Dodan Barracks
Encyclopedia
Dodan Barracks is a military barracks occupying a large area located off Awolowo Road, Ikoyi
, Lagos
, Nigeria
. Dodan Barracks was the residence of the heads of state of various Military Governments in Nigeria, and also the Supreme Military Headquarters from 1966 until the move to Abuja
in 1991.
The name "Dodan" originated from the site of a battle fought doing the Second World War by the 82nd West African Division in Burma.
, then became head of state.
In July 1966 the Dodan Barracks became the seat of power in Nigeria after a counter-coup in which Ironsi was killed and his Chief of Staff, General Yakubu Gowon
was made head of state, moving into the Federal Guard officer's mess. The Barracks was the location where Gowon received the formal Biafra
n surrender at the end of the Nigerian Civil War
in January 1970. Subsequent rulers kept their base at the barracks for the next quarter of a century.
Gowon was overthrown in a July 1975 coup, succeeded by General Murtala Mohammed
. In an attempted coup in February 1976, Murtala was killed when his convoy was ambushed. His second in command, Lt. General Olusegun Obasanjo, was in the same convoy but escaped and became head of state. Obasanjo moved into the barracks for security reasons.
In 1977, troops invaded the compound of the influential musician Fela Kuti
, called the father of Afrobeat
, who was critical of the military regime. They beat up the men, raped the women and threw Fela into detention. His 78 year old mother died later of injuries from being thrown from a second story window. On his release, he recorded an album titled Coffin For Head of State. Fela and his supporters marched his mother's empty coffin to Dodan Barracks and left it there to shame Obasanjo.
The Dodan Barracks was the location for a meeting in April 1978 between US President Jimmy Carter
and Olusegun Obasanjo.
In the successful December 1983 coup, when General Muhammadu Buhari
seized power from President Shehu Shagari
, the troops in the barracks initially resisted, only to yield the day after.
In January 1986, a Special Military Tribunal was established to try suspects accused of plotting to overthrow Buhari's successor, General Ibrahim Babangida
. The tribunal conducted the trial at the Dodan barracks, finding 17 of the defendants guilty of treason.
Dodan barracks was one of the key locations seized in the April 1990 coup attempt by Gideon Orkar
against Ibrahim Babangida. Babangida was resident when the barracks were attacked, but escaped by a back route.
The guards thwarted the coup attempt, losing five members in defense of Dodan Barracks.
Babangida's wife, Maryam
, who was also present with her children at the time of the coup attempt, recalled that when she moved into the barracks in 1985 she had to arrange for considerable renovations to make the rooms more suitable for formal receptions.
In 2004 the then civilian President Olusegun Obasanjo - as a gesture of a departure from past military dictatorship finally ordered Dodan Barracks and all other military barracks not in use across the country be handed over to the country's Police Force.
In August 2006, the Lagos Environment and Sanitation Network identified a heavily polluted drainage channel in the Obalende mammy market, behind the State House and Dodan Barracks. An August 2007 analysis found the water was heavily contaminated with faecal material. People living and working in the market, Dodan Barracks and the State House were at risk from diseases such as typhoid fever, diarrhoea, dysentery and cholera.
In 2007, a report by the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, University of Lagos, recommended that the military barracks should be reduced in size and the land freed up should be used for public housing where appropriate.
In January 2009, it was reported that president Umaru Yar'Adua would spend part of his vacation at the barracks.
Ikoyi
Ikoyi is the most affluent neighborhood of Lagos, Nigeria, located on Lagos Island. It lies to the northeast of Obalende and encompasses the eastern half of Lagos Island and lies at the edge of the Lagos Lagoon...
, Lagos
Lagos
Lagos is a port and the most populous conurbation in Nigeria. With a population of 7,937,932, it is currently the third most populous city in Africa after Cairo and Kinshasa, and currently estimated to be the second fastest growing city in Africa...
, Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
. Dodan Barracks was the residence of the heads of state of various Military Governments in Nigeria, and also the Supreme Military Headquarters from 1966 until the move to Abuja
Abuja
Abuja is the capital city of Nigeria. It is located in the centre of Nigeria, within the Federal Capital Territory . Abuja is a planned city, and was built mainly in the 1980s. It officially became Nigeria's capital on 12 December 1991, replacing Lagos...
in 1991.
The name "Dodan" originated from the site of a battle fought doing the Second World War by the 82nd West African Division in Burma.
Military headquarters
The Dodan Barracks was one of the bases of a group of army majors who attempted a coup against the civilian government in January 1966. The coup was suppressed by the army, whose commander, Major General Johnson Aguiyi-IronsiJohnson Aguiyi-Ironsi
Major General Johnson Thomas Umunnakwe Aguiyi-Ironsi was a Nigerian soldier. He served as the Head of State of Nigeria from January 16, 1966 until he was overthrown and killed on July 29, 1966 by a group of northern army officers who revolted against the government.- Early life :Thomas Umunnakwe...
, then became head of state.
