NOT YOUR ORDINARY DAY

A seemingly harmless government order sets the stage for strange and unprecedented ripple effects

PROLOGUE
In January 1966, a group of desperate EASTERN Officers struck at the Nigeria's nascent civilian form of government, the officers were still politically naive and had yet to master the art of coup planning and execution. This inexperience partly explains why Major Kaduna Nzeogwu and others who masterminded the coup, failed to take over state power. Instead, Major General Johnson Aguiyi Ironsi, commander in chief of the army, became Nigeria's first military ruler.
The January 1966 coup was carried out in the early hours of Jan 15th 1966 when army Officer Major Kaduna Nzeogwu decided to turn 'Exercise Damisa' into a full blown military coup. The coup was carried out by mostly IGBO army officers including Major Kaduna Nzeogwu, Major Emmanuel Ifeajuna, Major Tim Onwuategwu, Major Dan Okafor, Major Chris Anuforo, Major Humphrey Chukwuka, among others.
The casualties of the coup included the Prime Minister, Alhaji Abubakar Tafawa Balewa (shot by Major Ifeajuna) the Sardauna of Sokoto, Sir Ahmadu Bello (shot by Major Nzeogwu alongside his faithful bodyguard who came to defend him with a bow and arrow and his wife who tried to shield him with her body), First Brigade Commander, Brigadier Maimalari (shot by major Ifeajuna after he managed to escape from Major Okafor) and other top NORTHERN officers.

The coup of January 1966 was seen by many NORTHERNERS as an attempt by the IGBO people of the east to dominate the federation and ultimately wipe out top NORTHERNERS.
During the initial stages, Nzeogwu and his collaborators were hailed as national heroes. But the pattern of killings in the coup gave it a partisan appearance: killed were the Prime Minister, a NORTHERNER, the premier of the NORTHERN Region, a NORTHERNER, the first brigade commander, a NORTHERNER whose death was considered as the greatest treachery by Major Ifeajuna and the highest ranking NORTHERN army officers.
General Ironsi, an IGBO, emerged as the head of state. In his policies and actions, He failed to place the coup plotters on trial as NORTHERN leaders demanded, and he appointed IGBOS to sensitive governmental positions. His actions reinforced northern fears.
Therefore the countercoup of July 1966 which was majorly led by NORTHERN army officers should have been expected. Most top-ranking IGBO officers, including Ironsi, lost their lives; the "status quo" of northern dominance was restored.
However the Civil War of 1967 which was led by Lt Col Ojukwu, an IGBO War Lord and Chieftain once again unbalanced the equations. Many lives were lost on both sides, Many EASTERNERS and NORTHERNERS lost their lives, and indeed it was a period of bloodshed and woes. When the war was eventually brought to an end in 1970, it still took many years for major affected parties to forget.

It's being many years now, A whole lot of people have forgotten, the Easterners have forgotten too but Some desperate Northerners never forgot, the Jan 1966 coup that led to the murder of Tafawa Balewa, Ahmadu Bello and Maimalari lives on in their memories, The blood of vengeance boils hot in their veins..
One of such Northerners who never forgot was Captain Yusuf Muhammad
CHAPTER ONE
(May 17th 2019, the following events occurred between 6am and 8am)

The c**k crowed rather late on this fateful Friday morning, it was the kind of day we would generally refer to as a slow day, this reflected in the activities of majority of the people that morning.
Workers and students alike went about their chores and preparation for the day rather slowly, even the moon had probably overstayed its scheduled time, as even at past 6am, it was still sighted slowly returning to his abode.
Benin City was having a slow day and everyone was going about their different activities slowly when the news broke out on TVs, radio and every form of mass media available,
The President had just come on national TV and declared a state of emergency in the peaceful city of Benin, the reasons were not totally spelt out but there were hints of a planned attack on the city by insurgents,( during this period, a dreaded Islamic jihadist group where on rampage and had struck a deadly broad day light attack on the peaceful city of Ibadan) Obviously, the government had gotten wind of a planned similar attack on the nation's heart beat and had subsequently declared a state of emergency.
The news dropped at exactly 7am, people in their homes were advised to remain in their homes and shut the door against themselves, the early risers who were already at work were meant to shut themselves in their offices, students and pupils in schools were to do same, those on the roads were stopped from further movements and quickly led into make shift safe houses along the roads, all the security agencies and the armies available were let loose in the city, soldiers were available to guide houses and safe houses along the roads..
The safe houses comprised of big buildings and halls that could accommodate a large number of people, most churches had their doors broken in by soldiers and citizens of the state that had already left their homes that morning were being safeguarded in these safe houses. Soldiers were stationed at major streets and roads to provide protection for people that were still in their homes, soldiers were deployed to schools and every other place that had people in them, every safe house had soldiers and policemen inside and outside the buildings. The government wasn't going to take chances this time around, they didn't want the insurgents to catch them unaware again, once beaten, twice shy.
Corporal Obinna was in one of such safe houses, he was in the safe house they tagged Otubu 1, in Benin City, there were 3 big churches in Otubu quarters and one of them had served as the safe house for that zone, the safe houses were moderately filled with people, corporate workers, teachers, students, pupils, everyone who had the ill luck of leaving their homes very early that morning that was stuck on the road as at the time of the President's order were moved to these safe houses.
Corporal Obinna, alongside three other policemen of the Otubu Police division were assigned to Otubu 1 safe house. There were six soldiers assigned to this particular safe house also.
Otubu 1 safe house was reasonably peaceful, but the air was tense and fear could be seen in the eyes of all the occupants of the safe house. Even the soldiers and policemen, though fully armed were not so sure of themselves, (indeed anyone that heard, watched or read about the mayhem that was unleashed by these insurgents at Ibadan, would have to be scared, it was totally bloody and heart sickening)

'Ok, please people can we come together?' it was the army commander in charge of the zone that was speaking, every one turned and moved forward as the soldiers beckoned them to move close to the church altar, there should have being roughly five hundred people in the church auditorium.
Lt Usuman regarded his audience and continued 'I know many of us would be terribly scared as at this moment, the fear of the unknown is something we all have in common right now but I would advise that we all remain calm, trust me every one in my custody would be safe, we just have to hang on for a little time here and once we have cleared the city and we are sure of its safety, you can all go back to your respective activities, but for now, let us remain calm and understand that we are all going to be safe here'
He finished his speech and looked at his audience once more, his speech hadn't generated the confidence he had hoped it would generate on the people, as he climbed down the altar, everyone returned back to their former positions still wearing same troubled and weary faces, for them the day would be a very long one... this wasn't their ordinary day....
Everyone tried to maintain their cool, some mothers were busy hugging their children close assuring them that all was well, Some families were holding on even closer together, A little farther down the hall was a woman trying without fail to stop her one year old baby from crying, many of the children in the safe house had tears in their eyes, it seemed so many of them were already sure of certain death, the atmosphere in the safe house could pass for a funeral service, there was the ominous fear of death moving around the hall, this could as well be the end for them, the soldiers were busy patrolling the perimeters, two of them were outside the building, the other four were inside the building, the policemen on the other hand were moving round the hall too, with their own rifles trying to assure very scared individuals that there was safety in the safe house.
Lt Usuman looked at his wristwatch, it was 7.59am, he signalled on one of the soldiers, as the soldier ran to him the next sound that could be heard outside the building was loud and deafening sounds of sporadic gunfire.








