It was not intended to be the main issue when Nigeria’s one time High Commissioner to London, Chief Matthew Mbu remarked, in a recent newspaper interview, that the country’s first and only Prime Minister, Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, died, not of gun shots in the January 15th 1966 coup.

The PC agreed whereupon the Major seized his rifle and passed it to one of his men. The PC then led the group to round up the remaining members of the Police guard. At the back of the house, i.e. at the creek side, they found a PC armed with a rifle and accompanied by a Police dog.

Again if I am asked who to believe between Osoba and Alhaji MD Yusuf, Alhaji Umaru Shinkafi and Alhaji Gambo Jimeta who are all seasoned policemen that were involved either directly or indirectly with the investigation into Tafawa Balewa’s death,

I remained at Sango-Ota up to January 15th 1966, the day the first military coup took place in Nigeria. On the night of the coup, I was at a police checkpoint in Sango Ota when a convoy of Army Land Rover, Trucks, and two Peugeot saloon cars were moving from Lagos to Abeokuta and we had no cause to suspect anything sinister because they were military vehicles presumably on a complimentary patrol to restore order.

Then they dragged me along with them to the main house. On the way one of them started talking in Ibo and the major seemed to question him. I don’t know what was said but it looked as if this man was leading the way.