SOURCE:

Faculty: Arts
Department: History & International Studies

CONTRIBUTORS:

Ejemheare, I. J.
Ojiakor, N. E.

ABSTRACT:

In the study of the Nigerian-Biafran war, a great deal of emphasis seems to have been placed on the major ethnic groups such as the Yoruba, Igbo and Hausa. Perhaps, this is because sourcematerials in these areas are readily available than the minor ethnic groups. Be that as it may, the fact cannot be denied that attention had also been paid to smaller ethnic groups in the civil war publications. At present, the coverage seems not adequate compared to the large number of smaller ethnic groups in Nigeria and this does not bring to a clear understanding the role the minority groups played in the civil war. It is an attempt to fulfil this important objective that this study on theEsan and the Nigerian-Biafran war, 1967-1975 is embarked upon. The research focuses on highlighting the opinions and perceptions of the war among the Esan people of the defunct Midwest Region of Southern Nigeria. The work demonstrates that the Esanpeople, who were initially sympathetic toward the Biafran cause, were angered by the Biafran invasion of Midwest.From the point of indecision and sympathy for the Biafrans, the Esan became a protagonist of the Federal Government of Nigeria as a result of the Biafran invasion of their region. The research also throws a searchlight on the Post-War reconstruction programme in Esan land. The study employs the game and psycho-cultural conflict theories; the former seeks to explain the rationale behind Esan's decision in the war; the latter seeks to explain the role cultural identity played in promoting conflict between Esan and Igbo group in the Midwest. The study adopted qualitative method with primary, secondary and tertiary sources of data collection. The work reveals that the Esan people felt safer at the hands of the federal troops than the Biafra troops hence, when the federal troops arrived at Esanland, they had the support and loyalty of the local population. The work recommends that proper participatory democracy can go a long way to address the problem of power sharing and domination by a particular group.