CHAPTER TWO
(May 17th 2019. the following actions took place between the hours of 8.00am and 9.00am)

Everyone in the hall scampered for safety at the sound of gunfire, majority of the people found themselves running towards the altar, indeed the biblical injunction *come unto me all ye that labour and are heavy laden* was evident as people madly scrambled towards the altar as if there was a spiritual bullet proof there. The policemen even lost their guard as they dove for cover, but the soldiers didn't even seem to move, they only crouched low and waited as if trying to get their bearings.
Then suddenly the sounds of gun fire ceased as suddenly as it had begun. There was pin drop silence in the hall, even the baby that had been crying seemed to understand for the first time that silence was golden.
Lt Usuman and the other three soldiers immediately took positions at different sides of the hall with their guns ready and their ears pricked up waiting for the next sound to determine their immediate move... the policemen looked undecided, but they quickly followed suit and took positions too with their rifles cocked waiting to get clue from the soldiers on what to do.
After what seemed like an endless wait in total silence and heightened fear, voices were heard outside the building, the voices sounded like salutation and reply, the soldiers relaxed their defences a little and Lt Usuman made his way out of the building closely followed by the other three soldiers, as they got outside, he found himself staring at a truck filled with soldiers, they would have being close to fifty in number, Capt. Oladapo was already addressing the two soldiers outside the safe house when Lt Usuman and the other soldiers joined them outside, Lt Usuman and the other soldiers immediately went on salute mode and Capt. Oladapo responded accordingly.
This squad had just come in from the west and were on an inspection tour trying to access all the possible weak links that might exist in the safe houses and fix it where there was a need, their modus operandi was to stage a false attack on their arrival at safe houses and observe the response. That explained the loud sounds of gunfire that had thrown the occupants of the building into panic.
Capt. Oladapo, admired the response of the soldiers as the two soldiers stationed outside weren't caught off guard and appeared invisible till they had discovered the incoming troop was on their side. He asked Lt usuman to come along with them and assist in inspecting some other safe houses since he was more familiar with the terrain, meanwhile stepping in for Lt usuman till he returned was Sgt Razaq.
Sgt Razaq got down from the truck and went into the hall with the other three soldiers as Lt Usuman joined Capt. Oladapo in the truck and the truck drove away.
Sgt Razaq was one man in the army that had too much anger, there was never a smile on his face, he treated his junior officers with contempt and always wore this look of suspicion like he was the only person in the world that could be trusted. His contemporaries and junior officers usually made fun of him behind his back and thought him to be a sadist. Sgt Razaq didn't smile for once, it seemed to him there was nothing absolutely good about life, a junior officer had once cracked a joke that if Sgt Razaq created electronics, he would have antagonised LG and called his products LB (life is bad).
Sgt Razaq entered into the hall ignoring the anxious and scared eyes that were gazing at him for explanations. He regarded the policemen with contempt and shook his head in a way that could be interpreted to mean *do these ones think we are playing here?*
He walked towards the altar, stood above it, faced his audience and clapped. His clap was his own symbol to draw the attention of his audience, everyone stared at him in silence as he began to speak.
'I know most of you here expect me to bring unto you a message of peace and hope but am sorry, the army can't afford such frivolity, this is a serious matter and we attack it as such' He paused and stared at his audience for some time as if he was waiting for his message to sink in their heads, the atmosphere had by now become more tense than it had been at the onset, he nodded and continued..
'The worst enemies in battle are those within, that's why we are going to begin by first cleansing this safe house'. And as he said that, he ordered the other soldiers to move into the crowd and begin to search everyone's belongings. The Policemen stood looking at him undecided, He looked towards them and ignored them like they didn't exist as he walked into the crowd too to join in searching the occupants of the safe house. The Policemen had no option but to join in the search or cleansing as Sgt Razaq called it.
'Leave her alone, don't handle her in that manner' a man was trying to stop one of the soldiers from man handling his wife, 'what's happening there?' Sgt Razaq inquired as he moved quickly to the spot, 'Sir, this man is obstructing me from searching his wife' the Soldier replied, Sgt Razaq released his gun and pointed it at the man, 'do you have a problem with being searched Mr Man?' he asked the Man, this was Doctor Daniel, a reputable man in the society 'no sir, I only tried to tell him to handle her with care, she's my wife and she's not feeling so strong at the......'
His speech was cut short by a blinding slap from Sgt Razaq, the slap sent him sprawling backwards to the ground as he fell on some chairs. 'You are a big idiot, bloody civilians don't tell us how to do our jobs' Dr Daniel staggered up with fury in his eyes but he knew better than to engage an armed soldier, Sgt Razaq regarded him still holding his gun threateningly at him and spoke to the other soldier, 'go ahead and search her, if he poses any resistance again, shoot his legs'
Everyone stared on in total shock and disbelief, No one could understand what was happening, only some of the other soldiers in the other van knew that Sgt Razaq had taken an overdose of Indian hemp that morning, and it was slowly taking a dangerous effect on him. Sgt Razaq turned and walked towards the crowd brandishing his gun in a way that scared everyone, 'listen everyone and listen very good, as far as this safe house is concerned, I am your god, because I would deliver you from these insurgents.... the earlier you understand that, the better for all of us. Trust me if anyone defies my order again, we would teach you what the hen does with the cockroach' he hissed loudly as he shouted at the top of his voice 'BLOODY CIVILIANS'
....the occupants of Otubu safe house one were in for the worst day of their lives.



CHAPTER THREE
(May 17th 2019, the following events took place between 9.00am and 10.00am)

The atmosphere in Otubu safe house one suddenly became chilling, despite the intensity of the sun that morning. Sgt Razaq had suddenly become more of a threat than the impending doom that might result from the insurgent's attacks if they eventually showed up.

ABOUT SGT RAZAQ
Sgt Razaq was born in June 1987, He was born into a rather wealthy and influential family, His Father was a very rich Hausa business man who had made his own name in the great city of Kano, his father Alhaji Muhammad had married four wives as was common with most rich and influential Muslims in Kano state. His own Mum had given birth to six boys for his father, Razaq was the youngest of them all, the other wives also had children for Alhaji Muhammad, and though quite uncommon among polygamous homes, the family of Alhaji Muhammad led a peaceful and religious life until the night that changed everything for Razaq.
He could never ever forget that night in his life, it was the year 2004, he was barely 16years old, Razaq and his immediate elder brother shared the same room in his Father's very big house, they had all gone to bed that night, when Razaq had woken up to the sounds of gunfire, he had opened his eyes and found himself lying alone on the very big mahogany bed he usually shared with his brother, the gunfire continued and this time screams and shouts followed it, he quickly jumped up from his bed and ran out of the room, he ran into the compound but what met his eyes threw him off guard, he saw his entire family kneeling down with their hands on their head, Gun men surrounded them, the gun men would have numbered over twenty, they were speaking Fulani, some of them had machetes too, he was about to scream in terror when a hand from behind him covered his mouth and pulled him with great force behind the trees in the compound, a voice whispered in his ears in Hausa language, keep quiet, don't say a word, it was unmistakably the voice of his immediate elder brother, they crouched behind the trees and watched the events unfold before their eyes.
The Leader of the gang kept raising his voice at their father, it seemed he wanted to get an information from him, Alhaji Muhammad was also involved in state politics and the game of politics was quite very dirty in Kano state, Alhaji Muhammad wasn't the kind of man to be intimidated by gun men, he just kept staring at the leader, his hands up and behind his head and in a kneeling position, his response in Hausa indicated that he would never tell them, Razaq didn't expect what he saw next, the Leader of the gang cursed in Hausa language, drew back from his Father and drew out his machete, in one quick swing of the hand, Razaq beheld his Father's head drop to the ground off his body, the blood spurted out like a tap that had its head broken and screams from his wives and children pierced the night and shook the whole environment. He made to scream in terror but his elder brother's hands over his mouth muffled his scream, hell broke loose as the other family members continued screaming and trying to run from one point to another even though they were being restrained by the gun men, the next thing that happened before their eyes was the same thing that stole Razaq's joy for the remaining part of his life
Razaq and his brother watched their whole family murdered in cold blood, it was a total butcher, some were shot, others were cut with machetes but no one was left alive, not even the women and children, the gun men further set the house on fire and Razaq and his brother were fortunate to escape through a secret exit behind the compound but not before he committed his first cold blooded murder in a bid to save his brother's life for which his brother had sworn to protect him with his life.
That was years ago, Razaq and his brother had subsequently stood together and surmounted all life challenges together, his brother was lucky to get into the army as a recruit and when he had become great in the army he had brought in Razaq too, who had grown so fast and become a Sergeant in very little time.
Sgt Razaq had never forgotten this terrible experience and hence he never had any reasons to smile and for a long while had been addicted to smoking Indian hemp excessively to forget his sorrows. This day was one such day where he had taken quite too much of the stuff.

BACK TO OTUBU 1 SAFE HOUSE
Sgt Razaq paced up and down the hall as the other soldiers continued to search the occupants of the safe house.
He kept hearing the voices in his head, *the insurgents are in this place, the insurgents are in this place* He was far gone now, he couldn't differentiate between his instincts and the voice of the hard drugs he had taken.
Every now and then he would let out a loud shout 'Bloody civilians' and brandish the gun in a threatening way at the crowd. Corporal Obinna had being silently watching the events as they unfolded, he was a junior policeman but he was a very experienced one too, he sure knew when someone was under the influence of drugs, he also knew that such a person with a gun was extremely dangerous.
'Hey you, bloody civilian, stand up' it was the voice of Sgt Razaq again, he was pointing the gun at a very old man who would have probably being in his late seventies, the old man stood up leaning on his walking stick, he had tribal marks running across his face, one guess would say he was Fulani. 'What are you hiding in your bag?' Sgt Razaq asked him, the man was holding unto a black cellophane bag, it was quite small though, Sgt Razaq walked towards him and pulled the cellophane bag from the man with such force that the old man almost fell, but he managed to regain his balance. Corporal Obinna saw this and moved quickly to the point, his rifle was still in his hands as he walked towards the old man and Sgt Razaq.
Sgt Razaq emptied the contents of the bag on the ground, it contained some papers, a pen and a small radio. 'so this is your means of communicating with the other insurgents right?' the old man looked on helplessly, 'Answer me you bloody civilian' the old man was fidgeting and visibly scared by now, anyone would have being scared considering the way the gun was pointing at him, Corporal Obinna quickly spoke to avoid any unforeseen eventuality 'Sir, I don't think, this old man means any harm by carrying a radio' Sgt Razaq turned sharply and looked at the policeman with contempt 'So when they call armed forces, you also will make yourself available right? If you don't mind your business now, I would treat you like the bloody civilian that you are' he hissed and turned back to the old man and continued. 'I would give you till the count of three to confess your mission here or I blow your brains out'
The old man continued to fidget in fear, the other policemen and soldiers had come to the point now, everyone was confused, the other soldiers knew better than to question their commanding officer, the occupants of the safe house had their hearts in their mouth. Corporal Obinna was deep in thoughts, he was a policeman, his duty was to guide and protect, as Sgt Razaq cocked his gun, Corporal Obinna also cocked his rifle....























CHAPTER FOUR
(May 17th 2019, the following event took place between 10.00am and 10.10am)

ABOUT CORPORAL OBINNA
Corporal Obinna had been one of those unfortunate ones that were born without a silver spoon, he was the only child of his parents, born into a poverty stricken family back in one of the villages in Abia state. He had lost his mother at birth, she had lost so much blood during his delivery and had died in the process, this was also partly due to the fact that his Father a village palm wine tapper didn't have enough money to take his Mother to a good hospital and hence when there were complications during delivery, the quack doctor could do nothing for her and she had died due to carelessness.
After his mother's death, his Father had given his life to drinking and abandoned him to his grandmother who used all she had to take care of him and see him through primary and secondary school, after secondary school he had earned a living doing different menial jobs, he couldn't attend a tertiary institution either as he didn't have enough money to pursue such an ambition. Fate had however smiled on him when he was recruited into the police force a year ago and was subsequently posted to Benin City. He was also rather unfortunate to be one of the policemen that were posted to guard Otubu safe house one and here he was trying to cope with a sergeant who had apparently lost his mind.



FLASH BACK
(May 17th, 2004)
Razaq and his elder brother Yusuf watched the assailants murder their family and as they began to set the house on fire, they managed to sneak away unnoticed and jumped over the lower part of their house fence, that part had being broken for some time and it was yet to be fixed, it however served as their lucky route of escape. As they jumped down from the fence, they crouched low and tried to observe their immediate surroundings, it was rather dark and bushy, the back of their house was surrounded by some bushes and trees, and no one was in sight. Yusuf asked Razaq to allow him walk a little distance and be sure that all was safe before he came out to join him, Yusuf crawled out of his hiding and walked on tip toe, he didn't know two of the assailants were also laying wait at the back of the house in case anyone tried to escape. He had almost bumped into them when he heard their voices, they were both leaning on a tree and smoking, talking in low tones speaking Hausa language.
Yusuf wasn't alien to physical combat, he had taken special classes in wrestling and physical combat, so he knew he could handle these two, he observed they were handling their guns carelessly and he could see a machete lying on the ground beside them, he knew if he went for the machete, they might get him before he eventually got the machete, so he settled for hand combat, he studied his environment again to be sure of his next move and went towards them noiselessly.
The black assailant was still talking when the sharp blow from Yusuf connected with his neck, as he made to shout, a fast upper cut sent him sprawling on the ground, the yellow assailant immediately made for his gun but Yusuf was faster, a sharp kick to his groin sent him straight down to his knees, another round a*s kick connected with his skull and he was out cold. As Yusuf raised his head he was staring at the muzzle of an AK 47, the black assailant had picked himself up and gotten his gun while Yusuf was busy with the fair one, he opened his teeth widely and shook his head at Yusuf, he spoke in Hausa 'say your last prayer, fool' Yusuf resigned himself to death and kept quiet as he watched the assailant softly caress the AK 47.

