Theophilus Yakubu DanjumaGCONFSSpsc (born 9 December 1938) is a Nigerian politician and retired lieutenant general who played a key role in post-independence military and political events in Nigeria. Danjuma amassed an enormous fortune through shipping and petroleum.[1]
Danjuma was born in Takum,Taraba State (formally Gongola State),Nigeria,to Kuru Danjuma and Rufkatu Asibi. Takum was mainly a farming community when Danjuma was young,and yams,rice,cassava,and beniseed were largely cultivated by families and clans. His father was a hard-working peasant whose ancestors were all highly respected members of the community. Kuru Danjuma was a farmer who traded metal parts for farming implements and tools.[3]
Danjuma started his education at St Bartholomew's Primary School in Wusasa and moved on to the Benue Provincial Secondary School in Katsina-Ala,where he was the captain of the school cricket 1st XI team;he received his Higher School Certificate in 1958. In 1959,Danjuma enrolled at the Nigerian College of Arts,Science,and Technology in Zaria (Ahmadu Bello University) to study history on a Northern Nigeria scholarship. However,by the end of 1960,Danjuma had left the university to enrol in the Nigerian Army.[3]
Military career
Danjuma was commissioned into the Nigerian Army as a second lieutenant and platoon commander in the Congo. In 1963,he joined a UN peacekeeping force in Sante,Katanga Province,in Congo. He was promoted to the position of captain three years later.[3] In 1966,Captain Danjuma was involved in the counter-coup with the 4th Battalion in Mokola,Ibadan. General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi was arrested in Ibadan,together with his host General Adekunle Fajuyi,by northern soldiers under the command of Major Danjuma (as he then was). Both men were then whisked away and taken to a roadside bush where they were both stripped naked and shot.[citation needed]
On 29 July 1966,Danjuma,along with Murtala Mohammed,Buka Suka Dimka,Muhammadu Buhari,Sani Abacha,Musa Usman,Ibrahim Taiwo,Ibrahim Bako,and Ibrahim Babangida,among others,participated in a bloody mutiny called the "July Rematch" in retaliation for the killing of federal officials in Nigeria's first coup. Danjuma picked up Nigeria's first military head of state General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi and first military governor of the former Western Region,Lt. Colonel Adekunle Fajuyi (who was hosting Aguiyi-Ironsi at his residence in Ibadan),from the side of the road,as they were escaping an ambush orchestrated by Danjuma,Mohammed,Dimka,Buhari and others. Danjuma held them captive in the back of his car and drove off to an isolated area in Oyo state,where he ordered them to get out and shot them in cold blood. Although Danjuma has denied claims that he was one of the masterminds of the needless coup d'ètat that saw the ruins of Nigeria and the death of over 3.5 million Eastern Nigerians,multiple evidence including a confession from his former aide-de-camp Sani Bello and A.B. Umaru recall the night of the ordeal in detail during their interview with The Guardian on the transgressions they participated in,remembering vividly sounds of gunshots Danjuma fired that would fatally end the life and reign of General Aguiyi-Ironsi and see the succession of Yakubu Gowon as Head of State of the Republic of Nigeria. In 1967,he was promoted to lieutenant colonel at the start of the civil war campaign towards Enugu,which was captured later that year. In December 1967,he was appointed Commander of the Nigerian Army's 1st Infantry Brigade,a position he held till July 1968. Towards the end of the Nigerian Civil War,Danjuma led a battalion that freed Jaja Wachuku,first Speaker of the Nigerian House of Representatives and the first Ambassador to the United Nations and first Foreign Affairs Minister,from detention by the Ojukwu government.[citation needed]
In 1970,Danjuma attended the International Court Martial in Trinidad and Tobago as Nigeria's representative,where he was appointed president of the tribunal in a case brought against members of a failed coup attempt in Trinidad and Tobago. Following his promotion to Colonel in 1971,he spent the next two years with responsibility for court-martialing Army officers proven guilty of corruption and indiscipline. In 1975,he was promoted to brigadier and the position of General Officer Commanding (GOC),and in the following year he became the Chief of Army Staff to the Head of State,Olusegun Obasanjo. He played a prominent role in supporting the president in resisting the Dimka Coup in 1976.[4][5] He retired from the Nigerian army in 1979.[3]
Later career
Business
