Max Siollun > Quotes

“Coup" is a benign term for what is in effect the double crimes of treason against the state, and mutiny against the military hierarchy. Treason is the gravest offence that a citizen can commit against his or her country, and mutiny is correspondingly the most serious offence that a military officer can commit”
― Max Siollun, Soldiers of Fortune: A History of Nigeria

“The absence of paramount kings ruling over large areas was encapsulated by the maxim 'Igbo amaghi eze' (the Igbo knows no king). In a culture without a paramount king, admission to a title society was a status symbol and evidence of achievement. Admission was remarkably democratic. Every male adult was eligible so long as they could demonstrate high achievements in their lifetime. Such titles were rarely hereditary and there were few or no qualifications for them other than achievement or money. A man could gain a title simply by raising funds and paying for it. These titles incentivised achievement and provided upward social mobility. Hence, having an honorific title in Igboland did not necessarily make the title-holder a political ruler”
― Max Siollun, What Britain Did to Nigeria: A Short History of Conquest and Rule

“Perhaps the military's greatest contribution to Nigeria's democracy was to rule long and badly enough to thoroughly ruin its reputation, and disabuse the public from considering it as an alternative government to civilians”
― Max Siollun, Nigeria's Soldiers of Fortune: The Abacha and Obasanjo Years

“Additionally, there had always been an unwritten rule that the Nigerian Head of State and his deputy could not be from the same religion or geographic region. Tradition has always mandated a north-south split between the two most senior posts.”
― Max Siollun, Soldiers of Fortune: A History of Nigeria

“Whatever its real or perceived justification, British aggression and violence against Nigerians was a choice, not a necessity.”
― Max Siollun, What Britain Did to Nigeria: A Short History of Conquest and Rule

“Nigeria's story has not only been about its elites. Nigerians often treated elected civilian leaders and military dictators as two rival lovers courting them. When civilians are in power, Nigerians often nostalgically recall the supposed discipline and stability of military rule, yet, when suffering under military dictatorship, they campaigned for democracy as a utopian salvation. Being in Nigeria sometimes feels like being on a frightening rollercoaster rideWhile on the ride one will scream in terror and want the ride to endHoweveronce it ends, one wants to get back on and experience the adrenaline rush again. Along with their adrenaline addiction, many Nigerians harbour a Messiah complex that their country is potentially a great one, if only power would fall into the hands of a visionary leader”
― Max Siollun, Nigeria's Soldiers of Fortune: The Abacha and Obasanjo Years

“The absence of paramount kings ruling over large areas was encapsulated by the maxim 'Igbo amaghi eze' (the Igbo knows no king). In a culture without a paramount king, admission to a title society was a status symbol and evidence of achievement. Admiss- ion was remarkably democratic. Every male adult was eligible so long as they could demonstrate high achievements in their life- time. Such titles were rarely hereditary and there were few or no qualifications for them other than achievement or money. A man could gain a title simply by raising funds and paying for it. These titles incentivised achievement and provided upward social mobility. Hence, having an honorific title in Igboland did not necessarily make the title-holder a political ruler”
― Max Siollun, What Britain Did to Nigeria: A Short History of Conquest and Rule

“Mohammed was retired by Buhari in 1985 over a racketeering scandal, but his experience and knowledge of the skeletons in the cupboard was sufficient for Babangida to quash his retirement and reinstate him into the army in an elevated position.”
― Max Siollun, Soldiers of Fortune: A History of Nigeria

“When the army is in politics, loyality comes first before merit

-Ishola Williams”
― Max Siollun, Soldiers of Fortune: A History of Nigeria

“The legacy of heroes is the honor of a great name and the inheritance of a great example”
― Max Siollun, Soldiers of Fortune: A History of Nigeria

“It was difficult to build patriotism and emotional loyalty to a country created by a foreign invader and inhabited by people whose prior loyalties had never extended beyond their family, village or kingdom”
― Max Siollun, What Britain Did to Nigeria: A Short History of Conquest and Rule

“Nigeria's army and police were the country's first national institutions, and both are ironically older than the country Although Nigerians are reluctant to admit it, the itself. story Nigeria is to some extent the story of its army. There are few countries where the country's fate and that of its army are as of tightly interwoven as Nigeria. For the first 102 years of its existence, Nigeria's army was under British command. At various points in time, the army has played different roles as conqueror, destroyer, ruler and protector of the country it is supposed to defend. Without it, Nigeria would not exist. Yet it has a com- plex history, including its role as a tool that helped foreign invaders conquer its own people”
― Max Siollun, What Britain Did to Nigeria: A Short History of Conquest and Rule

“Brigadier Aliyu Mohammed graduated from the NDA’s pioneer first regular combatant course in 1967, where he was in the same intake as other cadets who later became prominent”
― Max Siollun, Soldiers of Fortune: A History of Nigeria

“Not all coups succeed, but those that succeed, you don't call them illegal. This is because the moment you succeed, you put our constitution away and declare martial law. And who would come and challenge you
-
Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida”
― Max Siollun, Soldiers of Fortune: A History of Nigeria

“Many Nigerians believe that Babangida 'institutionalized corruption', yet few admit their own complicity in creating the situation where corruption became the norm. The citizenry are simultaneously victims, accomplices and active participants in their own corrupt downfall. Corruption in Nigeria is not just an offshoot of collapsed social and governmental institutions, nor is it the result of a hostile economic environment. The roots go much deeper and are more symptomatic of a residual breakdown of Nigerian societal values and morality. It is the result of a nationwide refusal to condemn dishonesty... While the government must take blame for not cracking down on corruption, the public deserves its share of blame for encouraging it, and letting the government get away with it.”
― Max Siollun

“The priority of Colonial Office Officials was to minimize the financial burden to the British taxpayer, reduce bureaucratic duplication and maximize revenue. In that regard it succeeded from Britain's perspective. Nigeria was a page in a colonial accounting ledger.”
― Max Siollun, What Britain Did to Nigeria: A Short History of Conquest and Rule

“The most stunning announcement was the plotters’ decision to expel the far north states of Bauchi, Borno, Katsina, Kano and Sokoto from Nigeria. The speech stated that these states would not be re-admitted into Nigeria unless and until Alhaji Maccido was appointed Sultan of Sokoto.”
― Max Siollun, Soldiers of Fortune: A History of Nigeria