Splash!!!
The blood spilled on Yusuf's face and soiled his clothes too, He opened his eyes just in time to see the assailants head drop from off his shoulders and his headless body fall to the ground with a mighty thud. Standing behind the assailant was 16 year old Razaq holding the bloodstained machete, the blood dripped steadily from the machete, there was blood on his face and body too, the expression he wore on his face was equivalent to the face of death, Yusuf looked up at his younger brother who had just given him his life back, Razaq stood there staring at the headless body of the man he had just beheaded, his eyes had vengeance written all over it, he didn't feel fear, he suddenly felt an overpowering emotion of satisfaction,
Yusuf stood up and hugged him close, that was the day he vowed to protect Razaq with his very own life, that was the day he swore that as long as he was alive, no evil would befall his younger brother and he had kept this promise till this day.


BACK TO OTUBU ONE SAFE HOUSE
Sgt Razaq raised his gun and pointed it at the old man as he repeated his warning 'I will give you till the count of three to tell us your mission here or I will blow your brains out'
The old man continued fidgeting, he was scared to death at this point, the safe house was as silent as a graveyard, the soldiers and policemen were uneasy, Corporal Obinna was praying silently for God to take control of the situation.
One.... Sgt Razaq began to count, his hands went to the trigger and steadied on it, Two.... as he counted two, Corporal Obinna's hand went to his own trigger too and steadied on it...
As he made to count three, he was interrupted by Corporal Obinna's voice 'Sir, I am sorry, I can't allow you do that'
Sgt Razaq turned and faced corporal Obinna, his eyes were bloodshot and blood thirsty, 'how dare you open your dirty mouth and regard me in that manner, he raised his gun, pointed it towards Corporal Obinna and made to squeeze the trigger but in that split moment, Corporal Obinna squeezed the trigger of his own police assault rifle
CHAPTER FIVE
(May 17th 2019, the following events took place between 10.10am and 11.00am)

The sound of the police assault rifle could be heard several streets away, Corporal Obinna obviously hadn't planned to release the bullet, it was more of a reflex action than a deliberate attempt.
Sgt Razaq's raised gun fell from his hands as the bullet from the police rifle connected with his chest, the bullet went straight for his heart and at such a close range, Sgt Razaq was already dead before he eventually fell to the floor in eternal rest, away from the harsh realities of life forever.
There could have been total silence for close to a minute, it suddenly seemed Sgt Razaq was being honoured with a minute silence as was practised in the country.
Everyone was too shocked for words, the other soldiers stood in total shock and disbelief, they had seen the bullet hit their own commander, they didn't need a doctor to confirm to them that Sgt Razaq was dead, the three other policemen were totally struck with shock and the shock on their face gradually turned into fear as reality began to dawn on them - A police man, a junior ranking one for that matter, had just shot and killed a Soldier in the full glare of the public and other soldiers.
The two other soldiers originally stationed outside ran into the hall, apparently they had heard the shot, they were greeted by the body of their commander lying on the ground in a pool of his own blood. Zaiki was a hot headed soldier, he was one of the two soldiers that had just run into the hall, he immediately accessed the situation and could tell that corporal Obinna had released the shot that killed his commander, without waiting for explanations he lifted up his gun and fired at Corporal Obinna.
The bullet narrowly missed Corporal Obinna as the other soldier, Sgt Mustapha had predicted Zaiki's response and pushed him before he fired, but the push had resulted in some other harm, the bullets had narrowly missed Corporal Obinna but it didn't miss the old man that Sgt Razaq had been questioning. The bullets caught him on his neck and he gave a very loud cry as he fell to the ground to his inevitable death.
Sgt Mustapha immediately took over command as he was the next available senior officer, His voice boomed in the hall 'secure the police men and secure Zaiki too' he commanded the other two soldiers, they moved quickly and in a matter of minutes the police men were disarmed and were being covered by one of the soldiers holding a gun and Zaiki had been disarmed too and was been covered by another soldier.
Sgt Mustapha was calm and calculated, he politely asked two young men to help the other soldier as they carried Sgt Razaq's body away from the hall into one of the offices and laid him there pending further decisions. The old man's body was left unattended to for a while, who cared about a bloody civilian? For the time being, a dead soldier was all that mattered, Sgt Mustapha asked the other soldier to go ahead and make the call to Army Headquarters in Benin City and tell them what had just happened. The Soldier went outside the hall to make the call as such calls were official and should be private.
Ponjul Lar was the Soldier that made the call, he was from Jos and was one of those who hated the Easterners with a strong passion, He was one of those Northerners who never forgot the January 1966 coup that was led by major Kaduna Nzeogwu that led to the death of Alhaji Tafawa Balewa, Sir Ahmadu Bello and Brigadier Maimalari... Ponjul Lar was meant to make one call only to the Commanding Officer of Ekenwan Barracks but he made two calls.
The first call was to the office of the Commanding Officer. His message was intended to cause a state of chaos, as the receiver answered from the other end, Ponjul Lar dropped the message that led to one of the worst periods of manslaughter in the Nigerian history, these were his words, 'I am reporting from Otubu one safe house, and some Easterners have just murdered a Northern Soldier' and he dropped the call.
His next call was intended to cause more harm than the first, he dialled the number a few times before the receiver picked the call at the other end. Ponjul Lar spoke in Hausa dialect as he dropped the second message, the receiver of the message received the message and swore loudly in pain in Hausa dialect too, the receiver raised his voice in grief loudly, he could not be consoled, and he was still weeping bitterly in grief when Ponjul Lar ended the call.
The second call was made to Capt. Yusuf Muhammad who was in Delta state at the time, Capt. Yusuf Muhammad was the elder brother of Sgt Razaq and Ponjul Lar's message to him was simple, his Hausa was translated to mean 'Your brother has just being murdered by an Easterner at the Otubu one Safe House and from every indication, this Easterner might go free if we don't act now'
Ponjul Lar came back into the hall and reported to Sgt Mustapha that he had made the call and was awaiting response from the office of the Commanding officer. Sgt Mustapha addressed the now very quiet occupants of the safe house and advised everyone to stay calm as every issue would be sorted accordingly, after trying unsuccessfully to allay their fears, he asked two other young men to assist Ponjul Lar in carrying the corpse of the old man to another office away from the hall, as they lifted the old man from the ground, a small black case fell from his body,
Sgt Mustapha walked quickly to pick up the case as the men dropped the old man back on the ground, He picked up the black case and examined it, it had a red button on one side, it was wired electronically and to the dismay of everyone he announced softly, 'it's a bomb'....
... Meanwhile as Sgt Mustapha was busy discovering the bomb, a team of Northern Soldiers led by Capt. Yusuf Muhammad took off from Delta State on a truck headed for Edo state, Precisely headed for Otubu one safe house, this was an unofficial assignment, the details were simple and straight, avenge the death of Sgt Razaq on every Easterner alive.






