Major General Lawrence Anebi Onoja (Rtd), PhD, is a retired Nigerian Army officer, administrator and politician from Ohimini in Benue State. He was Military Governor of Plateau State (1986 to 1988) and Katsina State (1988 to 1989) under General Ibrahim Babangida. He later became a senior staff officer at the Presidency, and after retirement he went into politics and public service.

Early Life and Education

Onoja was born on 10 August 1948 at Idekpa Okpiko, Ohimini Local Government Area of Benue State, and is of Idoma origin. He attended St. Francis College, Otukpo, and Government College, Lafia (now in Nasarawa State), from 1962 to 1966. In 1966, a time of deep political change in Nigeria, he joined the Nigerian Army as a cadet.

He trained at the Nigerian Defence Academy, Kaduna, and at the Mons Officer Cadet School in Aldershot, England. He was commissioned in October 1968. He later studied political science at Cameron University and Oklahoma State University in the United States. At the University of Jos he earned an M.Sc. in Political Science and a doctorate in International Law and Diplomacy.

Military Career

His service included:

• Instructor at a military secondary school in Zaria
• Staff Officer, Administration, at Army Headquarters, Lagos (1973 to 1975)
• Instructor at the Command and Staff College, Jaji (1979 to 1984)
• Defence Adviser at the Nigerian Embassy in Cairo, Egypt
• Principal Staff Officer to General Ibrahim Babangida

He also completed a number of military courses, including the Junior Command and Staff Course in England and the Senior Command and Staff Course.

Military Governor of Plateau State

In 1986 Onoja was appointed Military Governor of Plateau State, serving until July 1988. His tenure coincided with religious and social tension. To reduce conflict between Christian and Muslim communities, he announced a policy to demolish unauthorised places of worship. The policy was controversial, and press accounts say it was not carried out. In April 1988, after student unrest, his administration temporarily closed the University of Jos.

Military Governor of Katsina State

In July 1988 he became Military Governor of Katsina State and served until December 1989. His administration was widely noted for financial prudence and personal integrity. In March 1989 he announced negotiations for a $20 million loan from Saudi Arabia to support the Zobe Dam irrigation project.

Later Roles and Retirement

After Katsina he served as Director of the Faculty of Joint Studies at the Command and Staff College, Jaji. In 1991 he became Principal Officer to the Chief of Defence Staff and Minister of Defence. He later commanded the Third Armoured Division in Jos, and during the Abacha regime he served as Principal General Staff Officer at the Presidency.

In 1998 he was arrested over an alleged plot to overthrow the Abacha government. No charges were brought, and he was released. He retired that year with the rank of Major General.

Politics and Public Service

After Nigeria returned to civilian rule in 1999, Onoja entered partisan politics. In 2003 he served on the board of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria and contested the Benue governorship election on the platform of the United Nigeria Peoples Party (UNPP).

In December 2006 he contested the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) primary for the Benue South senatorial ticket against Senator David Mark. Mark won 1,719 votes to Onoja’s 1,605. The contest was closely fought and the result was disputed, but Onoja accepted it in the interest of party unity. He later contested Benue governorship and senatorial seats on the platforms of the UNPP and the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN). He is now a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

In April 2009, President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua appointed him Chairman of the National Institute for Sports. That year the Idekpa community also conferred the title Ooyame K’Idekpa (“Achiever Par Excellence”) on him, and community leaders encouraged him to run for the Senate in 2011.

Honours and Titles

• Itu K’Agatu (Pillar of Agatu)
• Akanba K’Okpiko (Pillar of Okpiko)
• Ooyame K’Idekpa (Achiever Par Excellence of Idekpa)
• Nwanne Di Na Mba of Omuma, Imo State (Friend of Omuma)
• Merit Award, Methodist Church Nigeria (16 April 2006)
• Former President, Alumni Association of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru