1966 Nigerian counter-coup

The 1966 Nigerian counter-coup, or the so-called "July Rematch", was the second of many military coups in Nigeria. It was masterminded by Lt. Colonel Murtala Muhammed and many northern military officers. The coup began as a mutiny at roughly midnight on July 28, 1966^[2] and was a reaction to the killings of Northern politicians and Officers by mostly Igbo soldiers on January 15, 1966  The July mutiny/counter coup resulted in the murder of Nigeria's first military Head of State General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi and Lt Colonel Adekunle Fajuyi (who was hosting a visiting Aguiyi-Ironsi) in Ibadan by disgruntled northern non-commissioned officers (NCOs). Upon the termination of Ironsi's government, Lt. Colonel Yakubu Gowon was appointed Head of State by the July 1966 coup conspirators.

Reasons for the counter-coup

According to historian Max Siollun northern soldiers had a list of grievances^[4] following the aborted January 15, 1966, coup which led to the planning of the counter-coup. A list of their grievances were:

·         The murder of northern civilian leaders and military officers in the aborted January 15, 1966, coup d'etat

·         The January 15, 1966, coup conspirators (mostly Majors) had not been tried for treason and were being paid while in detention

·         The passage of the Unification Decree

·         Rumors of an "Igbo coup" to eliminate northern soldiers

·         The promotion of several Igbo Majors to Lt. Colonel

·         Rumors of General Aguiyi-Ironsi's ethnic favoritism toward Igbos

·         Plans to swap the 1st and 4th battalions and plans to rotate the military governors of the different regions

Coup participants

The principal coup plotters are listed below:^[5]

·         Lt. Colonel Joseph Akahan (Commander, 4th Bataillon Kaduna)

·         Lt. Colonel Murtala Muhammed (Inspector of Signals, Lagos)

·         Major Theophilus Danjuma (Principal Staff Officer, Army HQ, Lagos)

·         Major Abba Kyari (Artillery, Kaduna)

·         Major Martin Adamu (2nd Battalion Lagos)

·         Major Shittu Alao (Nigerian Airforce HQ, Lagos)

·         Major Musa Usman (Nigerian Air Force, Lagos)

·         Captain Joseph Garba (Federal Guards Lagos)

·         Captain Isa Bukar (Federal Guards Lagos)

·         Captain Ibrahim Taiwo (Lagos Garrison Yaba)

·         Captain Baba Usman GSO (Grade II, Army HQ, Lagos)

·         Captain Abdul D.S. Wya (3rd Battalion, Kaduna)

·         Lieutenant Muhammadu Buhari (2 Brigade Lagos)

·         Lieutenant Ibrahim Babangida (1st Reconnaissance Squadron, Kaduna)

·         Lieutenant Ibrahim Bako (4th Battalion, Ibadan)

·         Lieutenant William Walbe (2nd Battalion, Lagos)

·         Lieutenant Mamman Vatsa (4th Battalion, Ibadan)

·         Lieutenant Buka Suka Dimka (Nigerian Military Training College Kaduna)

·         Lieutenant Yakubu Dambo (3rd Battalion Kaduna)

·         Lieutenant Garba A. Dada (Adjutant 4th Battalion Ibadan)

·         Lieutenant Garba Duba (1 Reconnaissance Squadron Kaduna)

·         Lieutenant Mohammed Balarabe Haladu (4th Battalion, Ibadan)

·         Lieutenant Malami Mahe Nassarawa (2nd Battalion, Lagos)

·         Lieutenant James Onoja (4th Battalion, Ibadan)

·         Lieutenant Abdulahhi Shelleng (Company Commander, 4th Battalion, Ibadan)

·         Lieutenant Paul Chabri Tarfa (Federal Guards, Lagos)

·         Lieutenant D.S. Abubakar (Abeokuta Garrison)

·         Second Lieutenant Sani Abacha (3rd Battalion Kaduna)

·         Second Lieutenant Muhammadu Gado Nasko (Artillery, Kaduna)

·         Sergeant Paul Dickson

·         Sergeant Sabo Kwale (Abeokuta Garrison)

·         Corporal John Shagaya (2nd Reconnaissance Squadron, Abeokuta)

References

1.     ^ Siollun, Max. Oil, Politics and Violence: Nigeria's Military Coup Culture (1966-1976). Algora. pp. 98–102. ISBN 9780875867090.

