In his seminal work, The Retired Military as Emergent Power Factor in Nigeria, Professor J. Bayo Adekanye said the term “military-business complex” was coined in 1978 by Lt.-General Theophilus Yakubu Danjuma, then Chief of Army Staff under the military government of General Olusegun Obasanjo. What General Danjuma meant by the term was specifically the section of the Nigerian business class which the military establishment had long depended upon for procuring its recurrent supplies of fuel, food, uniforms, boots and furniture. Others were the importation of arms, ammunitions and other equipment, and, lastly, the construction of various capital projects like barracks (Heinemann, 1979:29).
Lindsay Barret’s Danjuma: The Making of a General packaged, publicized and sold General TY Danjuma and his impressive resume to the world in 1979. Consequently, the publication contributed immensely to raise the stakes for the General to begin to occupy the expansive and endless public space and have indelible footprints in Nigeria and the business world.
General TY Danjuma is a renowned Nigerian civil war hero, a selfless leader and disciplinarian who rose from grass to grace through the dint of hard work, determination and perseverance. He was a great military strategist and significant participant in most of the defining moments of the Nigerian military and played major roles in both the military and the civilian governments of General Olusegun Obasanjo (rtd).
He was involved in the July, 1966, counter-coup when he was with the 4th Battalion in Mokola, Ibadan. In 1967, at the start of the Nigerian civil war, especially during the campaign in the Enugu axis, his courage and contribution in capturing Enugu earned him promotion to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. He led the squad that freed Jaja Wachukwu from detention under the Biafran Government towards the end of the civil war.
When he was promoted Colonel in 1971, he spent the next two years to court-martial Army officers proven guilty of corruption and indiscipline. With his new rank of Brigadier in 1975, he became the General Officer Commanding (GOC) the Third Division of the Nigerian Army, Jos, and the subsequent year, 1976, he became the Chief of Army Staff under the military regime of General Olusegun Obasanjo. He played a prominent role in supporting the Head of State in resisting the Bukar Dimka coup in 1976 and retired from the Nigerian Army three years later at the age of 40.
General TY Danjuma contributed immensely to build modern Nigeria, demonstrated both patriotism and generosity and moved the country forward on the path of growth and development. Today, however, Nigeria has become an albatross; it is a monster that that decapitates limbs and sucks human blood. It has transformed from the nation of happy people to a dungeon with divided and disillusioned citizens confronted with myriads of intractable problems – pervasive insurgency, banditry and kidnapping; youth unemployment, poverty and perennial hunger.
Despite the poor leadership and parlous state of affairs in the country in recent years, General TY Danjuma did not shirk his patriotic duties; he neither left the country nor abandoned the ship of state. He has stood his ground, remained steadfast and continues to dialogue and engage in damage control as an elder statesman.
The General deploys his wealth of experience as former Chief of Army Staff, Defence Minister and business tycoon to proffer solutions to the myriad of problems confronting the country. He has left no stone unturned in his efforts to keep Nigeria one, maintain unity and stability and, lastly, provide good governance for the benefit of all citizens and foreigners residing in the country. He was the Chairman of the Presidential Policy Advisory Committee (1999), the Minister of Defence (1999-2003) and Chairman of the Presidential Advisory Council (2010). There is no better way to describe Gen. TY Danjuma as a patriot apart from recalling some of his patriotic acts as enumerated above.
The General is the Chairman and founder of TY Danjuma Foundation, an organization that has become the bold face of philanthropy and has projected him as a foremost philanthropist in the country. The Foundation has scholarships for students of various levels of education and gives grants to individuals, groups and organizations. Since inception in 2009, it has expended N4.7 billion, executed over 336 projects across 34 states with more than ten million beneficiaries throughout Nigeria.
General TY Danjuma is now an embodiment of Chamba culture. Having acquired the two most significant traditional titles from the two prominent Chamba First Class Chiefs in Nigeria, the Gangwari Ganye in Adamawa State and Gara Donga in Taraba State respectively, he has joined the warrior class of his people. The Ganye Traditional Council under the leadership of His Royal Highness (HRH), Gangwari Ganye, Alhaji Dr. Umaru Adamu Sanda, OON, FIAMN, awarded him the title Gang Pan (the Shield/Protector of Chamba people) while the Donga Traditional Council under HRH the late Gara Donga, Dr. Stephen Danjuma Bayonga II, gave him the traditional title Gan Baro (General of Generals of Chamba people). General TY Danjuma’s two Chamba traditional titles are associated with warfare, bravery and the conquering spirit of the Chamba ethnic group as raiders throughout history, whether in Nigeria, Cameroon, Central Africa, Ghana or Togo. Although waging traditional wars is now unthinkable, untenable and outdated, he now wages war for Nigerians in other spheres, particularly the social and economic sectors, in order to give back to society what the society generously endows him with. While General TY Danjuma was conferred with the Gan Baro title on November 13th, 2013, with an elaborate celebration in Donga, attracting the cream de la cream of the Nigerian society, comprising the Nigerian political, business and top military classes, including two former Military Heads of State, Generals Yakubu Gowon and Muhammadu Buhari, the formal ceremony in Ganye for crowning him as the Gang Pan is slated later.
At 84, General TY Danjuma has paid his dues: he fought the Nigerian Civil war to maintain her territorial integrity and now works assiduously to promote good governance for the benefit of his compatriots. He floated companies to provide employment opportunities for the teeming population of unemployed people and established the TY Danjuma Foundation to carry out philanthropic activities throughout the country. Above all, he plays his role as an elder statesman, advising those in power to be fair and just in managing the country to give a sense of belonging to all citizens without regard to tribe, tongue or creed.
I salute a General at 84, a legend and an embodiment of patriotism, philanthropy and Chamba culture.
PIONEER NEWS 