Okoh Ebitu Ukiwe (born 26 October 1940) is a retired Commodore in the Nigerian Navy who served as the de facto

Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is o ...

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of G ...

under military head of state General Ibrahim Babangida from 1985 to 1986.

Family

Ukiwe was born on 26 October 1940, son of Chief Ebitu Ukiwe of Abiriba in

Abia State Abia State ( ig, Ȯha Abia) is a state in the South-East geopolitical zone of Nigeria, it is bordered to the north and northeast by the states of Enugu, and Ebonyi, Imo State to the west, Cross River State to the east, Akwa Ibom State to ...

. His father was a traditional ruler in Abiriba and Head of the Old Bende Division Local Government Appeal Court.

Naval career

Ukiwe joined the Nigerian Navy in 1960 as a cadet (officer), and was commissioned in 1964 with the rank of

sub-lieutenant Sub-lieutenant is usually a junior officer rank, used in armies, navies and air forces. In most armies, sub-lieutenant is the lowest officer rank. However, in Brazil, it is the highest non-commissioned rank, and in Spain, it is the second hig ...

. He defected to the Biafran Armed Forces in 1966.

Biafran War

During the Nigerian Civil War from 1967 to 1970 he fought on the Biafran side. After the war, in January 1972 he was readmitted to the Navy, one of the few Igbo officers to regain their position.

Military career

Ukiwe was a member of the Supreme Military Council between 1975 and 1977. General

Olusegun Obasanjo Chief Olusegun Matthew Okikiola Ogunboye Aremu Obasanjo, , ( ; yo, Olúṣẹ́gun Ọbásanjọ́ ; born 5 March 1937) is a Nigerian political and military leader who served as Nigeria's head of state from 1976 to 1979 and later as its pre ...

appointed him military governor of Niger state in 1977. He was re-deployed to Lagos state as governor in July 1978, holding this post until October 1979. He was also in the SMC under General Muhammadu Buhari from 1983 to 1985, while serving as Flag Officer, Western Naval command. He was appointed director, Naval Faculty, Jaji (1981–1984) and Flag Officer, Western Naval Command (1984–1985).

Chief of General Staff

In 1985, following the 1985 Nigerian military coup d'état military head of state General Ibrahim Babangida appointed Ukiwe as Chief of General Staff, and his second-in-command. In 1986, Commodore Ebitu Okoh Ukiwe, was removed as

Chief of General Staff The Chief of the General Staff (CGS) is a post in many armed forces ( militaries), the head of the military staff. List * Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (United States) * Chief of the General Staff (Abkhazia) * Chief of General Staff (Af ...

after opposing Babangida's decision to join the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.

Later career

After retirement he joined the pro-democracy group, supporting Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola, the president-elect in the June 1993 elections, who was imprisoned after General Sani Abacha took power in a coup in November 1993. He became chairman of companies such as Bitu Properties, Kobimat, Bitu Promar and Rudocons. He was adviser and consultant to Statoil (Nigeria), an offshore oil production company, for nine years. In 2001, Newswatch magazine speculated that he could run for president in 2003, characterizing him as principled personality. In 2006 Ukiwe unsuccessfully ran to become People's Democratic Party candidate for the presidency of Nigeria.

References

Vice presidents of Nigeria 1940 births Living people Peoples Democratic Party (Nigeria) politicians Governors of Lagos State Governors of Niger State Nigerian Navy officers Military personnel of the Nigerian Civil War People from Abia State {{nigeria-mil-bio-stub