Queen Ohan Akenzua, the youngest wife of Oba Akenzua II of Benin, is seen in a 1950s snapshot looking at a self-portrait in London. Since then, the sculpture has been in the British Museum.
The funeral of the devoted Lieutenant-Colonel Francis Adekunle Fajuyi, the former military governor of Nigeria’s Western Region, who was abducted and killed in Ibadan by rebel soldiers on July 29, 1966, during the countercoup led by the North, along with the state’s chief of staff, Major-General J.T.U. Aguiyi-Ironsi. Soon after their assassinations, both men were buried, but the subsequent government commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Yakubu Gowon did not formally recognize their deaths. The arrangement made by Nigeria’s military governors at the Ghanaian resort of Aburi earlier in January 1967 included the reinterment of both soldiers six months after their deaths. Commodore J.E.A. Wey, the commander of the Nigerian Navy and a member of the Supreme Military Council, Lieutenant-Colonel David Ejoor, the military governor of the Mid-Western Region, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, the former civilian premier of the Western Region, and Colonel Robert Adeyinka Adebayo, Fajuyi’s successor, are present. The video concludes with Lt. Colonel Fajuyi receiving a gun salute and being buried in accordance with Roman Catholic customs.
Photo Credit: Getty Image An old photo shows Oba Ademuwagun Adesida II, the Deji of Akure, with his dapper wife, arriving at Euston Train Station in London on May 28, 1962. They are both dressed in regal traditional clothing. As part of a courtesy trip, the visit showcased the Yoruba people’s rich cultural legacy during a time when Nigerian monarchs were influential figures in international diplomacy, especially in the years after Nigeria gained independence in 1960. Oba Ademuwagun Adesida II, who ruled from 1957 to 1973, was well-known for his commitment to modernizing while maintaining Yoruba customs. His trip to London serves as a reminder of the long-standing, colonial-era bond that exists between Nigeria and Britain. These travels were important because they gave Nigerian rulers the chance to interact with British authorities, cement diplomatic connections, and showcase Nigeria’s vibrant cultural character outside. This historical occasion highlights the significance of traditional leaders in showcasing Nigeria on the international scene, fusing the old and the new, and highlighting the cultural pride that persisted as a pillar of Nigerian identity despite the country’s fast political transformation.
Buhari Muhammadu Following the American Civil War Buhari served as the Thirty-first Infantry Brigade’s Brigade Major/Commander from 1970 to 1971. From 1971 to 1972, he was the First Infantry Division Headquarters’ Assistant Adjutant-General. In 1973, he also went to Wellington, India’s Defence Services Staff College. At the Nigerian Army Corps of Supply and Transport Headquarters, Buhari held the position of acting director of transport and supply from 1974 to 1975. Lieutenant Colonel Buhari was one of the commanders who helped General Murtala Mohammed take control of the military coup in 1975. Later, he was named Governor of the North-Eastern State, a position he held from 1 August 1975 to 3 February 1976, supervising the state’s advancements in politics, economy, and society. The North Eastern State was split into the states of Bauchi, Borno, and Gongola on February 3, 1976. Formerly part of Nigeria, Gongola State was an administrative division. It was established on February 3, 1976, by combining the Wukari Division of the former Benue-Plateau State with the Adamawa and Sardauna Provinces of North State. It was a single state until August 27, 1991, when it was split into the states of Taraba and Adamawa. Yola served as its capital. Buhari then assumed the role of Borno State’s first governor, serving from 3 February to 15 March 1976. Colonel Buhari was appointed Federal Commissioner for Petroleum and Natural Resources (now a minister) by his deputy General Olusegun Obasanjo, who assumed military leadership in March 1976 after the failed 1976 military coup attempt that resulted in General Murtala Mohammed’s murder. When the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation was established in 1977, Buhari was named chairman, a role he retained until 1978.
