From Benin to History: A Post-War Story of Nigeria’s Civil War Figure, Major (Dr.) Albert Okonkwo – Part Two

 From Benin to History: A Post-War Story of Nigeria’s Civil War Figure, Major (Dr.) Albert Okonkwo – Part Two

By Emeka Esogbue

When the guns of the Nigerian Civil War finally fell silent in January 1970, Major (Dr.) Albert Onweazu Okonkwo was no longer the Military Administrator of a vanquished republic but a man compelled to confront the harsh aftermath of a lost cause. The Midwest campaign, which had begun with conviction and strategic intent, ended in retreat, recrimination, and a lingering sense of betrayal. Many had fled. Col. Henry Igboba, an Ibusa kinsman who was abandoned and later detained by Col. Banjo, was publicly executed in Benin, a grim reminder of how swiftly fortunes changed during the war.

In the typical fashion of military order, Okonkwo was arrested at the end of the war and detained for seven years in various Nigerian facilities being Owerri, Port Harcourt, Lagos (Broad Street), and Kano (Gorron Dutse) before finally regaining his freedom in 1977. While in Gorron Prison, Kano, his mother, who was still alive at the time, visited him almost monthly to ascertain his wellbeing. Stripped of wartime prominence, he returned to civilian life without ceremony. Yet behind that quiet return was a man deeply transformed; his experiences had reshaped his understanding of politics, loyalty, and the very meaning of nationhood.

Unlike many of his contemporaries who remained in the public eye, Okonkwo withdrew into a life defined by silence and restraint. For him, the end of the war signified not merely the collapse of Biafra but the death of an ideal he once believed could secure fairness and dignity for the Igbo people of Nigeria. Family accounts and interviews particularly from his brother, Prof. Patrick Okonkwo reveal a man who never fully reconciled with Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu. He harboured deep misgivings about the Eastern Region’s treatment of Anioma officers during the conflict and what he believed to extend even after the war had ended. According to family sources, Ojukwu’s absence at Albert Okonkwo’s funeral in 1989 confirmed the depth of their estrangement.

In time, an Easterner and sympathiser who was grateful for Okonkwo’s wartime efforts assisted him in establishing a medical clinic in Surulere, Lagos. He also received significant help from his fellow Ibusa kinsman, Chief Martin Ikediashi, whom the family credited with helping him regain his footing after his release. Through medicine, Okonkwo rebuilt his life, quietly serving humanity and shunning the politics and publicity that once surrounded his name. His Surulere clinic became a haven for patients who admired his humility, compassion, and professional dedication.

This concluding part of the series explores the lesser-known years of Major (Dr.) Albert Okonkwo’s life, his re-entry into civilian practice, his family, his lingering disillusionment, and the quiet dignity with which he faced history’s judgment. It also reflects on how his legacy continues to illuminate the contradictions of loyalty, leadership, and identity in Nigeria’s post-war reconciliation.

Family sources recall the lingering “blackmail” and harassment endured by his close relatives in Benin after the war—persecution that eventually forced one of his siblings to relocate to the United States. That brother told this writer that upon returning to Nigeria after the war, he initially believed peace had returned, only to face intimidation and hostility. Unable to navigate the post-war environment and continued resentment toward his brother’s role in the Midwest occupation, he fled the country once again.

Upon his return home, Okonkwo was warmly received by his Umuodafe community in Ibusa, which rallied around him in unity and affection. He earned the nickname “Obuzor Na Ede” shortened from “Obuzor Ndi Ede” in recognition of his wartime courage and closeness to his Umuodafe kinsmen. His generosity and kindness to others later earned him another affectionate title, “Ede Oshimili.” The support he received from the Ibusa community greatly aided his reintegration into society. Even his Surulere neighbours, upon identifying him as the former Midwest Administrator, rallied to assist his rebuilding efforts.

In the end, Major (Dr.) Albert Okonkwo found his way back into Nigerian society and was warmly embraced by his people. Like many of his Ibusa contemporaries, reintegration came naturally. The Ibusa community of the time had the reputation of "ishi nwanne," strong kinship relationship. He was initiated into Ogbuu, a traditional honour reserved for men of valour, and underwent the Mkpalor rites that conferred upon him the Onowu title, symbols of cultural acceptance and communal esteem among his people, who regarded his wartime service with deep respect despite the conflict’s outcome.

Okonkwo’s post-war reflections were profound. He derived immense joy from his family, particularly his brothers, whom he sponsored for studies in the United States, ensuring that they were well established in life. He was married to Elaine, an American nurse, in 1965, and together they had two children—Nancy Obiageli Okonkwo and Daniel Chukwuka Okonkwo. After the war, he had two other children with another woman back home: Nicholas Eze Okonkwo and Joseph Okonkwo.

Major (Dr.) Albert Okonkwo passed away in 1989, with his Ibusa community especially Umuodafe, rallying around his family to give him a befitting, colourful burial. His remains were taken from Ibusa to Jos, Plateau State, his place of birth for a lying-in-state before his final interment in his hometown of Ibusa, Delta State, a community that, since its founding, has continued to produce brave and brilliant soldiers in both ancient and modern warfare. In his return, Ibusa received home a son whose life spanned the fragile bridge between war and peace, defeat and dignity, memory and history.

It was not unexpected that the Ibusa community mourned him in the most traditional of ways. The legendary musician Ogbogu Okonji released an album dedicated to his memory, a timeless elegy that continues to echo through the community as a reminder of the life and military legacy of Major (Dr.) Albert Okonkwo, the wartime Military Administrator of the Midwest Region who lived and died with quiet dignity.

In the end, Major (Dr.) Albert Okonkwo’s life remains a metaphor for Nigeria’s unfinished reconciliation, a man who fought for an ideal, suffered for his convictions, and quietly rebuilt his life within the same nation that once branded him an enemy. His journey from Benin to Ibusa, from the battlefield to the consulting room, embodies the resilience of a generation that bore the weight of war yet chose to live in peace. In his silence was strength; in his service, redemption; and in his memory, a lesson that even in defeat, honour endures.

...concluded