Lt-Col Conrad Nwawo (rtd), 94, a mentor to the late Major Kaduna Nzeogwu, leader of Nigeria’s first military coup which occurred on January 15, 1966 has died at his Onicha Olona, Aniocha North Local Government, Delta State, residence.
The Nigerian civil war veteran taught the young Nzeogwu at the military school. But for Nwawo’s intervention, who was then, Defence Attache at the Nigerian High Commission, London, UK, the 1966 coup would have degenerated into an immediate civil war. He, alone could, and did stop the “unstoppable Nzeogwu.”
Elombah.com learnt Col Nwawo, a Brigadier in the Biafra army, during the Nigerian civil war, died on Saturday, 27th February 2016, and was survived by a son.
During the civil war, his name meant different things to different people, depending on which side of the divide you were. To some, it evoked bravery and courage, while for others, it signaled imminent danger.