PROTEST LETTER OF DR. FRANCIS AKANU IBIAM TO HER
MAJESTY QUEEN ELIZABETH II.
PROTEST
LETTER OF DR. FRANCIS AKANU IBIAM
TO HER MAJESTY QUEEN ELIZABETH II.
( If Some Of These Current Biafran Politicians Can
Take A Bond Step Like Akanu Ibiam Did, To Renounce British Queen And Her Evils
Against Biafra? )
I am deeply and humbly constrained to present you
with this letter. For many years, indeed throughout my mature life, I had been
a proud but disinterested admirer of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and her peoples. The
history of Your Majesty’s country is replete with heroism, discoveries which
were near miracles, and institutions of higher learning of the most outstanding
character and achievement. Britain, though insular and small in size and
capacity, had centuries ago proved conclusively, to the world that for any
community and nation to reach the acme of greatness and respectability, it is
not quantity that counts but quality and the type of people who make up the
nation.
British Christians had the privilege and honour of
evangelizing not only a good part of Africa, my own continent, but also a
greater part of the rest of the world. Her missionaries, men and women, left
home and kindred and comfortable life, to spread Christianity far and wide in
areas of the world where, for want of a better description, life was anything
but civilized in the Western sense of the word, civilization. They endured lack
of scientifically purified water, electric or gas light. They trekked long
miles of single-file roads, endured our moist heat and drenching rains, the
nuisance of mosquitoes, and sand flies and other indigenous African insects. In
the earlier days of missionary venture, they imported tons of tinned foodstuffs
and cared nothing for their lives so long as they could preach the Gospel and
its Good News, heal the sick, and bring education and enlightenment to the
people. The result of this effective humanitarian service, supported
financially, morally, and prayerfully by the Churches way back in their
homeland, has born exceedingly abundant fruit, and for us in Biafra (formerly
Eastern Nigeria), their work has, by grace of God, made our homeland as much a
Christian country as any other reputed countries of the world.
Despite annoying treatment meted to me and my
fellow African students now and again in certain quarters, I was highly
impressed with the religious life of the people of Britain, particularly in
Scotland, where I lived and studied in the University of St. Andrews for seven
years in one of the coldest parts of the United Kingdom. Altogether, I resided
in Britain for ten long years. And having seen their homeland and lived in this
Christian atmosphere in which they grew up, the self-denial and self-sacrifice
of Christian Missionary came home to me very forcibly, I drew much inspiration
from their splendid example, and my understanding and realization of the full
meaning and significance of the Christian life dawned on me with great sense of
joy and thankfulness.
After taking my medical degrees, therefore, I
offered my services to the Foreign Mission Committee (now the Overseas Council)
of the Church of Scotland, Edinburgh. I joined the Church of Scotland Medical
Service, Calabar Mission, Nigeria, and served the mission and its offspring,
the Presbyterian Church of Nigeria, from February 1, 1936 to January 31, 1967.
With the consent and approval of the Overseas Council, I was on leave of
absence without pay during the last five years, December 1960, to January 1965,
of my missionary service, while I was Governor of Eastern Nigeria. As the only
Nigerian among a group of some seventy European Missionaries for twenty five
years, the going was in the main, stiff and at various times, I felt most
frustrated and unhappy.
For although Missionaries inspired me without
knowing it themselves, I regret to say that, by and large, they did not
encourage me. Such a situation did not bother me, however, because I was
inwardly happy to serve my people in this unique capacity, and I was not going
to quit, come weal, come woe, until, like other missionaries, I had served my
turn for thirty years or reached the age of sixty years. If European
missionaries, I argued within me, could leave their well-ordered homeland and
ease of life, more or less, and where they could make a name for themselves
academically or otherwise, and came to my homeland where amenities of life in
the European background were hardly existent, I did not see any reason why I,
an African, could not follow in their footsteps and serve my own people in my
own country under conditions which called for naked hardship and demanded much
self denial and self sacrifice.