Formed in 1979 by Danjuma,Nigeria American Line (NAL) began business and initially leased a ship called "Hannatu," which traded between Lagos and Santos in Brazil when Nigeria's bilateral trade agreement had opened the sea routes to economies in the South American markets. NAL went on to win patronage from Nigeria's National Supply Company (NNSC) to bring in government goods. NAL's list of growing clients included DICON Salt (Nigeria),project cargoes for Iwopin Paper Mill,ANNAMCO and Volkswagen Nigeria. NAL became a member of AWAFC (American West African Freight Conference),the Brazil-Nigeria Freight Conference and the Mediterranean Line (MEWAC). With the formation of the National Maritime Authority (NMA) in 1987/88,the profile of NAL increased as NMA encouraged indigenous operators to claim their share of internationally traded cargo involving Nigeria. NAL began with a core indigenous staff of about 12 in 1979. In 2009,staff in NAL-COMET were closer to 250,including approximately 12 expatriate staff members. From the Lagos office,the NAL-COMET Group opened branch offices in Port Harcourt,which serve Onne,Warri and Calabar seaports.[6]
COMET Shipping Agencies Nigeria Limited was established in 1984 by Danjuma,primarily to act as an agent for Nigeria American Line (NAL). COMET has grown and by the late nineties,it became one of the largest independent agents operating in Nigeria with experience in handling many types of vessels and cargo. In 2009,Comet handled over 200 vessels at the ports of Lagos,Port Harcourt,Calabar and Warri. In 2005,NAL-COMET acquired a roll-in-roll-out port (RORO) in Lagos,which makes it one of the largest independent port operators in Africa.[3]
South Atlantic Petroleum (SAPETRO) is a Nigerian oil exploration and production company established in 1995 by Danjuma. The ministry of Petroleum Resources in Nigeria awarded the Oil Prospecting License (OPL) 246 to SAPETRO in February 1998.[3] The block covers a total area of 2,590 square kilometres (1,000sqmi). SAPETRO partnered with Total Upstream Nigeria Ltd (TUPNI) and Brasoil Oil Services Company Nigeria Ltd (Petrobras) to start prospecting on OPL246. Akpo,a condensate field,was discovered in April 2000 with the drilling of the first exploration well (Akpo 1) on the block. Other discoveries made on OPL 246 include the Egina Main,Egina South,Preowei and Kuro (Kuro was suspended as a dry gas/minor oil discovery).
In 2004,SAPETRO's subsidiary in Benin won through a competitive tender process an oil exploration contract covering 550 square kilometres offshore from the Republic of Benin.
In February 2005,SAPETRO was granted Oil Mining Lease (OML) 130 and thereafter the federal government backed in through the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). In June 2006,SAPETRO divested part of its contractor rights and obligations to China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC). SAPETRO produced its "first oil" (condensate) on 4 March 2009.
In December 2009,SAPETRO donated a new state-of-the-art medical centre to Nasarawa State University. The medical centre,to be known as South Atlantic Petroleum Medical Centre,would be available to serve the University,the local and neighbouring communities.[7]
NatCom Development &Investment Limited
Danjuma was named Board Chairman by the NatCom Development &Investment Limited "NatCom," trading as ntel. The announcement was made in July 2016 following Danjuma's inaugural board meeting. ntel commenced commercial operations of its 4G/LTE-Advanced network on 8 April 2016 in Lagos and Abuja. ntel is an advanced mobile 4G/LTE network providing superfast internet access that enables high-definition voice,data and video services. ntel's network is built on the 900/1800MHz frequency bands which are the best propagation frequencies for the deployment of 4G/LTE technology. ntel's bouquet of services includes national bandwidth,international voice termination,international bandwidth,mobile and fixed communications services.[citation needed]
The company made its first on-net test data call in Lagos on Monday,18 January 2016 and followed this with its first on-net Voice-over-LTE (VoLTE) call in Lagos on Thursday,25 February 2016. Commercial operations commenced on Friday,8 April 2016.[citation needed]
Politics
Since 1999,Danjuma has played an active role in Nigerian politics;some of his key appointments have been:
1999 Appointed as Minister of Defence to President Olusegun Obasanjo's cabinet
2003 Appointed as chairperson for the investigative committee on the Warri conflict
2010 Nominated as chairman of the Presidential Advisory Council by Acting President Goodluck Jonathan
While in office,Danjuma sought to curb the politicisation of the military and was a firm supporter of democracy and the rule of law. He also oversaw the renaming of all Nigerian barracks and cantons from those of civilian or living persons. He was also widely known to be an avid opponent of President Obasanjo's attempts in 2006 to engineer a way that would enable himself and state governors to serve more than two consecutive terms.[3]
