hoped in and buckled the seat belt. As I was driving, only God knows the kind of thoughts that crossed my mind. Throughout the trip, no one wave or look at the car with familiarity. No one could have imagined that General Gowon was a passenger in that whether-beaten car. Thankfully, we visited the Minister and returned uneventfully.
Another trait of General Gowon is his forgiving and reconciliatory spirit which is large enough to have earned him a permanent seat among ordained Priests. He made sure that he reconciled with almost everyone that wronged/offended him including those that betrayed or back-stabbed him in course of his life.
During Gowon’s 90th birthday, the picture of General Gowon and Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu trended in the media. In the picture, Gowon wore a white babariga and grey cap while Ojukwu adorned a maroon kaftan. The picture was taken in 2010 at Ojukwu’s residence in Enugu. General Gowon had visited Enugu for his Nigeria Prays campaign. On arrival he insisted on visiting Ojukwu. One year after the visit, the nation lost Ojukwu. It was the same picture that was widely circulated with the wrong impression that “the two war time enemies” were meeting for the first time since the war ended. The fact is that General Gowon reconciled with Ojukwu in October 1975, shortly after his removal from office. The meeting was held at Montcalm Hotel, Mable Arch, London, with Frederick McCarthy Forsyth, a British Novelist and journalist in attendance. Both Gowon and Ojukwu maintained contact afterwards.
In 2011 when Ojukwu was ill, General Gowon placed a call across to him to console him. A young lady called Ebere picked the phone and informed the General that Ojukwu was asleep. In his humorous way, Gowon told the lady to inform Ojukwu that he shouldn’t even think of going anywhere because they still have unfinished business to take care of. I could hear the lady’s voice as she bursted into laughter at the other end of the line.
One of the greatest assets of General Gowon is his ability to clinically severed any emotional attachment to the mundane and ephemeral things of life. He doesn’t loose an ounce of sleep for the sake of any material consideration. His contentment level is unprecedented. I remember many offers he had turned down or refused to follow up. Things that people will ordinarily want to kill themselves to acquire. Now it makes more sense that, despite ruling this country for nine years, no one has ever link General Gowon with dishonesty or corrupt practices. The only disparaging allegations ever made against Gowon was by a British MP, Tom Tungendhat in 2020. He alleged that General Gowon “left Nigeria with half of the Central Bank”. Gowon immediately refuted the allegation as “rubbish”.
On hearing the allegations, Nigerians rose up in unanimous defence of General Gowon. Bishop Mathew Hassan Kukah dismissed the claim as “unfounded, irrational and bizarre”. He stressed; “it is curious that he (Tungendhat) would have displayed such shameful ignorance and made such ill-conceived allegations with no scintilla of evidence, even when, at the click of a button, he could have had access to Gowon’s financial dealings in his over 45 years of living in the UK”.
Former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode, asserted that of all his short comings, “Gowon was not a thief and neither did he amass wealth for himself when he was Head of State”. On his part, Senator Mohammed Abba Aji, a former Presidential Liaison Officer to the National Assembly, opined that Gowon has never been found wanting or accused of corrupt practices in Nigeria or anywhere else. In his November 24, 2020, article, Bayo Onanuga, who is now a Special Adviser to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, wrote after fact-checking the allegations; “the picture we have is of a former leader, who did not enrich himself unlike many others who did when they succeeded him.”
Love him or hate him, Gowon remains a great symbol of national unity who epitomises integrity, humility, transparency, honesty, contentment, credibility, consistency, accountability and corruption-free. Shortly after the coup that overthrew him, while in Kampala-Uganda, he left listeners dumbfounded when he said “Please take care of Nigeria for me.” As he turned 90, our prayer is that “God, please take care of General Gowon for us”.
Dr. Yakusak wrote this piece from Abuja and can be contacted through:
Signed.
Ezra Yakusak, Ph.D
25th October, 2024
