Udounwa: Profile of an Exemplary Officer

BOOK REVIEW By Okey Ikechukwu

I first met Maj Gen Udounwa when he was head of the Army War College, Abuja. I had come to deliver a lecture and make a presentation on “War in complex Environments”. This gentleman who took over from the previous Commandant, was as simple, well turned out, urbane and professional as his very pleasant predecessor. He came across as a self respecting professional in a very unforced sort of way. He had, and still has, his almost shy smile and polite manners.

There were subsequent encounters and engagements at the College while he was still in charge. These subsequent engagements only reinforced my initial impressions about him as an army officer who will not be easily distracted by anything that is not strictly related to the values he espouses, or his professional calling.

After his relatively recent retirement, he wrote a book to capture his years of service and meritorious career in the Nigerian Army, titled “Big Boots: Lessons from My Military Experience”. The first four major attractions of the book are (1) The print quality and font type, which do not afront your sense of beauty; (2) The chronological layout of the chapters and the narratives; (3) The simple descriptive , storytelling, style and (4) The absence of any affections in the book’s overall effect. This book of nine chapters, gives the reader a step-by-step account of the birth, development and career progression of its subject matter and author.

Part of what the author succeeded in doing with this work is show us how a person’s family background, his core ethical values respect for norms ultimately define and determine who he is, what he does, and how he turns out in life; no matter where he finds himself. What one gets from reading the book includes the following: (1) Deep insight into the Person, inner motivations, personal values and concept of loyalty and national service, as understood by Mag Gen Solomon Odounwa (rtd). (2) The professional and personal development of the author as a human being, as an army officer and as a dependable aide to his superiors in service and (3) The service experience of the author, his brilliance and his impact and trajectory in the positions he held at various times; including his time at Army Headquarters.

“Big Boots: Lessons from My Military Experience” testifies to how a distinguished officer’s personal discipline and commitment to the best ideals of his chosen profession can mark him out for a glorious career in the Service. The author took time to understand the system. He remained true, and loyal, to his calling. Every aspect of his Service Record and performance was marked by excellence, as he moved from one level of endeavour and fulfilment to another. It was his decades of honest effort, professional discipline, personal integrity, self-respect, and an enlightened grasp of global best practices that made him the man he is today.

These facts alone, which any reader will unravel in the book, may lead some of his former and serving colleagues unto the path of self-examination. He showed that career is not just “what you do for a living’. It is what absorbs your entire soul and being; and that is what makes it a Calling.

The Foreword to the book, written by Lt Gen TY Danjuma (rtd), the exemplary Nigerian soldier and the author’s former boss, set the tone for what to expect in the book, with these words: “…I had no difficulty choosing Solomon to work with me…his service records indicated that he was a brilliant officer who had undergone several courses, beyond the mandatory ones, and indeed excelled in all of them”.

In the Introduction, which is immediately followed by the first chapter, the author says: “Big Boots tells the full story of my military service in all the posts I held… with the purpose of sharing my experience that could be of benefit to military personnel and other persons with interests in military affairs”. I disagree with the author here. I submit, instead, that his book will be of great value and benefit to a much wider audience and reading public, far beyond serving and retired military personnel and “individuals interested in military affairs”.

The first chapter of Big Boots tells us about the birth of the author during the Nigerian civil war and about his village and the defining essence of the people. It showcases the influence of his father, who was nick-named Atara Abam (the tree that stands out among others) by the author’s maternal grandfather and how the young Solomon found strong points of moral anchorage in the man’s unshakable Christian faith and native wisdom.

The author’s mother was described as “A mother from heaven”. Her faith in God, as “The source of wealth, health, riches and all good things…: without Whom “…no man can achieve anything” was also one of the early stabilizing beacons for the author; whose vivid memories of his parents, especially of the lessons they taught him, were the foundations on which he built much of his later life.

The early signs of greatness budding in the author, his High School adventures, as well as his first contact with soldiers and its effect on him, can be gleaned from this opening chapter of Big Boots.

The second chapter, titled “The Beginning of Military Adventure” discusses the circumstances that led to the author’s choice of a military career and how he faired throughout his training at NDA. It touches on ECOMOG and the loss of colleagues and Course Mates in that operation. It also dwelt his “Life Line of Mentorship” in Minna, when he was posted from ECOMOG to Headquarters Battery, 31 Artillery Brigade, Minna, as Troop Commander. This chapter reveals so much about the author’s brilliance, initiative under pressure, his strong leadership qualities and his Service discipline.