CHAPTER SIX
(May 17th, 2019, the following events took place between 11.00am and 12.00pm)

Everyone in Otubu one safe house gasped in horror and shock as Sgt Mustapha revealed that the device the old man was concealing was actually a locally made bomb. It was one of those types that could cause little damage especially around its immediate perimeter of detonation. Such bombs were usually used by the insurgents as a form of distraction when they wanted to launch a major attack somewhere else. Sgt Mustapha picked up the dead man's radio too and discovered that it was more of a receiver than a radio, it was a device used for transmitting and receiving signals, it had probably being constructed and cased in a radio case to mask its real identity.
Sgt Mustapha eyed the device suspiciously, He easily disarmed the bomb, they had played with such during his military training. He examined the receiver again and observed it was dead, it's source had been cut, obviously the insurgents had gotten the signals that their inside man had been discovered and had subsequently cut him off, Sgt Mustapha looked up at the fearful eyes of the audience staring at him, He cleared his throat and spoke. ‘Am afraid, I have good news and bad news'
He paused to allow his words sink, then he continued 'the good news is that a member of the insurgents, a spy probably planted by them in this safe house has been discovered and killed, even though Our brave soldier lost his life in the process' He looked back at Corporal Obinna, who was sitting on the floor with the other Policemen, Corporal Obinna bowed his head in shame and regret, he was wrong and Sgt Razaq had being right, now he had gotten himself into a serious mess.
Sgt Mustapha continued 'the bad news is that if we found out one, then there could be more, not just in this safe house but in all the safe houses across the city, and if they are in this city, then the insurgents have made strong plans to attack this city' He paused as he observed the cold chill that swept into the crowd, everyone's fears became heightened, Men and Women were holding unto their loved ones more closely, it seemed the end had come for them all.
He continued ' but, we must not give up now, we must understand that our own safety lies in our hands, we must defend ourselves with all we have, that's why our first task in this hall would be to watch out for each other, if there are any other insurgents in this hall, then we must find them out, this is not just a job for only the soldiers here, everyone would be his neighbours' keeper, now we all begin to search ourselves' as he said this he signalled for everyone to begin to search around them and Otubu one safe house got busy with the activities of searching one another oblivious of the impending doom that was about to befall them.

When Ponjul Lar placed his call to the commanding Officer at Ekenwan Barracks, it wasn't the Commanding Officer that received the call, rather it was the soldier on duty, Sgt Aminu received the call and dropped the call. Rather than inform the Commander, He picked up his phone and called Major Damisa.

When Capt. Yusuf Muhammad dropped the call after speaking with Ponjul Lar, he dialled some digits on his phone and listened intently as the phone rang, as the receiver picked up the phone he spoke in Hausa language and Capt. Yusuf Muhammad replied in Hausa language too. The entire conversation had been in Hausa language and it was Major Damisa that eventually ended the call after Capt. Yusuf had fully understood the orders.

Five other soldiers received Major Damisa's call within the same time frame that he had spoken with Sgt Aminu and Capt. Yusuf. They had all received different instructions but the aim was one. They all had one purpose, these were not ordinary soldiers, they had been specially selected and had received special trainings in preparation for this great day, they were ready to make headlines, not just in Nigeria but in the world. The world was never going to forget their names in a hurry.

The Occupants of Otubu one safe house had been busy for more than thirty minutes, ransacking bags, clothes and trying to smell out any Judas that may had being in their midst, Sgt Mustapha had permitted Zaiki to be released but had mentioned that he would be tried later, he allowed him to be released so he could join in the search, meanwhile One Soldier still kept an eye on the Policemen with his gun, they were in soldier custody and were to remain that way till the soldiers received further information.
Sgt Mustapha was a little worried now, Headquarters had not yet responded to the message he had passed to them, he was about to ask Ponjul Lar to check on that when he heard the sound of the truck outside, it was a familiar sound, it was Army Truck, He looked at his wristwatch, it was 12.00pm, He observed that Ponjul Lar and Zaiki were reluctant to go outside to meet the truck that just arrived, He didn't care, after all, he was in charge now - if only he knew, he would have cared, he walked out of the building, the last he would walk in his life.
As he stepped out of the building, he saw the truck filled with soldiers, they would have been close to fifty in number, he saw the very familiar face as he climbed down the passenger seat of the truck and moved towards him. It was rather strange to see that face at that time at this particular safe house, it was the face of his superior so he couldn't question him, as he raised up his hands to salute, the bullets tore into his chest and he staggered back and fell to his death, murdered in cold blood... 'EXERCISE KAWURU' had just begun.








CHAPTER SEVEN
(May 17th 2019, the following events took place between 12.00pm and 1.00pm)

The Occupants of Otubu one safe house heard the gunshots and tension spread into the hall. Ponjul Lar and Zaiki were part of Exercise Kawuru, they already knew what was coming, they had both received the code on their mobile phones before they had watched Sgt Mustapha walk to his death. Sgt Mustapha wasn't trained for Exercise Kawuru.
The door opened and about fifty Soldiers in full camo and special war kits entered the hall, they were led by Capt. Yusuf Muhammad - He had released the bullets that killed Sgt Mustapha. Immediately they entered the hall, they raised their guns to the roof and began to shoot sporadically into the air, the atmosphere in the hall changed immediately, People began to run helter skelter, those that had the initiative to lie on the ground were trampled on by those who just found themselves running without direction, they continued shooting till everyone in the hall had finally understood they weren't targets and from confusion of running up and down, they had all eventually laid face down on the floor, this was what Capt. Yusuf wanted. Now everyone was lying face down on the floor except the three soldiers that were left in the hall. Capt. Yusuf walked towards the altar and was closely followed by his team of fifty, He regarded Zaiki and Ponjul Lar and nodded at them, He walked up to the other Soldier, The Soldier's name was Bamidele. Bamidele was a new recruit He hadn't joined the army when Exercise Kawuru was incubated, Somehow he had already guessed what might happen to him, he knew a revolution when he saw one, he reached out for his gun but he was a little too late, Zaiki was one of the fastest knife throwers in history. Bamidele's gun was barely in mid-air when the knife found its way to his forehead with the speed of a bullet. The pointed tip of the knife stuck on his head as a the red pool of blood gradually began to form on his forehead, his gun fell first from his hands before he fell face down never to rise again.
Capt. Yusuf looked over the body of Bamidele, there were three Policemen lying face down beside Bamidele's body. He took little notice of them and climbed the altar, then he addressed his audience.
'Ladies and Gentlemen' His voice boomed in the hall, he didn't need a public address system to pass his message, the quietness in the hall was unnerving. 'I would advise you all raise your heads and take a good look at me' He paused to allow the fearful occupants of the hall take heed to his advice. They all began to raise their heads but they didn't rise from the ground, they were all scared to death. 'Welcome to the worst day of your miserable lives' he paused and satisfied himself with the fears in the eyes of the audience and continued 'let's just say today is judgement day and I am the judge, many things would happen in this safe house today and many things would happen in other safe houses today, but one thing I would assure you is that no one in this safe house would live to tell the story, I would therefore chose to refer to you all as the unlucky ones' He smiled wickedly as fear and panic rode on a horse inside the hall.
By now all the soldiers that came with him had taken different positions inside the hall, He turned to Zaiki and demanded in Hausa language 'Bring me the monkey that killed my brother'
Zaiki moved to the spot and saw three Policemen instead of four, His heartbeat suddenly increased, they were meant to be four. He commanded them to rise and scanned their faces, Corporal Obinna wasn't among them.
Capt. Yusuf read the expressions on Zaiki's face and immediately understood that the man he wanted wasn't there, He asked Zaiki again 'where is the he goat that shot my Brother?' Zaiki stood speechless wondering what had happened to Corporal Obinna, had he gotten away? Capt. Yusuf looked from one Policeman to the other, He displayed a murderous smile and asked, where's your partner? The Policemen looked up at him, they didn't know either, all they remembered was when the gunshots were being released in the hall, everyone had sought for cover and when the gunshots had eventually ended, they had discovered that Corporal Obinna was missing. Capt. Yusuf stared hard at the faces of the Policemen, He knew they didn't know the whereabouts of their partner, all he could think of was revenge, all he could think about was blood, he drew his pistol and three close shots registered holes on the heads of the Policemen as they dropped dead.
He turned away from the dead men and went back to the altar, he raised his voice and spoke loudly so that even people outside the hall could hear him. 'Mr policeman, I know you are still in this building and you can hear my voice, I will give you till the count of three to show yourself or you will be responsible for the death of everyone in this hall'
He began to count. 1 ... 2... as he counted two, Corporal Obinna was trying to scale the back fence, immediately the shooting began in the hall, he knew they had come for him, in the midst of the mad rush, he had miraculously escaped into one of the offices, his determination had forced him to pass through the very small window, in the office toilet, he was lucky there was no protector in it, he broke the glass windows but the glass had injured his hands n cut some parts of his body as he squeezed himself through and fell inside the compound, close to the back fence, He was trying to scale the fence when he heard Capt. Yusuf's voice calling for him and threatening to kill everyone in the hall. He remained on top of the fence contemplating whether to jump down to the other side or not when he heard Capt. Yusuf's voice counting 'two'
As Capt. Yusuf made to count three, he felt the beep on his phone, He got out the phone and read the message, it was a message from Major Damisa, It was brief and concise, and it simply read 'ABORT EXERCISE KAWURU'

