Sixty years ago, in the early hours of January 15, 1966, Nigeria experienced its first military coup, an event that permanently altered the nation’s political and social trajectory. What began as a coordinated attempt by a group of young military officers to overthrow the First Republic ended in bloodshed, controversy and long-lasting national divisions.
The coup unfolded simultaneously in key cities including Kaduna, Lagos and Ibadan. In Kaduna, some senior military officers and political leaders were targeted, including the Premier of the Northern Region, Sir Ahmadu Bello. In Lagos, Prime Minister Abubakar Tafawa Balewa was arrested and later killed after the coup began to unravel. Several other senior officers and politicians were also detained, while some were released unharmed.
The Lagos operation was led by Major Emmanuel Ifeajuna, assisted by other officers. Confusion marked the night, worsened by the absence of timely official communication. With limited information available to the public, rumours spread quickly, deepening fear and mistrust across the country.
In Ibadan, the Western Region Premier, Chief Samuel Ladoke Akintola, had been alerted to unusual military movements. He resisted arrest and was killed in the confrontation that followed. Across the country, the military hierarchy was severely disrupted as several senior officers lost their lives, while others narrowly escaped.
Although the coup failed to establish a new government, it created a power vacuum. Major-General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi, the most senior officer at the time, eventually assumed control, marking the beginning of military rule in Nigeria.
One of the most enduring legacies of the 1966 coup has been the controversy surrounding its ethnic interpretation. The fact that most of the coup’s planners were of Igbo extraction, combined with the deaths of many northern leaders and the survival of prominent eastern politicians, fuelled perceptions of ethnic bias. These suspicions would later contribute to the counter-coup of July 1966 and the chain of events that followed.
However, some surviving officers and historians have argued that the coup was driven more by political frustration, corruption concerns and youthful idealism than by ethnic ambition. They insist that the actions of the plotters should be viewed within the context of the instability of the First Republic rather than reduced to a single narrative.
What remains indisputable is that January 15, 1966, marked a turning point. The coup ended Nigeria’s first democratic experiment, ushered in decades of military intervention in governance, and set the stage for future upheavals.
Six decades later, the events of that day continue to provoke debate, reflection and lessons on the fragile nature of nation-building. History agrees on one point: Nigeria was never the same again