The third chapter of this book, titled “Recollections of and Aide-De-Camp” captures the authors experiences as ADC to Lt Gen TY Danjuma, when the latter was Minster of Defence. His interview with this “living legend” for the position of ADC, the effects of the Minister’s forthright nature on him and the realities of working with a seasoned officer, patriot, and gentleman with deep professional knowledge and a human face left a deep mark on Udounwa’s person and professionalism.

And this is where the account dovetailed into how this seasoned officer is described at various times by former colleagues and bosses. While the author reports former Head of State, Gen Yakubu Gowon, as describing TY Danjuma as”..  a confident and intelligent officer who could be entrusted with any sensitive and strategic assignment”, he tells us that former Head of state, and later President, Gen Buhari, had this to say about the same man: “…no better soldier than he has served in the Nigerian Army. He was competent, fair, and had no time for dilettantes and non-tryers”.

Gen Babangida’s testimonial about the gentleman to whom this chapter of the book is largely dedicated is this: “He is a man of excellence who does not accommodate mediocrity. Only people of high standards survive around him”.

The only thing to add here is that Maj Gen, Oduonwa not only survived around this man, but is still around him. The reader will learn much about Lt Gen Danjuma’s simplicity, humility, generosity, and commitment to transparency and accountability, among other things, from this chapter of Udounwa’s work.

The fourth chapter looks at the author’s mid-career years, his Bangladesh experience, his various postings, his excellent performance records in the places he served, and his stint with Army Public Relations. This chapter also tells us about the author’s first command experience and the transformative impact of his nine months of holding a command position; as well as his return to the Army School of Artillery as an Instructor.

In the fifth chapter we see what the author calls “The Carlisle Experience”, while the sixth chapter, captioned “In the Corridors of Military Power”, focuses on the roles, relevance and impact of various individuals on the author and the nation. These two chapters are  best read, in order to get their full value.

In chapter seven of “Big Boots: Lessons from My Military Experience”, we see Maj Gen Solomon Uduonwa as a military diplomat at his duty post as Nigeria’s Defence Adviser in New York. He captures Nigeria’s rallying role as President of the Council for the month of August, 2015, during which period the Security Council adopted and passed two landmark resolutions on Syria and UNIFIL, among other presidential statements. The strengthening of Nigeria’s peace keeping profile, the handling of cases of sexual exploitation and abuse in the UN, AMPAC and efforts towards the consolidation of Africa’s position on the global stage can also to be found in this chapter.

Chapter eight deals with the authors return to Army Headquarters and his engagements and duties there. His account of his service at the Army War college training leaders, as well as the tricky business of managing Army hospitality business dovetailed into the last chapter of this book, captioned “A New Chapter Beckons”; which begins with a sub title: ‘Last Post: Sojourn at Defence Headquarters’. He describes his duties at Defence Headquarters as working “..to sustain our armed forces’ partnerships with our key allies”.

This last chapter also captures the author’s retirement from service, as “A New Phase of Adventure”, with rich and moving testimonials toasting his commendable and meritorious trajectory as a distinguished officer, gentleman and patriot.

In the “Afterword” which is the concluding section of the book, the author has this to say: “The primary duty of a military officer is to fight and win his nation’s wars. To prepare him for this role, the military invests enormous resources to train and equip him with the knowledge and skills he requires for success. Beyond the training, the military officer must understand the enormity of the responsibilities he carries on his shoulders. He must understand that military service is a sacrifice, even at the cost of his life. He is largely the custodian of the destiny of his country, confronting every adversary that threatens its existence. This is an onerous task for which he must adequately prepare himself“.

I agree with the author’s submission above, and I adopt the above declarations, without reservations.

It bears repeating here that this book brings to the fore the importance of home training, professional and personal integrity in making a person who he is in life. It also stands as a legacy publication, because anyone who is interested in establishing that tenuous nexus between character, training and upbringing can find it here. The lessons the author has shared, and his deliberate efforts to be as objective as possible, make the book very useful material for students of personal growth and professional development. 

The book is to be ready and digested. Not flipped through.