Re-burial Of Isaac Boro

[Shola Sholaz]

MID-May, d remains of Major Isaac Jasper Adaka Boro were re-interred at the Heroes Park in Yenagoa, capital of Bayelsa State. Most people below 50  may not know Boro, a student at d University of Nigeria, Nsukka, who died fighting in the civil war.
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Convinced dat peoples of the Niger Delta were not benefitting enough from the proceeds of crude oil, he left school to lead an armed protest. His Niger Delta Volunteer Force declared the Niger Delta Republic on 23 February  1966. Boro's republic lasted 12 days. Federal forces contained the insurrection.
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He was jailed 4 treason. General Yakubu Gowon granted him amnesty in May 1967, after which he was commissioned a major in the Nigerian Army.
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He fought in d 3rd Marine Commando when Colonel (later General) Benjamin Adekunle was boss. According to official accounts, a Biafran soldier who was hiding in an empty house by Okrika water side killed Boro on 18 May 1968 as federal troops advanced towards Port Harcourt which they captured six hours after Boro's demise.