The message had come at 1.00pm, the exact time that Exercise Kawuru was meant to begin, the soldiers were meant to wait for Major Damisa's instructions before they began but Capt. Yusuf had been a little too early and had begun Exercise Kawuru before the slated time.

In that same hour, the President of the country was declaring on the news that people could now go about their various activities, that the ring leaders of the insurgents had been caught and hence peace had being restored to the city, everyone received the news with joy and relief including occupants of other safe houses but the occupants of Otubu one safe house didn't even hear the news, they were in the words of Capt. Yusuf ' 'experiencing the worst day of their lives'
CHAPTER EIGHT
(May 17th 2019, the following events took place between 1.00pm and 2.00pm)

Many Other top Northern Soldiers received Major Damisa's message at exactly the same time that Capt. Yusuf received the message. The other Soldiers and their troops of fifties were still on observation mode around the perimeters of the Safe houses they were meant to attack, they all retreated on receiving Major Damisa's message. To them Major Damisa was a mini God, He had sold to them the vision of creating their own nation after total elimination of the Easterners, He was the brain behind Exercise KAWURU, He had found other devout and vengeful northerners like himself, He was blessed with true devout men like Captain Yusuf Muhammad Who dedicated their entire life to the project of totally wiping out the Easterners.
The Soldiers retreated and began to find their way back to their various locations, If Major Damisa said ABORT, It meant they were aborting to strike on a later date, this was the second time they were aborting exercise KAWURU, the first time they aborted exercise KAWURU was March 31st 2015.
They had a general assembly on March 27th 2015, a day to the general elections in the country, they had planned to strike and unleash Exercise KAWURU on March 31st 2015, three days after the Nigerian Presidential elections. They had anticipated that the elections would be rigged in favour of the ruling party and they had made serious plans to attack with intent to kill all the Easterners immediately the incumbent President was declared winner. They had all taken positions in strategic locations of the country when to their surprise, the candidate for the opposing party who was a Northerner was declared winner. The same message had gone round to all the team leaders 'ABORT EXERCISE KAWURU'
That was four years ago, they had retreated then and continued planning, their team had grown so strong since then and they had gathered enough army that could give the nation a worthy fight if it had to come to fighting the nation. It happened four years ago and it was happening again, Major Damisa had always made them understand that in a revolution such as this, timing was the key to victory.

Capt. Yusuf Muhammad read the message again on his phone, He knew what he was supposed to do, He knew he had to obey Major Damisa, He knew he was expected to co-ordinate his team and retreat, but he couldn't turn back now, He had gone over himself already, He had begun exercise KAWURU on his own orders, now he knew he was going to be alone in this fight, retreating was no option for him, he wasn't going to wait for a next time, this one was personal, his own younger brother whom he swore to protect was murdered by an Easterner. He was going to fight this war alone now, if it came to that. He would fight to the death with his team of fifty, He would make sure the world never forgot his name. Capt. Yusuf Muhammad would remain on the lips of generations to come, He had discovered a new mission statement for himself right inside the safe house. He was going to avenge his younger brother on every Easterner he could lay his hands on.
He looked at his phone again, deleted the message and smashed the phone on the floor, he had made his decision. He signalled to his troop of fifty and they all came to him except a few who maintained their positions to ensure that everyone in the hall remained calm and submissive. He spoke Hausa to them and talked in very low tone, as he was speaking, the expressions on their faces began to change, Capt. Yusuf didn't hide anything from them, he told them that exercise KAWURU had being officially called off but that he was not relenting, He gave every one of them a chance to pull out, but not even one of them took the chance, these soldiers were totally loyal to Capt. Yusuf - they could die for him if the opportunity presented itself.
When Capt. Yusuf was done speaking with them, they took their various positions and he climbed up the altar to speak.
'Now listen up, you unlucky ones of Otubu one safe house' his voice boomed in the hall, 'there has been a change in modus operandi, I have good news and I have bad news, the good news is that your government has called off this state of emergency' He paused and stared into their faces to obtain their reactions, the occupants of the safe house were totally deep in their own misery now, they had lost hope now, so they didn't even embrace the news with joy, He nodded in satisfaction and continued 'the bad news is that I just declared a state of emergency in this safe house now and firstly I would want us to peacefully divide ourselves into the four geographical zones in the country, East, West, North and South'.
Immediately he said this, the soldiers moved into the crowd and began separating the people in the hall into the four geographical zones, as they were doing this, he gave five soldiers the go ahead to proceed and execute the second stage of exercise KAWURU.
The five Soldiers were led by Zaiki, they grabbed their guns and marched fearlessly outside the hall, it was time for the government to pay attention to them.
When the five soldiers stepped outside the hall, they could observe life gradually returning to the city, a few people could be observed walking on the streets, a few cars were just beginning to ply the road too. They took their positions at different spots close to the church building and waited for Zaiki to give the command. Zaiki looked at his wristwatch, it was 2.00pm, he smiled wickedly as he gave the order.











