By admin
HOW THE RAGGED HARD-PRESSED BIAFRAN TROOPS HIT BACK…
This is the epic report by Walther Partington of the Daily Express, on the 3rd of June 1968 from the village of Umuosi, in today’s Rivers State, during the Biafran war. Remember as we’ve already shown in our earlier posts, that once the Nigerian army’s 3rd Marine Commandos landed on Bonny island; in Black Africa’s first Amphibious landing, heavily supported by its navy, on the 25th of July 1967 – and obviously recieving technical advice from the British forces as evidenced by presence of British officers in some videos of the landing, the surprised and shocked Biafrans started to reorganise though they never recovered the Oil terminal island but they made sure the Nigerians never made it up the Bonny river into Port harcourt their next big target only 50 miles up.
Col Benjamin Adekunle the Commanding officer of the Marines finally saw sense and listened to one of his field commanders – Lt col Alabi Isama (Delta Igbo from Utagba-Uno, with a Kwara Yoruba mother), who postulated that rather than keep trying to make it up the short Bonny river to their target, it was better to land elsewhere like Calabar and Oron and, take a longer 400 mile route and enter Port harcourt from the eastern side and in the process liberate the Cross river area and despite stiff Biafran resistance in some areas, they ended up liberating: Calabar, Oron, Eket, Itu, Ikot-Ekpene – threatning Aba and Umuahia in the process, Ugep, Odukpani, Obruba, Bori and Afam – knocking out the Power station and plunging Biafra into darkness, these were huge victories for the rampant 3rd Marines on their way to Portharcourt and was all down to the genius of Lt Col and later Brig Alabi Isama.
Having achieved its ultimate aim of capturing the all important town of Port Harcourt, with its International airport, seaport and its surplus supplies of all kind of goods and scientific stores for the Biafran war effort and general civilian living, the Biafrans were now in trouble and with the capture of Calabar with its airport and seaport, the whole Biafra was now cut off and Biafra lost face diplomatically as we’ve mentioned in other post ( please check them out as well) and embarrassing enough, its delegates that attended the Kampala peace conference, got stranded as they had no airport to land back to, until the commissioning of the Biafran built Uli Airport in Ihiala in todays Imo/Anambara states.
Now, having lost the city, the Biafran forces led by Col Achuzie, who’d replaced the Mons (Eaton Hall) trained Col Ogbugo Kalu, tried hard to recapture the important city but as was normal in most instances of the war, any city that fell to the Nigerians, always stayed in their hands, as the Biafrans, despite their tenacity, guts and determination were never in any shape in terms of manpower and gun-power to wrest any city from Nigeria.
Today’s post focuses on a counter-attack by the Biafrans led by Captain Patrick Porobunu, in the village of Umuosi, in the Azumini areas of Rivers State, witnessed by the afore-mentioned British reporter, it was a devastating attack on the 3rd marines, who lost about a 1000 soldiers. The accompanying report is about an appeal by Arch-Bishop of Westminster, Cardinal Heenan, asking the british government to stop arms sales and supply to the Nigerian government, which it was using to slaughter Biafrans, mainly civilians.
I will now allow you the oportunity to click and enlarge the attached photo and read for yourselves, thanks.
Please click on image to enlage and leave a comment below:
