Ibrahim Taiwo (died 13 February 1976) was a Military Governor of

Kwara State Kwara State ( yo, Ìpínlẹ̀ Kwárà), is a state in Western Nigeria, bordered to the east by Kogi State, to the north by Niger state, and to the south by Ekiti, Osun, and Oyo states, while its western border makes up part of the internation ...

from July 1975 to February 1976 during the military regime of General

Murtala Mohammed Murtala Ramat Muhammad (8 November 1938 – 13 February 1976) was a Nigerian general who led the 1966 Nigerian counter-coup in overthrowing the Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi military regime and featured prominently during the Nigerian Civil War ...

. He assisted in establishment of the

University of Ilorin University of Ilorin, also known as Unilorin, is a federal government-owned university in Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria. It was established by a decree of the federal military government in August, 1975. The establishment aimed to implement one o ...

, which was founded by decree August, 1975.

Life

Taiwo was born in

Wushishi Wushishi is a Local Government Area in Niger State, Nigeria. Its headquarters is in the town of Wushishi. Wushishi is located between Longitude 9°43'N and Latitude 6°04'E and it has an area of 1,879 km and a population of 81,783 at the 200 ...

Niger State Niger is a state in the North Central region of Nigeria and the largest state in the country. Niger state has three political zones, zone A,B and C. The state's capital is at Minna. Other major cities are Bida, Kontagora and Suleja. It was fo ...

to the family of Adeosun and Emily Taiwo. He was brought up in Kagara and was sometimes called Ibrahim Kagara while he was in school. Taiwo's father was of

Ogbomosho Ogbomosho (also Ògbómọ̀ṣọ́) is a city in Oyo State, south-western Nigeria. It was founded in the mid 17th century. The population was approximately 454,690 in the 2006 census. It is the second largest city in Oyo State and also among ...

ancestry. Ibrahim Taiwo was educated at Senior Primary School,

Minna Minna is a city in Middle Belt Nigeria. It is the capital city of Niger State, one of Nigeria's 36 federal states. It consists of two major ethnic groups: the Gbagyi and the Nupe. History Archaeological evidence suggests settlement in the ...

, Bida Middle School, and briefly attended the Provincial Secondary School, Okene for his Higher School Certificate.

Military career

Taiwo joined the military in 1961, he started military training at the

Nigerian Military Training College The Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) is a military university based in Kaduna, Nigeria that trains officer cadets for commissioning into one of the three services of the Nigerian Armed Forces: the Army, the Navy, and the Air Force. The duration of t ...

, Kaduna and also attended

Mons Officer Cadet School Mons Officer Cadet School was a British military training establishment for officer cadets in Aldershot from 1942 to 1972, when it was closed and all officer training concentrated at Sandhurst. Until 1960, it was known as the Mons Officer Cadet ...

Aldershot Aldershot () is a town in Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme northeast corner of the county, southwest of London. The area is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Alders ...

. While in the army, he served as a mechanical transport officer, Officer Commanding 2 Brigade Transport in Apapa, Staff Captain, Army Headquarters, Lagos, Officer in charge of 8 Brigade, Asaba and then Officer in charge of the Transport Company, Kaduna. During the Civil War, he was head of the transport and supplies division of the Nigerian Army.

Participation in the Nigerian counter-coup of July 1966

Taiwo, then a Captain with the Lagos Garrison in Yaba, was one of the many officers (including 2nd Lieutenant

Sani Abacha Sani Abacha (20 September 1943 – 8 June 1998) was a Nigerian military officer and politician who ruled as the military head of state of Nigeria from 1993 until his death in 1998. He seized power on 17 November 1993 in the last successful c ...

, Lieutenant

Muhammadu Buhari Muhammadu Buhari (born 17 December 1942) is a Nigerian politician and current president of Nigeria since 2015. Buhari is a retired Nigerian Army major general who served as the country's military head of state from 31 December 1983 to 27 Au ...

, Lieutenant

Ibrahim Bako Ibrahim Bako (1943 – December 31, 1983) 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 ...

, Lt Colonel

Murtala Muhammed Murtala Ramat Muhammad (8 November 1938 – 13 February 1976) was a Nigerian general who led the 1966 Nigerian counter-coup in overthrowing the Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi military regime and featured prominently during the Nigerian Civil War ...

, and Major

Theophilus Danjuma Theophilus Yakubu Danjuma (born 9 December 1938) is a politician and retired Nigerian army lieutenant general who played a key role in post independence military and political events in Nigeria. Danjuma amassed an enormous fortune through ship ...

among others), who staged what became known as the

Nigerian counter-coup of 1966 The 1966 Nigerian counter-coup, or the so-called "July Rematch", was the second of many military coups in Nigeria. It was masterminded by Lt. Colonel Murtala Muhammed and many northern military officers. The coup began as a mutiny at roughly midn ...

because of grievances they felt towards the administration of General Aguiyi Ironsi's government which quelled the 15 January 1966 coup.

Participation in the Nigerian Military Coup of 1975

Taiwo played a central role in the coup that ousted

Yakubu Gowon Yakubu Dan-Yumma 'Jack' Gowon (born 19 October 1934) is a retired Nigerian Army general and military leader. As Head of State of Nigeria, Gowon presided over a controversial Nigerian Civil War and delivered the famous "no victor, no vanquish ...

and brought Murtala Mohammed to power, under cover of his Supply and Transport duties in the army, working closely with Lt. Col.

Casualty of the 1976 Military Coup

Colonel Ibrahim Taiwo was the military governor of kwara state at the time of 13 February 1976 during a failed coup in which the then Head of State Gen. Murtala Mohammed was also killed, he was also killed by the coup plotters because he was an ally of the late Head of state. 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 ...

was later appointed as Head of State keeping the rest of Gen. Murtala Mohammed's

Chain of command A command hierarchy is a group of people who carry out orders based on others' authority within the group. It can be viewed as part of a power structure, in which it is usually seen as the most vulnerable and also the most powerful part. Milit ...

in place.

References

Year of birth missing 1976 deaths Graduates of the Mons Officer Cadet School People from Niger State Nigerian Muslims Yoruba military personnel Nigerian Army officers Governors of Kwara State Participants in the 1966 Nigerian counter-coup Military personnel of the Nigerian Civil War Participants in the 1975 Nigerian military coup Participants in the 1976 Nigerian military coup People murdered in Nigeria 1976 murders in Nigeria {{Nigeria-politician-stub