Farewell for ex-Biafra leader Chukwuemeka Ojukwu in Nigeria

Thousands of people gathered in a south-eastern Nigerian town for the funeral of former Biafran secessionist leader Chukwuemeka Ojukwu.The BBC’s Fidelis Mbah, in Col Ojukwu’s home town of Nnewi, says well-wishers are lining the streets and climbing tall buildings to get the best view.Col Ojukwu died in the UK last year after a long illness, aged 78. His 1967 declaration of independence for Biafra sparked a civil war, in which more than a million people died.He remained a prominent figure in Nigerian politics, running twice as a presidential candidate in the 2000s. Col Ojukwu went into exile after the Biafrans surrendered in 1970, returning more than a decade later, after he was officially pardoned.Following his amnesty, was granted full military honours at the funeral, with a military band playing at his family home in Nnewi, Anambra state.His coffin, draped in a Nigerian flag, has been transported around the country in the days leading up to his funeral.President Goodluck Jonathan and other senior politicians are expected to attend the funeral.Following Col Ojukwu’s death, the president said it was his “immense love for his people, justice, equity and fairness which forced him into the leading role he played in the Nigerian civil war”.