The Gun Hegemony explores Nigeria’s coups, Civil War, and dictatorship and their lasting political, social, and economic impact
A new historical and analytical book, The Gun Hegemony, has reignited debate on Nigeria’s post-independence trajectory, posing difficult questions about the nation’s political, social, and economic development.
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The book examines whether Nigeria’s existence and struggles could have unfolded without the introduction of firearms and military coercion.
It asks whether military insurrections, coups, and dictatorships might have been avoided if not for the gun, and whether these instruments of force shaped the trajectory of the Nigerian state.
Authoritative questions explored include the origins of the Nigerian Army whether it was a creation of the nascent nation or of British colonial authorities designed to suppress ethnic groups and the principal promoters and advisers behind the 1966 first and revenge coups.
The work also revisits the pivotal ego contest between Col. Chukwuemeka Ojukwu and Major General Yakubu Gowon, which precipitated the Civil War, and its enduring consequences for the Igbo ethnic group and Nigeria at large.
The Gun Hegemony interrogates Major Kaduna Nzeogwu’s 1966 critique of the first coup as tribalistic and examines why Major General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi delayed convening military bodies to address the coup plotters.
It also questions Aguiyi-Ironsi’s insistence on Decree 34, despite contrary advice from senior officers such as Lt. Col. Usman Katsina.
The book further explores the broader consequences of prolonged military rule on Nigeria’s socio-economic and political systems, public institutions, infrastructure, and national ethos.
It asks why, despite abundant natural and human resources, Nigeria has struggled to achieve the developmental progress of nations with which it was previously on par at independence.
In addition, The Gun Hegemony examines the roles of collaborators and acquiescing elites in sustaining military rule and the lasting legacies of these actions on governance, democracy, and civic standards.
According to the author, the book serves as both a historical record and a call for reflection.
“Nigerians should understand why, after 65 years of independence, the country remains a collection of regions rather than a united nation. The insurrection of January 15, 1966, changed our trajectory irreversibly,” the author writes.
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The publication invites historians, political scientists, and the general public to critically engage with Nigeria’s military past and its enduring impact, aiming to provide answers that have long eluded both scholars and citizens.