CHAPTER NINE
(May 17th 2019, the following events took place between 2.00pm and 3.00pm)

Zaiki gave the order, it was more of a whisper but the effects of that whispered order was deafening and catastrophic. As He ordered 'FIRE' the soldiers ran into the roads faced the four cardinal points and began to shoot at every living thing that was unfortunate to be plying the road at that hour, before the innocent passers-by could understand what was happening, many of them had being caught in the crossfire, even the little children were not spared, the soldiers continued shooting recklessly at everyone, at cars, at animals, at anything whatsoever that was on that doomed road on which Otubu one safe house was situated.
The shootings would have lasted continuously for close to three minutes, the soldiers kept on shooting, reloading their guns whenever they ran out of bullets, blood flowed, people fell in mass as the bullets tore into their bodies from different corners, for many of them that would be the last time they would be walking on that road, drivers and motorists were not left out, the bullets shattered glasses, killed drivers in their own cars, accidents occurred like it was a norm. Then as suddenly as the shootings had begun, the shootings stopped. Silence took his own toll, the road was covered with bodies, car parts, fire and blood ran freely, Zaiki and his team had murdered close fifty citizens of the country in that instant of heartless shootings.. bodies of women and kids were not left out, they were all sprawled on the road, it was indeed a massacre, a few people who had been lucky to be out of the bullet line of the soldiers had retreated and ran for dear life, the road had become deserted now, the atmosphere had become understandably calm, the only noise one could hear was sharp groans from a few of the casualties that were survivors from the attack, but their groans were unnecessary as no one was willing to come and save them.
The Soldiers looked at Zaiki in anticipation of their next order, He looked back at them and smiled as he spoke through jammed teeth 'Now we wait'
The soldiers stood on the road, five of them, holding their guns and waiting just as Zaiki had commanded, they hadn't waited for very long before they heard the familiar sounds of Police sirens, Zaiki made sure he could hear the distinguishing alarms of army vans before he gave the orders 'Now we go back into the safe house' He had barely finished the statement when he sighted the army van very far down the road, 'Run!!!' he shouted, the five soldiers ran swiftly and evacuated the road as they made their way back into the safe house, second stage of exercise KAWURU had been accomplished - now they had external company.
As they got back into the safe house, they discovered that the people had been divided into four segments, first stage of exercise KAWURU had already been completed. Zaiki walked straight to Capt. Yusuf and spoke in Hausa language, Capt. Yusuf nodded and went back to the altar and sat on the executive chair that was placed there - the Pastor of the church had initially put the chair on the altar to signify God's presence in their midst. Capt. Yusuf crossed his left leg over his right and whistled to himself, he was waiting...
He hadn't waited for long before he heard the familiar sounds of army vans and trucks flooding the compound. He had anticipated this and indeed he was glad, he signalled Zaiki and spoke in Hausa, Zaiki brought a small brief case to him, he opened it and handed over the mobile phone that was inside to Capt. Yusuf. The mobile phone was coded 001, it was created for the third stage of exercise KAWURU. Capt. Yusuf switched on the phone and scrolled to the number he desired, he dialled the number and waited for response.

Major Haruna had just arrived at the scene, Capt. Oladapo was riding with him in his Camry, his driver had just parked the car in front of the safe house when his phone rang. Major Haruna looked at the phone screen and observed the very strange number for some time, he answered the call and listened intently as the caller spoke continuously for a few seconds, then the line went dead.
Capt. Oladapo looked at the Major as he dropped his phone back into his pocket and smiled. Major Haruna was a very cool headed soldier, He was one of the few soldiers that could handle this situation. Brigadier Ahmed had sent him ahead to take care of the situation, Army Headquarters believed in his judgement and wisdom.
Major Haruna studied the questioning eyes of Capt. Oladapo and got out of the Camry, the soldiers were all over the place, the police and some other forces were busy trying to rid the road of dead bodies and trying to get help for survivors, Major Haruna looked around, all he could see was chaos, He was still trying to make sense of what Capt. Yusuf had just demanded, Capt. Oladapo was still beside him, he knew better than to ask the Major what the call was about.
Major Haruna ignored the salutation he got from all the soldiers as he walked pass them, the soldiers had all taken different positions round the buildings, there were enough soldiers to take down a small village.
He suddenly turned to Capt. Oladapo and told him what he wanted to hear
'It’s Capt. Yusuf Muhammad, and he says he wants to be on national television'











CHAPTER TEN
(May 17th, 2019. The following events took place between 3.00pm and 8.00pm)

Major Haruna was lost in thoughts, he and Capt. Yusuf had fought together in one of the ECOMOG peace keeping missions at Liberia. He had always respected Capt. Yusuf's wits, Capt. Yusuf was a determined soldier, he never took a No for an answer, He also knew Capt. Yusuf wouldn't hesitate to go ahead and carry out his threats if they failed to comply. His gut feeling told him there was more to Capt. Yusuf's request to be on National T.V. He got out his phone and dialled Army Headquarters, Brigadier Ahmed took the call, Major Haruna had called his personal line.
After Brigadier Ahmed took the call, He also called Army Headquarters at Abuja and after careful deliberations, the Presidency signed the request and modalities were set in place to have the mass media broadcasting live from Otubu one safe house - The government thought they were using this to buy time, they never knew they had just contributed to the success of EXERCISE KAWURU by providing the soldiers an easy Stage 3 victory.
It wasn't until 4.30pm before the press men, journalists and television crew landed at Otubu one safe house. The Nigerian Television Authority were to provide a camera man for Capt. Yusuf, He wanted the whole nation to witness the proceedings as they went on inside the safe house.
Agbonifo Nosakhare was the camera man from Nigeria Television Authority that was allowed to enter the safe house to cover the events as they unfolded. Capt. Yusuf had promised not to hurt anyone as long as his demands were met and so far he had made only one demand and the government had granted it and he had also kept his promise until this time.
At exactly 5.00pm, the events as they occurred in the safe house were being transmitted live on national TV. Capt. Yusuf's face appeared on the TV screen of many Nigerians that day, it was a face many Nigerians would never forget in a hurry. He began his speech.
'My name is Capt. Yusuf Muhammed and I am a peace maker' He paused as the camera shifted from him and went round the hall covering every other part of the hall, showing the fearful and depressed occupants of the hall from one segment to another, Capt. Yusuf made sure the camera had shown the situation in the hall, the plight of the helpless occupants, the women, the children, the old people and every detail that was available in the hall before he continued.
'To prove my point, I would be releasing everyone in the hall except these group of people that I want to speak about' with this he waved his hands and his team of soldiers went to work allowing three geographical zones leave the hall, the southerners, the northerners and the westerners, the soldiers opened the door and these lucky occupants rushed out of the hall as the soldiers outside received them and quickly carried them to safety, this took about five minutes and immediately they had all gotten out, they shut the doors again. Now the Occupants in the hall, were Capt. Yusuf and his team of fifty soldiers and the unfortunate Easterners, they would have been a little over a hundred Easterners left in the hall. Meanwhile, before now all the windows had been covered with opaque materials so that the only way people could see what was going on in the safe house was through their televisions. The Soldiers outside couldn't see what was going on in the safe house, they all stood guard awaiting the next command from their commanding officers.
Capt. Yusuf appeared on the screen again and spoke 'I have no intention to harm anyone here today, I just want to pass a message to the great people of Nigeria, and I would do that at exactly 7.00pm, for now everyone should keep calm, like I promised before, no one would be hurt but if any attempt is made to attack this safe house, I swear, No occupant of this safe house would leave here alive' and as he said so, the television screens went blank.
At that moment, Nigeria was drawn to a standstill by the happenings in Otubu one safe house in Benin City. A seemingly harmless government order had turned into something else.
When Capt. Yusuf went off the television screen, two sets of Nigeria soldiers received orders. The first set received orders from the Presidency, they were going to take down Otubu safe house by 7.00pm with or without civilian casualties, the second set received orders from Major Damisa.

