MAJOR GENERAL MUHAMMADU ILIYASU BASHIR ,CFR (M. D.JEGA)
MAJOR GENERAL MUHAMMADU ILIYASU BASHIR ,CFR (M. D.JEGA)
A BIOGRAPHY OF THE 20TH EMIR OF GWANDU
By:
Nurudeen Dauda
April 27, 2018
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In my observation, majority of the officers that fought the Nigerian Civil War from the Nigerian side have not done enough in documenting their accounts of the civil war. Majority of our leaders past have not done enough in writing books on their roles in government.
April the 28th of this month is the day a book on the biography of his highest the 20th Emir of Gwandu ,Major- General Muhammadu Iliyasu Bashir CFR (rtd) will be launched. He is also known as General M. D. Jega.He was a military Governor of the defunct Gongola State 1976 to 1978 during the military regime of General Olusegun Obasanjo , and again between 1984 to 1985 during the military regime of General Muhammadu Buhari .
Gen.M.D Jega held the posts of Commander of the 6th Brigade of the 2nd Division, Onitsha, and General Officer Commanding 2nd Mechanised Division of the Nigerian Army, Ibadan .
In my understanding, the perennial agitation for Biafra which is mostly carried out by the youth is a product of one-sided accounts of the Nigerian Civil War which dominated the market.We need more books to be written by those soldiers who fought the Civil War on the Nigerian side for balance accounts.
In my view, Nigerian youth are leaving in danger of knowing only one-sided “story” about the Nigerian Civil War. We need a balance account of the war not one-sided account presently in circulation. In the next fifty years when most of the people from the generation of those officers who fought the war are gone we will be left with the “Books” written by the Biafran side if nothing is quickly done by the officers concern.
Whatever they documented about the Civil War must be accepted rightly or wrongly. As far as I know, ninety eight percent of books written on the Biafran War were written by Biafan sympathizers! It is an open secret that most of those books were written in order show how injustice was done to a particular set of people which was totally untrue.
There were a lot of hyperboles on most of the books written to favour one interest or the other. We need a balance record that will promote genuine national reconciliation, integration, and Unity, but not the ones currently in circulation.
In my observation, those officers who fought the Nigerian Civil War from the Nigerian side do not do well enough to us by writing their own accounts of the war. Chief Emeka Odumegwu Ojuku wrote “Because I am Involved”, One of the Five (5) Majors, Major Adewale Ademuyega wrote “Why we Struck” , Major General Alexander Madiebo wrote “The Nigerian Revolution and The Biafran War”, Professor Chinua Achebe wrote “There was a country”,Emefiena Ezeani wrote “In Biafra Africa Died: The Diplomatic Plot” and Major Nzeogwu junior, Okele Peter Nzeogwu wrote” Fighting the illusive Nigerian Enemy from Childhood to Death” etc.
As far as I know, the very few books written about the Civil War by those who fought on Nigerian side are: by General Obasanjo who wrote my Command, Former Governor of North West, Usman Faruok, CON who wrote "The Victors and the Vanquished of the Nigerian Civil War: Triumph of Truth and Valour over Greed and ambition” ,General Paul Tarfa wrote Profile in courage and General Domkat Bali’ poem on Civil War.
I know too very well that General Yakubu Gawon (who was the president) , General Hassan Usman Katsina, General Muhammed Shuwa, General Murtala Mohammed , General Shehu Musa Yar’adu , General Muhammadu Buhari, General Sani Abacha, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, General TY.Danjuma, General Garba Duba, General Gado Nasko, General Sani Sami, General Moh’d Magoro, General Shagaya, General Jeremiah Ussaini etc., have played their various roles in keeping this country united ,but as far a I know do not write anything for us to read about the war.
I cherished the American leaders for their tradition of writing "Memoirs " or "Biographies" or "Books" on their "stewardship " immediately after they hand over. President Obama and Wife have since began writing their on accounts.
In the United States of America and other advanced democracies, "political leaders" always write books on their "stewardship"immediately after leaving office in order to "explain","clarify", and or "justify" some of the "policies" or "decisions" taken by them while in government. Writing ones "actions" or "inactions" would go along way in assisting future leaders to "learn" and or "avoid" some "mistakes" which might been committed by their leaders past.
Permit me to congratulate his highest, the Emir of Gwandu for documenting his past. I beg on those officers that are still alive to please quickly write something about the Nigerian Civil War and their other roles in governance of our country in order to set the records straight for the future and national development /unity.
May God bless Nigeria!