On January 20, 1967, Nigeria’s first military Head of Government and Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, Major General Johnson Thomas Umunnakwe Aguiyi-Ironsi, was given a state burial with full military honours in his hometown of Umuahia-Ibeku, in present-day Abia State.
The funeral followed his death during the counter-coup of July 29, 1966. His remains were transported from Enugu Airport amid a large gathering of mourners, marking a solemn moment in Nigeria’s early post-independence history.