Capt. Yusuf came back on air a few minutes before 7.00pm. He had gotten the attention of Nigerians just like he wanted, a lot of Nigerians remained glued to their television sets even when he had gone off air. Capt. Yusuf resumed his speech at exactly ten minutes to 7.00pm. For some reasons, the camera seemed to focus only on Capt. Yusuf and the soldiers behind him, the other unfortunate occupants of the hall were purposely avoided by the camera. No one knew why except the soldiers in the hall.

Capt. Yusuf began his speech by recounting the January 1966 coup and describing in vivid details how top Northerners were brutally murdered by Easterners, he went on to speak about different schemes of the Easterners to take over the country, he spoke about the murder of his own brother by an Easterner who had gotten away with the murder scot free and was presently at large and how the government still sought to protect the Easterners at the expense of the Northerners, he spoke about marginalisation of the Northerners, He predicted a future where the Northerners would be dis-inherited of their possessions and be treated like slaves in their own country.. He continued preaching his rehearsed speech and he had already gone far with his speech and emotional display before the government could understand that what Capt. Yusuf was actually doing on National Television was inciting all Northerners against the Easterners and he was actually starting a revolution.
It was exactly 7.00pm when the government soldiers broke into the hall, Capt. Yusuf was still in the middle of his speech and his last words were 'Even If we die fighting, all Northerners, I mean all Northerners must stand up for their rights, we must totally eliminate all Easterners from the face of the Earth, We must avenge our fallen Heroes'

It was Sgt Kabiru Muhammad that fired the shots at Capt. Yusuf, Kabiru Muhammad was one of those soldiers who had received instructions from Major Damisa. The bullets tore into Capt. Yusuf's body as he fell down to his death, He was still on National T.V when he died, the whole nation watched him as he fell to his death. The assailing Nigeria Soldiers were taken by surprise, their orders were to secure Capt. Yusuf and his team, not to open fire on them, Capt. Yusuf's team of fifty watched their Commander fall and attempted to open fire on the assailing Nigeria Soldiers but they were a little too late as the Nigeria soldiers opened fire on them and they fell down in mass one by one to their death.
Just then Major Haruna who had stylishly stepped away from the safe house to a reasonable safe distance, detonated the bomb using his remote controlled device, (when Capt. Yusuf had called Major Haruna, He had also told him the exact time to detonate the bomb they had planted in the safe house - Major Haruna was also a part of exercise KAWURU)
The bomb was a special military weapon of mass destruction and the case was tagged 002.
As the bomb went off, the noise was deafening and catastrophic. Otubu one safe house went up in flames, No one inside the safe house survived the blast, not Capt. Yusuf and his team of fifty, not Kabiru Muhammad and the Nigeria soldiers that attacked the safe house, neither did the bodies of the over hundred Easterners that had already been murdered by Capt. Yusuf and his men survive the blast. Otubu one safe house went up in flames and there was a black out on all the televisions that were tuned in to that station nationwide.

To every other Nigerian that watched the events as they unfolded on television, this was a totally unfortunate incident but to majority of Northerners that watched the events unfold, Capt. Yusuf and his team had given their lives for their freedom, they were the martyrs that had eventually opened their eyes to the scum on the Nigeria soil that needed to be destroyed. The Easterners had to be destroyed, Capt. Yusuf had showed them the way, the truth and the life.
The very first attack on Easterners that night took place at exactly 8.00pm in Plateau state when a bunch of Fulani herdsmen entered into an Ibo people dominated area and massacred and slaughtered them like common animals, that was the first attack in a row of thousands of senseless attacks on Easterners by Northerners that occurred nationwide that day.

Meanwhile the soldiers that received messages from Major Damisa were on their way to the eastern states in the country, they were armed for a mini war and the instructions hadn't changed, it was simple and straight, 'Destroy Every Easterner Alive' - EXERCISE KAWURU was now a reality.








EPILOGUE
(May 17th 2030)

The civil war that eventually broke out due to the attack on the Easterners by the Northerners on that fateful day lasted for close to three months.
Even When the Federal government eventually overpowered the Northern extremists and their allies, it still took a long period for ethnic based attacks to cease from both the Northern and Eastern parties.
Nigeria had once again become a peaceful country, though things could never return to the way it was at the beginning but the peace had been restored.

The man finished his story at the museum, he had worked there for over five years and that was his sole duty, he recounted the history of the civil war and the story of exercise Kawuru and how it had led to the senseless war that resulted in thousands of deaths. He looked at his wristwatch as he concluded the story, it was 4.00pm, the children gazed steadily at him, they wished he would continue but he wasn’t so young anymore, he didn't have much strength to keep on talking for long hours, he had just said the story again for the third time that day, that was all he did at the Imo state museum. He wasn't just a survivor of the war, he was the only Eastern survivor from Otubu one safe house, eleven years ago.
As he packed his bags and moved slowly down the corridor towards the exit, he remembered how he had escaped from Otubu one safe house. He remembered how he had gotten away through one of the office toilet windows, he remembered how Capt. Yusuf's voice had sounded loudly in the hall asking him to return to the hall or be responsible for the death of the innocent civilians. He had thought about returning, but his will to survive had being stronger than the pity he felt for the other occupants of the safe house, he eventually jumped over the fence to the other side of the compound and escaped for dear life.
He remembered how he had been able to survive the war, hiding and moving from one village to another until the war had eventually ended and he had relocated to Imo state, where he had gotten this job in the museum, being a survivor, he was highly priced and even after years people still wanted to hear the story behind the war from an eye witness..

No one knew he was Corporal Obinna, the same Corporal that had shot and killed Sgt Razaq back in Otubu 1 safe house. He had changed his name now and whenever he told the story at the museum, he claimed he was one of the few that were lucky to be released by Capt. Yusuf and his men.

Corporal Obinna walked slowly to his car, his house wasn't so far away from the museum, he never noticed he had company.

As he entered into his car and fired on the ignition, Zaiki climbed on his power bike.
Zaiki had searched for Obinna for ten good years, he had discovered the means through which Corporal Obinna had escaped from the hall and Capt. Yusuf had made him swear an oath to avenge his brother and allowed him to get away before he had made his last speech on National T.V.
Zaiki was under oath to avenge Sgt Razaq's death and until he did that he couldn't be at peace.
When Corporal Obinna eventually drove to his house, he never knew Zaiki drove behind him slowly but steadily.
The early morning papers of the next day told the remaining story.

Author's Note

What do you think I could do more of and what do you think I could improve on