Philip Efiong (also spelled Effiong, 18 November 1925 – 6 November 2003) was the first
Vice President
A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on ...
and the second
President
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*President (corporate title)
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of the now defunct
Republic of Biafra during the
Nigerian Civil War
The Nigerian Civil War (6 July 1967 – 15 January 1970), also known as the Nigerian–Biafran War or the Biafran War, was a civil war fought between Nigeria and the Republic of Biafra, a secessionist state which had declared its independence ...
of 1967 to 1970.
Early life
Born in
Ibiono Ibom in present-day
Akwa Ibom State
Akwa Ibom State is a state in the South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria, bordered on the east by Cross River State, on the west by Rivers State and Abia State, and on the south by the Atlantic Ocean. The state takes its name from the Qua Iboe ...
,
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 ...
, on 18 November 1925, Philip Effiong joined the
Nigerian Armed Forces
The Nigerian Armed Forces (NAF) are the combined military forces of Nigeria. It consists of three uniformed service branches: the Nigerian Army, Nigerian Navy, and Nigerian Air Force. The President of Nigeria functions as the commander-in-chief ...
on 28 July 1945. He quickly rose through the ranks until on 11 January 1956 he received the
Queen's Commission
A commission is a formal document issued to appoint a named person to high office or as a commissioned officer in a territory's armed forces. A commission constitutes documentary authority that the person named is vested with the powers of that ...
following his officer cadet training at
Eaton Hall in Chester. The
UK later commissioned him for duty in the
Rhine
), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland
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,
West Germany
West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...
. He was then transferred to the Nigeria Army Ordnance Corps; then to England for further training after a peace-keeping stint in the
Republic of Congo in 1961. He was Nigeria's first Director of Ordnance. His son is his namesake.
Biafra
Efiong became Chief of General Staff of Biafra under Head of State,
Odumegwu Ojukwu during the Nigeria-Biafra war.
The tactics of the
Nigerian military during the war included economic blockade and deliberate destruction of agricultural land. Even before the war, the area was a net importer of food, depending on income from its oil fields to feed its populace.
With the blockade cutting off oil revenue and agricultural destruction reducing food production, the result was mass dislocation and starvation of the populace. Two to three million people are thought to have died in the conflict, mostly through starvation and illness.
When Biafra's military resistance collapsed, Ojukwu fled to
Côte d'Ivoire.
Effiong became acting Biafra Head of State
Efiong assumed leadership in this situation of turmoil, starvation, and collapse. He became acting Head of State of Biafra on 8 January 1970 and on 12 January announced surrender.
Effiong's Speech to Gowon
On 15 January 1970 at
Dodan Barracks
Dodan Barracks is a military barracks 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 mili ...
in Lagos, in the presence of General
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 vanquishe ...
, Effiong announced the end of the Biafran conflict.
"I, Major-General Phillip Efiong, Officer Administering the Government of the Republic of Biafra, now wish to make the following declaration:
That we affirm that we are loyal Nigerian citizens and accept the authority of the Federal Military Government of Nigeria.
That we accept the existing administrative and political structure of the Federation of Nigeria.
That any future constitutional arrangement will be worked out by representatives of the people of Nigeria.
That the Republic of Biafra hereby ceases to exist."
At the time of the surrender, Effiong believed that the situation was hopeless and that prolonging the conflict would have led only to the further destruction and starvation of the people of Biafra. At that time Effiong said, "I am convinced now that a stop must be put to the bloodshed which is going on as a result of the war. I am also convinced that the suffering of our people must be brought to an immediate end."
Nnaemeka L. Aneke wrote, "General Efiong’s handling of Biafra’s surrender is one of the most tactical and devoted maneuvers ever seen on the Nigerian scene. Those who do not appreciate the depth of it may not have appreciated what was at stake as Biafra capitulated."
Obong Philip Efion: A Tribute to an Uncommon Nigerian
by Nnaemeka L. Aneke. Accessed 5 July 2007. Many observers had expected wholesale retribution at war's end.
Later life
In a 1996 interview, Effiong reflected on those events:
:I have no regrets whatsoever of my involvement in Biafra or the role I played. The war deprived me of my property, dignity, my name. Yet, I saved so many souls on both sides and by this, I mean Biafra and Nigeria. . . .
:I felt that I played a role which has kept this country united till today. . . .
:At the end of it all when I saw they (Biafran soldiers) could no longer continue and Ojukwu had fled, I did what was ideal after wide consultation . .
Efiong died 6 November 2003, at the age of 77 less than two weeks before his 78th birthday.
References
'' Daily Times of Nigeria'', 7 January 2004, lists the date of death as 7 November 2003, and the age at death as 79, perhaps because the death date was so close to Efiong's 79th birthday.
The Biafra-Nigeria Civil War of 1967–70
*http://www.philip-effiong.com/Dad-Memory The site of Philip Effiong the Second
{{DEFAULTSORT:Effiong, Philip
1925 births
2003 deaths
People from Akwa Ibom State
Presidents of Biafra
Vice presidents
Biafran Armed Forces personnel