Igbo Leaders Renew Call for Apology, Compensation After IBB’s Coup Revelation

The recent revelation by former military president General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (IBB) that absolves the Igbo of blame for the 1966 coup has sparked renewed demands for an official apology and compensation from the Nigerian government. Prominent Igbo leaders and organizations have rallied behind this call, emphasizing the need for restitution over the losses suffered during the Nigerian Civil War.

IBB, in his book *A Journey In Service*, clarified that the 1966 coup was not an ethnically driven plot, highlighting the role of Major John Obienu, an Igbo officer who helped suppress the mutiny. He also noted that many senior Igbo officers were among those killed in the crisis. This revelation has further strengthened the Igbo’s longstanding demand for recognition and justice over the devastating war that followed, which resulted in the deaths of approximately three million people, predominantly women and children.

In response, the apex Igbo socio-cultural organization, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, has demanded an official apology from President Bola Tinubu and N10 trillion in compensation. According to Okechukwu Isiguzoro, Deputy National President of Ohanaeze, the coup’s fallout and the subsequent war inflicted irreparable harm on the Igbo people, necessitating a formal acknowledgment of their suffering. The organization insists that the scale of destruction and loss demands reparations as a step toward national healing.

Backing this call, former president of Igbo socio-cultural group Aka Ikenga, Chief Goddy Uwazurike, emphasized that compensation should come in the form of infrastructural development. He pointed out that many schools, hospitals, and roads in the Southeast still bear scars from the war, adding that the federal government should invest in rebuilding these structures. He also noted that while the Igbo have relied on self-help efforts since 1970, it is time for the government to fulfill its obligations, especially given past financial support from international organizations like the United Nations.

Chief Chekwas Okorie, founder of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), also described the demand as justified. He recalled that after the war, the military government under General Yakubu Gowon introduced the 3R policy—Reconstruction, Rehabilitation, and Reconciliation—but failed to fully implement it. He welcomed the establishment of the South East Development Commission under the Tinubu administration and urged Igbo leaders to engage with the government to ensure adequate funding for meaningful development in the region.

Elder statesman Dr. Chike Obidigbo further argued that IBB’s memoir sheds light on historical injustices, including corruption and political manipulation that have hindered Nigeria’s unity. He called for a Truth and Reconciliation Commission to formally address past wrongs and determine the best path for national harmony. Similarly, Ugochimereze Chinedu Asuzu, convener of the IkoroNdigbo Assembly, stressed that while IBB’s revelation adds credibility to existing historical facts, the call for reparations must be grounded in a broader understanding of the war’s impact rather than relying solely on the former president’s statements.

The Coalition of South East Youth Leaders (COSEYL) also echoed the call for an apology, with its President General, Comrade Goodluck Ibem, stating that the false narrative of an “Igbo coup” led to mass killings, economic destruction, and political marginalization of the Igbo people. He insisted that true reconciliation can only happen when the Nigerian government officially acknowledges past injustices and takes concrete steps toward restitution.