In July 1966 the Dodan Barracks became the seat of power in Nigeria after a counter-coup in which Ironsi was killed and his Chief of Staff, General Yakubu Gowon
Yakubu Gowon
General Yakubu "Jack" Dan-Yumma Gowon was the head of state of Nigeria from 1966 to 1975. He took power after one military coup d'etat and was overthrown in another...
was made head of state, moving into the Federal Guard officer's mess. The Barracks was the location where Gowon received the formal Biafra
Biafra
Biafra, officially the Republic of Biafra, was a secessionist state in south-eastern Nigeria that existed from 30 May 1967 to 15 January 1970, taking its name from the Bight of Biafra . The inhabitants were mostly the Igbo people who led the secession due to economic, ethnic, cultural and religious...
n surrender at the end of the Nigerian Civil War
Nigerian Civil War
The Nigerian Civil War, also known as the Nigerian-Biafran War, 6 July 1967–15 January 1970, was a political conflict caused by the attempted secession of the southeastern provinces of Nigeria as the self-proclaimed Republic of Biafra...
in January 1970. Subsequent rulers kept their base at the barracks for the next quarter of a century.
Gowon was overthrown in a July 1975 coup, succeeded by General Murtala Mohammed
Murtala Mohammed
General Murtala Ramat Mohammed born was a military ruler of Nigeria from 1975 until his assassination in 1976.-Role during 1960s coups:...
. In an attempted coup in February 1976, Murtala was killed when his convoy was ambushed. His second in command, Lt. General Olusegun Obasanjo, was in the same convoy but escaped and became head of state. Obasanjo moved into the barracks for security reasons.
In 1977, troops invaded the compound of the influential musician Fela Kuti
Fela Kuti
Fela Anikulapo Kuti , or simply Fela , was a Nigerian multi-instrumentalist musician and composer, pioneer of Afrobeat music, human rights activist, and political maverick.-Biography:...
, called the father of Afrobeat
Afrobeat
Afrobeat is a combination of traditional Yoruba music, jazz, highlife, funk and chanted vocals, fused with percussion and vocal styles, popularised in Africa in the 1970s. Its main creator was the Nigerian multi-instrumentalist and bandleader Fela Kuti, who gave it its name, who used it to...
, who was critical of the military regime. They beat up the men, raped the women and threw Fela into detention. His 78 year old mother died later of injuries from being thrown from a second story window. On his release, he recorded an album titled Coffin For Head of State. Fela and his supporters marched his mother's empty coffin to Dodan Barracks and left it there to shame Obasanjo.
The Dodan Barracks was the location for a meeting in April 1978 between US President Jimmy Carter
Jimmy Carter
James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
and Olusegun Obasanjo.
In the successful December 1983 coup, when General Muhammadu Buhari
Muhammadu Buhari
Muhammadu Buhari was a military ruler of Nigeria and an unsuccessful candidate for president in the 2003, 2007 and 2011 presidential elections...
seized power from President Shehu Shagari
Shehu Shagari
Shehu Usman Aliyu Shagari, Turakin Sakkwato served as the President of Nigeria's Second Republic , after the handover of power by General Olusegun Obasanjo's military government....
, the troops in the barracks initially resisted, only to yield the day after.
In January 1986, a Special Military Tribunal was established to try suspects accused of plotting to overthrow Buhari's successor, General Ibrahim Babangida
Ibrahim Babangida
General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida CFR DSS mni , popularly known as IBB, was a Nigerian Army officer and military ruler of Nigeria...
. The tribunal conducted the trial at the Dodan barracks, finding 17 of the defendants guilty of treason.
Dodan barracks was one of the key locations seized in the April 1990 coup attempt by Gideon Orkar
Gideon Orkar
Major Gideon Gwaza Orkar was a Nigerian military officer and revolutionary who staged a coup against General Ibrahim Babangida on April 22, 1990. Orkar's people seized the FRCN radio station, various military posts around Lagos and the Dodan Barracks, Lagos, the military headquarters and...
against Ibrahim Babangida. Babangida was resident when the barracks were attacked, but escaped by a back route.
The guards thwarted the coup attempt, losing five members in defense of Dodan Barracks.
Babangida's wife, Maryam
Maryam Babangida
Maryam Babangida was the wife of General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, who was Nigeria's head of state from 1985 to 1993.Her husband was the target of criticism for rampant corruption during his regime....
, who was also present with her children at the time of the coup attempt, recalled that when she moved into the barracks in 1985 she had to arrange for considerable renovations to make the rooms more suitable for formal receptions.
Civilian rule
After the move of army headquarters to Abuja in 1991, and the resumption of civilian power in 1999, funding for maintenance of the barracks was greatly reduced. By late 2003 the grounds were dirty and unkempt, sewage was leaking from broken pipes, the walls of some buildings were cracked and most were abandoned.In 2004 the then civilian President Olusegun Obasanjo - as a gesture of a departure from past military dictatorship finally ordered Dodan Barracks and all other military barracks not in use across the country be handed over to the country's Police Force.
In August 2006, the Lagos Environment and Sanitation Network identified a heavily polluted drainage channel in the Obalende mammy market, behind the State House and Dodan Barracks. An August 2007 analysis found the water was heavily contaminated with faecal material. People living and working in the market, Dodan Barracks and the State House were at risk from diseases such as typhoid fever, diarrhoea, dysentery and cholera.
In 2007, a report by the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, University of Lagos, recommended that the military barracks should be reduced in size and the land freed up should be used for public housing where appropriate.
In January 2009, it was reported that president Umaru Yar'Adua would spend part of his vacation at the barracks.