Harris Otadafevwerha Deodemise Eghagha (8 March 1934 – 19 March 2009) was appointed Military Governor of

Ogun State Ogun State is a state in southwestern Nigeria. Created on 3 February 1976 from the former Western State. Ogun State borders Lagos State to the south, Oyo State and Osun State to the north, Ondo State to the east, and the Republic of Benin to the ...

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

from July 1978 to October 1979 during the military regime of General

Olusegun Obasanjo Chief Olusegun Matthew Okikiola Ogunboye Aremu Obasanjo, , ( ; yo, Olúṣẹ́gun Ọbásanjọ́ ; born 5 March 1937) is a Nigerian political and military leader who served as Nigeria's head of state from 1976 to 1979 and later as its pres ...

, handing over power to the elected governor

Olabisi Onabanjo Chief Victor Olabisi Onabanjo (12 February 1927 – 14 April 1990) was governor of Ogun State in Nigeria from October 1979 – December 1983, during the Nigerian Second Republic. He was of Ijebu extraction. Background Oloye Victor Olabisi Onab ...

at the start of the

Nigerian Second Republic The Second Nigerian Republic was a brief formation of the Nigerian state which succeeded the military governments formed after the overthrow of the first republic. Background Contested elections and political turbulence in the Western region en ...

. Eghagha was born on 8 March 1934 in Mereje,

Okpe Okpe is a kingdom in Delta State, Nigeria. Today, it is also the name of a local government area. It is one of the many kingdoms that make up Urhobo tribe. Its capital is Orerokpe. The kingdom plays host to the Osubi Airport (also known as Wa ...

Local Government Area, Urhoboland, Delta State. Eghagha played a minor role in the January 1966 coup that overthrew the

Nigerian First Republic The First Republic was the republican government of Nigeria between 1963 and 1966 governed by the first republican constitution. The country's government was based on a federal form of the Westminster system. The period between 1 October 1960, ...

and brought in the military regime of Major-General

Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi Johnson Thomas Umunnakwe Aguiyi-Ironsi (3 March 1924 – 29 July 1966) was the first military head of state of Nigeria. He seized power during the ensuing chaos after the 15 January 1966 military coup, which decapitated the country's leadersh ...

, as a second lieutenant in charge of a roadblock in

Kaduna Kaduna is the capital city of Kaduna State, and the former political capital of Northern Region, Nigeria, Northern Nigeria. It is located in north-western Nigeria, on the Kaduna River. It is a trade Centre and a major transportation hub as the ...

. His achievements while governor of Ogun State included building the legislative quarters and the road network in

Abeokuta Abeokuta is the capital city of Ogun State in southwest Nigeria. It is situated on the east bank of the Ogun River, near a group of rocky outcrops in a wooded savanna; north of Lagos by railway, or by water. , Abeokuta and the surrounding are ...

, the state capital. He built and commissioned the Ogun State Hotel, Abeokuta, established industrial estates throughout the State and founded the Ogun State Polytechnic (now

Moshood Abiola Polytechnic Moshood Abiola Polytechnic also known as MAPOLY is a tertiary learning institution in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria. The Ojere campus is in the South-Eastern part of Abeokuta, covering about 960 hectares of rolling land bounded by the Ogun River t ...

) in Abeokuta. He also served as Acting Governor of Sokoto and Kwara States, and was Nigeria's High Commissioner to Ghana. Brigadier General Harris Eghagha died at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital on 19 March 2009, aged 75.

References

Nigerian generals 2009 deaths 1934 births Governors of Ogun State Moshood Abiola Polytechnic people Founders of Nigerian schools and colleges University and college founders {{Nigeria-mil-bio-stub