Danjuma serves as chairman of the Victims' Support Fund Committee,supporting the victims of terror such as the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping. On 16 July 2014,in a speech at the Presidential Villa in Abuja,Danjuma told President Jonathan that "Boko Haram insurgents appear to be having the upper hand,as they choose where to strike and capture territory." He added that "the battle to win the insurgency war has already taken too long."[8]
Developments in the recent past have left observers of Nigerian politics wondering whether Danjuma would still maintain against the Igbo ethnic group the animosity that propelled him in the brutal Counter Coup of July 1966 in which Igbos in the military were specifically targeted and eliminated,subsequently giving rise to Northern military and political domination. He seems to have suddenly woken up to the reality of Islamic intolerance as a dominant guiding attitude of the Northern ruling class. In the 2018 graduation ceremony of the Taraba State University of which he was Chairman of Council,Danjuma in an emotional outburst accused the Nigerian government of involvement in the killings by Nigerian military officers of members of ethnic and religious minorities. He went as far as calling for armed resistance by such minorities in self-defence (see the Vanguard,Nigeria,March 24,2018). His outburst was well situated in the context of evidences that the government of President Muhammadu Buhari was deliberately taking sides in favour of his Fulani tribesmen in what is questionably termed farmer-herdsmen clashes.
Philanthropy
In December 2008,the TY Danjuma Foundation was created in Nigeria.[3]
The foundation's principal aims are to provide durable advantages through the implementation of development programs. The foundation plans to operate more as a philanthropic organisation rather than simply as a charity. This would allow for the foundation to seek out other deserving causes and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to partner with and make grants available.[3]
The TY Danjuma Foundation seeks to alleviate poverty in communities by providing basic amenities and education for children and young adults while also providing free medical care for indigent people.[3]
In Danjuma's home state of Taraba,US$500,000 has been given out as grants to NGOs working to alleviate the suffering of the residents. Taraba is historically one of Nigeria's most impoverished states,compounded by the absence of a health service that catered to the masses. Furthermore,the state has the most cases of river blindness and other debilitating illnesses.[9]
The TY Danjuma Foundation has partnered with over 50 NGOs throughout Nigeria and with the support and cooperation of 36 state governors. One of the many NGOs that is being supported by the foundation is CASVI,working in Takum,Wukari and Donga. CASVI's main area of expertise is the provision of free eye care services,such as the treatment of river blindness in Wukari,Ibi and Donga.[10]
Murtala Ramat Muhammed;8 November 1938 –13 February 1976) was a Nigerian military officer and the fourth head of state of Nigeria. He led the 1966 Nigerian counter-coup in overthrowing the military regime of Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi and featured prominently during the Nigerian Civil War and thereafter ruled Nigeria from 29 July 1975 until his assassination on 13 February 1976. This period in Nigerian history,from the Northern counter-coup victory to Murtala's death,is commonly associated with the institutionalization of the military in Nigerian politics.
Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida is a Nigerian statesman and military dictator who ruled as military president of Nigeria from 1985 when he orchestrated a coup d'état against his military and political arch-rival Muhammadu Buhari,until his resignation in 1993 as a result of the crisis of the Third Republic.
Yakubu Dan-Yumma "Jack" Gowon is a Nigerian former Head of State and statesman who led the Federal military government war efforts during the Nigerian Civil War.
Johnson Thomas Umunnakwe Aguiyi-Ironsi was a Nigerian general who was the first military head of state of Nigeria. He was appointed to head the country after the 15 January 1966 military coup.
Mamman Jiya Vatsa was a Nigerian general and poet who served as Minister of the Federal Capital Abuja,and was a member of the Supreme Military Council.
Lieutenant-Colonel Patrick Chukwuma "Kaduna" Nzeogwu was a Nigerian military officer who played a leading role in the 1966 Nigerian coup d'état,which overthrew the First Nigerian Republic.
