Captain Femi Olugbode (rtd) was a member of the Third Marine Commando, led by late Benjamin Adekunle during the Nigeria Civil war. In this interview with OSAGIE OTABOR, Captain Femi shares his experience fighting under Adekunle. Excerpts:
WHAT can you say about the late Adekunle?
He was a strict disciplinarian because of his stature. He was not a very tall person. There was a time he referred to himself as Napolean Bonaparte. He was a very good fighter and abhorred indiscipline. There was a time soldiers were deserting the war, just like what is happening in the Boko Haram war now. If you deserted then and you are caught, you were severely punished. Late Adekunle did a lot of things and fought very well before he left the Marine Commando in 1969. Obasanjo took over from him.
What distinguished Adekunle from others?
I remember that during the capture of Owerri, he was always in the battle field. He was always at the forefront. When you have a leader at the front, soldiers will follow you. Adekunle was tough when it came to fighting. He led the soldiers that were just recruited. Only a few of the soldiers under him were welltrained. Others joined during the war. The bulk of them had a crash training programme. He led soldiers that were not properly trained. He had a lot of problem trying to get them to fight. During the recapture of Umuakpo, he was there. There was a cassava plantation there which was the only source of food for civilians and Biafra soldiers, but he made sure his troops took control.
Was there any error made by Adekunle during the war?
Like any human, there is bound to be error. An example was when Biafra soldiers surrounded Owerri and there was no means of getting food to the soldiers, planes were then used to drop foods. A bag of stockfish would be dropped from the plane and most of these things landed on soldiers. That was an error. There was perhaps no choice because there was no way food could get to the soldiers except through the air. You know how it is for a bag of stockfish to land on somebody’s head. In terms of welfare, we were paid the old ten pounds. There was no fixed salary. Soldiers were paid a flat rate, except the officers who earned 30 pounds. The impression was that the salary was being kept in Lagos for us to collect after the war, but a lot of people did not survive the war. They died and did not collect the money. When Obasanjo came, he restored full salary and told us not to worry about what was kept in Lagos, as only those who survived would go back and collect the salary arrears.
Was it Adekunle’s decision to keep the money in Lagos?
He was the GOC. He said salary should not be paid because the soldiers didn’t need it. Anyway, food was available and because of the fear that soldiers were not sure of surviving the war.
Can you recall any situation when Adekunle expressed fears of losing the war?
I was in the College of Army Artillery and not very close to the front. At a place after Calabar, we did not know that Biafran snippers were stationed somewhere. And while we were firing, the snippers hit us hard and wounded 17 officers. Adekunle came to the hospital to visit the soldiers and it was very demoralising. That day, Adekunle almost wept. He was always sad anytime there was casualty on the side of Nigeria. When did you join the Army? I joined in December 1966. I was young and was 21. I had not worked anywhere. I left school and joined the Army. I was in Ibadan then. One of my playmates called Chukwuma used to hit me and I would not strike back because he was a soldier. I then decided to join the Army. Luckily, my uncle, Ariyo, was the Commander of the 12 Battalion, Ibadan. I was trained in Zaria. That was the only approved depot in the country. Later on, I was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in 1969. I was trained in Port Harcourt. A lot of us were commissioned then. After the war, we were told that if we did not improve ourself academically, we would not be commissioned. I started reading on my own, I did my O-level and When Biafra soldiers surrounded Owerri and there was no means of getting food to the soldiers, planes were then used to drop foods. A bag of stockfish would be dropped from the plane and most of these things landed on soldiers. That was an error. There was perhaps no choice because there was no way food could get to the soldiers except through the air. You know how it is for a bag of stockfish to land on somebody’s head ‘ ‘ Captain Femi Olugbode (rtd) was a member of the Third Marine Commando, led by late Benjamin Adekunle during the Nigeria Civil war. In this interview with OSAGIE OTABOR, Captain Femi shares his experience fighting under Adekunle. Excerpts: INTERVIEW went to study journalism. I was a pioneer member of the Army Public Relations Department. That was how I crossed to the media. How did you feel when you were first asked to go to the war front? The first time somebody was killed in my presence was at Koko in Delta State. We captured a Biafran soldier and we questioned him, but he did not respond. They decided to kill him and he said he was prepared to die. We were on a ship because the Third Marine Commando operated with the Nigerian Navy. We were on the NNS Lokoja and the soldier was taken somewhere and killed. I was sad to see somebody killed and I did not eat for three days. One Sergeant started counselling me that I should not worry that somebody was killed. He said the person was an enemy and that he should be killed. That was the baptism of fire for me. After that, I didn’t feel anything killing the enemy. We took oath at our training that we were prepared to die in defence of our nation. What do you think has happened to make Nigerian soldiers want to desert in the war against insurgency? The Nigerian Army is a conventional army. They carry one rifle at a time. But the Boko Haram fighters are unconventional and can carry many weapons at a time. The Boko Haram woud do anything to achieve their aim. The Nigerian Army is welltrained now, but whether they are as committed as we were is another thing. Do you think the war against insurgency can be won? Yes. But there are many things involved. The government did not take it seriously at the beginning. Take the case of the Chibok girls as an example. Some people believed it was political. They were demanding for the pictures. Chieftains of the PDP said it was a lie. If the government were serious, the girls should have been rescued before they were taken far. What happened after the war, especially the coups? I was in Zaria undergoing training when Dimka overthrew Murtala. Our Commander from Kogi State assembled us and told us there was a change of government in Lagos. He said he would keep us posted. He later asked us to drop our weapons at the armoury. He knew the implications of people having weapons when there was a coup. As we were about doing that, students from the Ahmadu Bello University came to take permission that they wanted to demonstrate in support of Dimka. The man asked them to put themselves in his position. The students said they would wait till the next day. The man would have been arrested if he had allowed the students because the coup failed. Nobody came to tell me about the coup. Tell us about your growing up? I was born in Benin, but I hail from Ondo State. I grew up in Benin. My maternal grandfather was the Iyase of Benin to Oba Eweka the second. I speak Bini, Hausa and Yoruba. I schooled in Benin and Ondo State. It was in the Army that I did my O-level and attended the NIJ. It was a smooth transition for me when I left the Army. I was a correspondent for the Nigerian Observer in Ekiti State. I also worked with the National Commentator. I am on my own now. I publish a community newspaper in Ondo State. How did your parents take your joining the Army? I am the only son of my mother. We were three and I am the eldest. I was already doing my training in Zaria before I wrote a letter to tell them that I had joined the Army. I did not tell them before a I joined.