In 1949 New Year Honours Awards, Your Majesty’s
revered and late father, His Majesty King George the sixth, graciously
conferred on me the honour to be an Officer of the Civil Division of the Most
Excellent Order of the British Empire (O.B.E) for services to the Church and
State. Again, in the New Year Honours, 1951, he conferred on me the dignity to
be a Knight Commander of the Civil Division of the Most Excellent Order of the
British Empire (K.B.E) for selfless service to the Church and my country. I
happened to be in London at this time as a special guest of the British
Council, and when I was invited by a Buckingham Palace Official to present
myself before His Majesty to receive the insignia and accolate of Knighthood, I
begged permission to have them conferred on me on my return home to Nigeria.
I did receive the insignia and certificate at the
hands of His Excellency the then Governor of Nigeria, Sir John Macpherson, but
I had the unique distinction and singular privilege of receiving the accolade
from Your Majesty’s august person during your Majesty’s Royal and memorable
visit to Nigeria in February, 1956. On the attainment and independence of
Nigeria and sovereignty by Nigeria on October 1, 1960, Your Majesty was
graciously pleased to appoint me as Governor of Eastern Nigeria within the
Federal Republic of Nigeria on the recommendation of the Honourable Premier of
Eastern Nigeria with the assent of his Excellency the President of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria. In August 1962, Your Majesty conferred on me the dignity
of being a Knight Commander of the Civil Division of the Most Distinguished
Order of St. Michael and St. George (K.C.M.G.).
For these great honours and special recognitions, I
am humbly grateful to Your Majesty and Your Majesty's Britannic Government.
They are a happy reflection of the importance of Africa and her people before
God and man. Howbeit, I must renounce all of them at this time. I do so to
register the strongest protest at my command against Your Majesty's Government
of United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland for supplying military equipment
and arms to Nigeria which has waged a senseless and futile war of aggression
against my country, the Republic of Biafra. My objection and protest are
directed solely and entirely to the British Government because I believe that
the staunch British friends of Africa, particularly the CHURCH, and informed
British public opinion will deplore this unkindly act of the British Government
to the Republic of Biafra. With the highest sense of responsibility, therefore,
and bearing clearly in my own mind the moral issues which are at stake, and my
own stand thereat, I return the insignia and paraphernalia of my title to Your
Majesty’s Britannic Government through the British Deputy High Commissioner who
is resident here in Enugu - the capital city of the Republic of Biafra.
During the months of May, July, August, and
September, 1966, Northern Nigerian soldiers and civilians planned and committed
the most atrocious crimes against Eastern Nigerians—now citizens of the
Republic of Biafra. Sadistically, brutally and in cold blood, they murdered and
slaughtered thousands of my brothers and sisters who were then living in
Northern Nigeria and other parts of the former and defunct Federal Republic of
Nigeria. They killed innocent children, helpless women, and defenseless men
without any reason or rhyme. They entered churches and hospitals and
slaughtered them in cold blood. And most unbelievably yet only too true, they
massacred women in actual LABOUR and their unborn children. They plundered,
looted, assaulted and raped women and burnt down the homes of Easterners and
left them penniless.
The most painful and unsoldierly act of all was
that these Northern Nigerian soldiers killed their superior officers, including
and especially His Excellency the Military Governor of Western Nigeria, Lt.
Col. Francis Adekunle Fajuyi, and his guest and comrade, His Excellency, the
Head of Supreme Military Council and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of
the former Federal Republic of Nigeria, Major-General J.T.U. Aguiyi-Ironsi, both
of them of blessed memory. On July 29, 1966, they were kidnapped by Northern
Nigerian soldiers and ruthlessly killed after torturing them. It must be stated
here that the late Major-General J.T.U. Aguiyi-Ironsi, an Eastern Nigerian at
that time, went all out to build up ONE UNITED AND STRONG NIGERIA through a
unitary Government Administration, but paradoxically and ironically, he met a
cruel and untimely death for that very reason. It is very strange, therefore,
that Nigeria should be futilely waging a war of aggression against Biafra in
her impossible bid to force Biafra back into this very same union—One Nigeria
from which she had been so purposely and systematically forced out.
