1966 Coup: My Dad Gen Ironsi Told Me At Ibadan Before He Was Whisked Away Not To Take Revenge -Ironsi

Thomas Aguiyi-Ironsi, a former Minister for Defence and son of Nigeria’s first military Head of State, Maj. Gen. Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi, has stated that the January 15, 1966 coup should not be described as an “Igbo coup.”

According to a report by Punch on Sunday, November 16, 2025, Thomas said it was a Nigerian coup carried out by Nigerians. He stated that it is wrong to turn it into an ethnic issue simply because some of the officers involved were Igbo. He said his father General Ironsi who became Head of State after the coup took place was not part of those who plotted the coup.

Thomas said before his father was taken away in Ibadan and killed during the July 26, 1966 counter-coup, his father told him never to seek revenge. He said he has obeyed that instruction. He added that the best honour for everyone who died in 1966 is not revenge but true reform and restructuring of Nigeria. In his words: “My father told me at Ibadan before he was whisked away not to take revenge. I obey my father. As the great Sarduana said, we must respect our differences”

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