The National Security Organization (NSO) of Nigeria,or Nigerian Security Organization,was created under Decree number 27 of 1976 by the military regime of General Olusegun Obasanjo,after the failed Dimka coup which claimed the life of former Head of State General Murtala Mohammed. The NSO was given a mandate of co-ordinating Internal Security,Foreign Intelligence and counterintelligence activities. It was charged with the detection and prevention of any crime against the security of the state,with the protection of classified materials,and with carrying out any other security missions assigned by the president.
Lieutenant Colonel Bukar Suwa Dimka was a Nigerian military officer who played a leading role in the 13 February 1976 abortive military coup against the government of General Murtala Ramat Muhammed. Dimka had also participated in the Nigerian counter-coup of 1966 which toppled the government of General Aguiyi Ironsi.
The military dictatorship in Nigeria was a period when members of the Nigerian Armed Forces held power in Nigeria from 1966 to 1999 with an interregnum from 1979 to 1983. The military was able to rise to power often with the tacit support of the elite through coups d'état. Since the country became a republic in 1963,there had been a series of military coups.
Thomas Aguiyi-Ironsi is a career diplomat who was appointed by President Obasanjo to serve as a technocrat minister.He held the position of Minister of State for Defence from January to May 2007 and later became Minister of Defence,making him the first Igbo person to hold this role in over 40 years.He is the son of former military leader Major General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi,and was the ambassador to Togo before former President Olusegun Obasanjo appointed him to succeed Roland Oritsejafor as Minister of state for Defence.
The 1966 Nigerian Counter-coup was the second of many military coups in Nigeria. It was masterminded by Lt. Colonel Murtala Muhammed and many other northern military officers. The coup began as a mutiny at roughly midnight of 28 July 1966 and was a reaction to the killings of Northern politicians and officers by some soldiers on 15 January 1966. The coup resulted in the murder of Nigeria's first military Head of State General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi and Lt Colonel Adekunle Fajuyi in Ibadan by disgruntled northern non-commissioned officers (NCOs). Upon the termination of Ironsi's government,Lt. Colonel Yakubu Gowon was appointed Head of State by the coup conspirators.
Dodan Barracks is a military barrack located in Ikoyi,Lagos,Nigeria. The barrack was the Supreme Military Headquarters during the Nigerian Civil War and from 1966 to 1979 and 1983 to 1985,Dodan Barracks was the official residence of the military heads of state of the Nigerian military juntas of 1966–79 and 1983–99,and also the Supreme Military Headquarters from 1966 until the move to Abuja in 1991.
Chief Victor Babaremilekun Adetokunboh Fani-Kayode,Q.C.,SAN,CON was a leading Nigerian politician,aristocrat,nationalist,statesman and lawyer. He was elected deputy premier of the Western Region of Nigeria in 1963 and played a major role in Nigeria's legal history and politics from the late 1940s until his death in 1995.
Ibrahim Taiwo was a military governor of Kwara State from July 1975 to February 1976 during the military regime of General Murtala Mohammed. He assisted in the establishment of the University of Ilorin,which was founded by decree in August 1975.
Colonel Anthony Aboki Ochefu was a Military Governor of East Central State from July 1975 to February 1976 during the military regime of General Murtala Mohammed.
William Walbe,was a colonel in the Nigerian Army who served as the military aide-de-camp (ADC) to General Yakubu Gowon,the third Nigerian Head of State.
On 15 January 1966,rebellious soldiers led by Kaduna Nzeogwu and 4 others carried out a military putsch,killing 22 people,including the prime minister of Nigeria,many senior politicians,senior Army officers and their wives,and sentinels on protective duty. The coup plotters attacked the cities of Kaduna,Ibadan,and Lagos while also blockading the Niger and Benue River within a two-day timespan,before being overcome by loyalist forces.
Ibrahim Ahmed Bako was a senior officer in the Nigerian Army who played a principal role in two Nigerian military coups:the July 1966 counter-coup and the December 1983 coup. The 1983 coup ousted the democratic government of Shehu Shagari while the July 1966 coup ousted the military government of General Ironsi. Bako was killed during the December 1983 coup d'état.
Victoria Nwanyiocha Aguyi-Ironsi was the second First Lady of Nigeria from 16 January 1966 to 29 July 1966.
Barrett, Lindsay. (1979). Danjuma, the Making of a General (biography; Enugu, Nigeria: Fourth Dimension).
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Nigerian Army 
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