Be that as it may, all kith and kin fled Northern
Nigeria, Western Nigeria, and Lagos and returned to their homeland of Eastern
Nigeria, the only place they knew they could have protection. In the process,
Eastern Nigeria was left to look after and cater for at least two million
refugees, and she has done and is doing so with commendable achievement.
Eastern Nigeria did not retaliate in any way, for we do not kill strangers
within our gates, and being humble and sensitive Christians, we refused to
commit murder, contrary to the commandment of God, particularly as we believe that
two wrongs can never make a right. Northern Nigerians in Eastern Nigeria were
therefore collected together and escorted safely by train across the border to
their own section of Nigeria.
In the succeeding months, the Hausa/Fulani
controlled Lagos Government of Nigeria purposely, directly, and inexorably
forced Eastern Nigeria out of the Federation, and our Military Governor with
advice and consent of out Consultative Assembly had no other choice but to
declare Eastern Nigeria a free, independent and sovereign state to be known as
the Republic of Biafra. This happy and historical occasion took place on May
30. On July 6th, Nigeria attacked Biafra in her mad wish to force Biafra to
return to the Nigeria federation. Having killed 30,000 of us in their land and
seized our property worth millions of pound sterling, they have now come to
kill more of us in our own homes and make the rest of us slaves to the
Hausa/Fulani Feudalists and Moslems.
The people of Biafra are, therefore, fighting a war
of LIBERATION AND SURVIVAL. We adamantly refuse to be colonized by the
Hausa/Fulanis of Northern Nigeria or any other people in the world. Moreover it
is an ardent desire of the Hausa/Fulani and Moslem Northern Nigeria to
subjugate Biafra and kill Christianity in our country.
Your Majesty, the British officials in Nigeria are
fully aware of all these. They know that we are injured and deeply grieved
people and had been cruelly treated by our erstwhile fellow citizens of Federal
Republic of Nigeria. The British officials not only knew the crux of the
matter, but they also encouraged Northern Nigeria to carry out and execute
their nefarious plan against us. They are angry with Biafra because Biafra
categorically refused to remain as part of the Nigeria federation and political
unit only to be trampled upon, discriminated against and hated, ruthlessly
exploited and denied her rights and privileges, and slaughtered whenever it
suited the whims and caprices of the favoured people of Northern Nigeria. To
add insult to injury, Your Majesty’s Britannic Government, instead of being
neutral in our quarrels or finding ways and means to mediate and bring peace to
the two countries, has now taken it upon herself to supply military aid to
Nigeria to help them defeat and subjugate Biafra.
It is simply staggering for a Christian country
like Britain to help a Moslem country militarily to crush another Christian
country like Biafra. This is just too much for me, Your Gracious Majesty, this
act of unfriendliness and treachery by the British Government towards the
people of Republic of Biafra who, as Eastern Nigerians, had so much regard for
Britain and British people.
In the circumstance, Your Majesty, I no longer wish
to wear the garb of the British Knighthood. British fairplay, British justice,
and the Englishman’s word of honour which Biafra loved so much and cherished
have become meaningless to Biafrans in general and to me in particular.
Christian Britain has shamelessly let down Christian Biafra.
I love the Republic of Biafra very dearly and pray
that, by grace of God, she may remain and continue to grow and live and always
act like a truly Christian country for all times.
I am, Your Majesty
Yours Most Respectfully,
(AKANU IBIAM)
Photo: Queen Elizabeth II Conferring Mazi Francis
Akanu-Ibiam a Knight of the British Empire in January 1956 at Enugu.
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