2.     ^ Joe Garba- A Revolution in Nigeria, another view

3.     ^ Siollun, Max. Oil, Politics and Violence: Nigeria's Military Coup Culture (1966-1976). Algora. p. 110. ISBN 9780875867090.

4.     ^ Siollun, Max. Oil, Politics and Violence: Nigeria's Military Coup Culture (1966 - 1976). Algora. p. 97. ISBN 9780875867090.

^ Siollun, Max. Oil, Politics and Violence: Nigeria's Military Coup Culture (1966 - 1976). Algora. pp. 245–248. ISBN 9780875867090

Coups d'état in Africa since 1960

1960s

Republic of the Congo (1960) Ethiopia (1960) French Algeria (1961) Somalia (1961) Senegal (1962)Benin (1963) Togo (1963) Gabon (1964) Zanzibar (1964) Algeria (1965) Benin (1965) Burundi (1965) Democratic Republic of the Congo (1965) Central African Republic (1965–1966) Burundi (July 1966) Burundi (November 1966)cGhana (1966) Upper Volta (1966) Nigeria (January 1966) Nigeria (July 1966) Republic of the Congo (1966) Benin (1967) Ghana (1967) Togo (1967) Mali (1968) Republic of the Congo (1968) Benin (1969) Sudan (1969) Libya (1969) Somalia (1969) Libya (1969)

1970s

Lesotho (1970) Uganda (1971) Morocco (1971) Sudan (1971) Benin (1972) Ghana (1972) Morocco (1972) Republic of the Congo (1972) Rwanda (1973) Uganda (1974) Niger (1974) Ethiopia (1974) Comoros (1975) Sudan (1975) Libya (1975) Nigeria (1975) Chad (1975) Sudan (1976) Burundi (1976) Nigeria (1976) Benin (1977) Republic of the Congo (1977) Seychelles (1977) Sudan (1977) Ghana (1978) Mauritania (1978) Central African Republic (1979) Ghana (1979) Equatorial Guinea (1979)

1980s

Mauritania (1980) Liberia (1980) Guinea-Bissau (1980) Upper Volta (1980) Mauritania (1981) Gambia (1981) Central African Republic (1981) Ghana (1981) Seychelles (1981) Central African Republic (1982) Kenya (1982) Upper Volta (1982) Upper Volta (1983) Upper Volta (1983) Nigeria (1983) Mauritania (1984) Cameroon (1984) Guinea (1984) Uganda (1985) Nigeria (1985) Sudan (1985) Lesotho (1986) Togo (1986) Libya (1987) Burkina Faso (1987) Burundi (1987) Republic of the Congo (1987) Tunisia (1987) Sudan (1989) Burkina Faso (1989) Ethiopia (1989) Chad (1989)

1990s

Sudan (1990) Nigeria (1990) Zambia (1990) Chad (1990) Mali (1991) Lesotho (1991) Sudan (1992) Sierra Leone (1992) Algeria (1992) Burundi (1993) Nigeria (1993) Gambia (1994) Lesotho (1994) Comoros (1995) São Tomé and Príncipe (1995) Burundi (1996) Niger (1996) Zambia (1997) Lesotho (1998) Republic of the Congo (1998) Niger (1999) Côte d'Ivoire (1999)

2000s

Burundi (2001) Central African Republic (2001) Central African Republic (2003) Mauritania (2003) Guinea-Bissau (2003) São Tomé and Príncipe (2003) Burkina Faso (2003) Chad (2004) Sudan (2004) Equatorial Guinea (2004) Mauritania (2005) Chad (2006) Madagascar (2006) Guinea (2008) Mauritania (2008) Madagascar (2009)

2010s

Niger (2010) Guinea-Bissau (2010) Democratic Republic of the Congo (2011) Niger (2011) Guinea-Bissau (2011) Côte d'Ivoire (2012) Mali (2012) Guinea-Bissau (2012) Sudan (2012) Benin (2013) Libya (April 2013) Comoros (2013) Chad (2013) Egypt (2013) Libya (October 2013) Central African Republic (2012–13) South Sudan (2013) Libya (2014) Lesotho (2014) The Gambia (2014) Burundi (2015) Burkina Faso (2015) Burkina Faso (2016) Libya (2016) Equatorial Guinea (2017) Zimbabwe (2017) Gabon (2019) Sudan (2019) Ethiopia (2019)