The first regular combatant from Nigeria to be commissioned into the officer Corps of the Nigerian Army was Zakariya Maimalari. In Apapa, Lagos, he oversaw the 2nd Brigade. Many top army commanders attended a party on January 14, 1966, in honor of Brigadier Zakariya Maimalari, the commander of the 2 Brigade, which was stationed in Lagos and had recently remarried. In a strange hunting gun mishap, his first wife had been shot and died. Several of the actual coup conspirators attended the party. On Saturday, January 15, 1966, following the Party, a squad of Federal guards, under the supervision of Major Don Okafor, their commanding officer, and Captain Oji, went to 11 Thompson Avenue Ikoyi to arrest Maimalari. When Maimalari heard gunfire between his guards and the coup plotters while he was downstairs on a phone call, he skillfully fled on foot and made his way out of the house toward the main road. Later, he saw Major Emmanuel Ifeajuna’s vehicle, which was carrying the imprisoned Prime Minister “Abubakar Tafawa Balewa” to the Federal Guards barracks. When Maimalari waved the car down and noticed a familiar face, Ifeajuna and 2nd Lieutenant Ezedigbo shot Maimalari dead on the spot. The entire event was witnessed by the Prime Minister, who was held captive in Ifeajuna’s vehicle.
On June 7, 2014, Dora Akunyili passed away in a specialized cancer hospital in India following a two-year struggle with uterine cancer. Years later, on September 28, 2021, when returning from an event hosted by the University of Nigeria Nsukka Alumni Association (UNAA) in honor of his late wife at Sharon Hall, All Saints Cathedral, Onitsha, her husband Chike Akunyili was shot and killed by gunmen at Nkpor, in the Idemili North Local Government Area of Anambra. There were reportedly at least seven more fatalities from the incident.
This video examines the difficulties Nigeria encountered in 1984, emphasizing the NTA News report’s analysis of the country’s attempts to revive its faltering economy. In the movie, you can observe General Tunde Idiagbon, a military leader from Nigeria who, from 1983 to 1985, held the position of 6th Chief of Staff at Supreme Headquarters, thus making him the second in charge beneath General Muhammadu Buhari. Nigeria faced severe economic difficulties during this time, which were made worse by the world oil crisis, growing inflation, and corruption. Rigid measures aimed at curbing corruption, imposing a more disciplined governance structure, and reforming the economy were hallmarks of the Buhari-Idiagbon administration. They employed severe and frequently divisive tactics, including as mass arrests and stricter trade and currency regulations, but their main goals were to stabilize Nigeria’s economy and restore honor to public life.
Bello got warnings from Brigadier Samuel Ademulegun and Premier of the Western Region Samuel Akintola before to the 1966 Nigerian coup d’état. Major Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu, an officer in the Nigerian Army, killed Bello on January 15, 1966, during a coup that overthrew the country’s post-independence administration. At the time, he was still Northern Nigeria’s…
Following the founding of the first television station in Africa and Nigeria in 1959. Nigerian television was the first in Africa, and the Western Region Government, headed by Premier Chief Obafemi Awolowo and his Minister of Information, Chief Anthony Enahoro, achieved a sense of pride for the country. He was an architect when Nigeria celebrated its second anniversary of independence, and on that day, he was placed under house arrest at the Leader of the Opposition’s official mansion, located at 7 Bell Avenue in Ikoyi, Lagos. After the Nigerian Federal Government declared a state of emergency on May 29, 1962, he was only allowed to leave his home in Ikenne and the surrounding area within one mile. He was told to go to a secluded, marshy, and mosquito-infested fishing community on the Lagos Lagoon in Lekki on June 19, 1962, and he stayed there until he received orders to return to Ikenne in July. He was moved to Lagos on July 22 so that he might be available for a thorough investigation into the entirety of his eight-year leadership over Western Nigeria. He was placed under house arrest during that time and subsequently accused of conspiracy and treasonable offense. Mr. Justice G.S. Sowemimo sentenced him to ten years in prison. Chief Awolowo lost his first son, Gun, in a car accident while he was incarcerated. Later, on August 2, 1966, General Yakubu Gowon liberated him.
The 36th Oba of Benin, Oba Aiguobasinwin Ovonramwen, Eweka II, ruled from 1914 until his death in February 1933. He was the son of Oba Ovonramwen (1888–1897), who was banished to Calabar when the British carried out a punitive expedition in Benin City in 1897 and removed from power. The royal palace was reconstructed by Oba Aiguobasinwin Ovonramwen Eweka II after the British had demolished and looted it in 1897. He also restored the kingdom’s customary organization. Ovonramwen’s royal coral regalia, which the British had taken, was given back. In addition, Eweka II established the Benin Arts and Crafts School, reinstated the artisan guilds, and ordered new items to replace the ones the British had looted. In February 1933, he passed away. Sidney Friede, a former professional football player, is one of his descendants.