Alexander A. Madiebo (29 April 1932 – 3 June 2022) was a Biafran soldier. He served as the

General Officer Commanding General officer commanding (GOC) is the usual title given in the armies of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth (and some other nations, such as Ireland) to a general officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, a general might be the GOC ...

(GOC) of the

Republic of Biafra Biafara anglicized as Biafra ( ), officially the Republic of Biafra, was a partially recognised state in West Africa that declared independence from Nigeria and existed from 1967 to 1970. Its territory consisted of the former Eastern Region o ...

which existed from 1967 to 1970.

Life and career

Madiebo joined the military in 1954, during the colonial era, after graduating from

Government College, Umuahia Government College Umuahia, or GCU, is an independent secondary school for boys located on Umuahia- Ikot Ekpene road in Umuahia, Nigeria. Twenty years after the establishment of King's College, the first government-owned high school, by the Briti ...

. In 1960, he was deployed to Congo, during the

Congo Crisis The Congo Crisis () was a period of Crisis, political upheaval and war, conflict between 1960 and 1965 in the Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville), Republic of the Congo (today the Democratic Republic of the Congo). The crisis began almost ...

as a peacekeeping force for

United Nations Operation in the Congo The United Nations Operation in the Congo (, abbreviated ONUC) was a United Nations United Nations peacekeeping, peacekeeping force which was deployed in the Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville), Republic of the Congo in 1960 in response to th ...

. In 1964, he was made the first indigenous commander of the Artillery Regiment. He fled from the northern region during the

1966 anti-Igbo pogrom A series of massacres were committed against Igbo people and other people of southern Nigerian origin living in northern Nigeria starting in May 1966 and reaching a peak after 29 September 1966. Between 8,000 and 30,000 Igbos and easterners have ...

. He was the General Officer Commanding of the

during the

Nigerian Civil War The Nigerian Civil War (6 July 1967 – 15 January 1970), also known as the Biafran War, Nigeria-Biafra War, or Biafra War, was fought between Nigeria and the Republic of Biafra, a Secession, secessionist state which had declared its independen ...

. He joined Ojukwu to flee to

Ivory Coast Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest List of ci ...

. He died on 3 June 2022 at the age of 90.

References

1932 births 2022 deaths Igbo Army personnel Government College Umuahia alumni Biafran Armed Forces personnel Nigerian Army officers {{Nigeria-mil-bio-stub