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I almost lost my manhood during civil war – Obasanjo

| JANUARY 20, 2013 - 

Former Nigerian president, Olusegun Obasanjo, is reported to have said that he almost lost his manhood during the war between Nigeria and the break- away Biafra Republic as a shrapnel hit him on the pelvic region at a battle ground.

In spite of this and other challenges, Premium Times reports that the General said he has no regrets for the actions he took then. Obasanjo, a retired Army General, was one of the soldiers that led Nigeria’s military onslaught against Biafran soldiers leading to the eventual surrender of the Biafrans.

Controversies have trailed the war with some intellectuals like foremost writer, Chinua Achebe, accusing the Nigerian troop and government of genocide against the Igbos.

Obasanjo, who spoke on Friday, at a reception held in his honour by the Peoples Democratic Party, however, said all the decisions he took then were for the growth of the country and he has no regrets taking them.

“I don’t have any regret over some actions or decisions taken then, and I don’t have any apology over that, because it was in the interest of all,” he said.

The former president said his late cousin who died at the age of 92 recently, was still of the conviction that his dead son was still alive and resident in the defunct Biafra Republic.
He, however, used the occasion to call on all Nigerians to put the memory of the civil war behind them and concentrate on the development and growth of Nigeria as a nation.

The former military head of state and later civilian president also said he never participated in any military coup in the country throughout his military carrier. He said coup planners only consulted him at the end of each coup.

“I have never participated in any coup, I just sit down jeje…and they later get in touch with me,” he told guests at the colourful ceremony.