PhotoNews: 60's American Newspaper Headline Contradicts Achebe's Claims

From an American headline from July, 25, 1968 comes a shocking piece of history that contradicts Professor Chinua Achebe's claims in his new book, 'There Was a Country'.
Achebe had in that book accused Yoruba leader and Nigerian founding father, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, of responsibility for the starvation of Biafrans during the Civil War which he tagged as Genocide. Achebe said that Awolowo instituted the policies that resulted in the starvation because "Awolowo was driven by an overriding ambition for power, for himself and for his Yoruba people".
However, several Nigerians, including civil war era Head of State, Yakubu Gowon, and renownwed historian and former minister of Aviation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, had disputed Achebe's claims and said that the starvation was a tool for propaganda as Biafra under Ojukwu refused to allow land food corridors to provide much needed aid to the starving Biafrans unless the Federal Government declared a ceasefire amongst other things.
But perhaps most telling is that contrary to the story that Biafra was poor and cash strapped, it actually had a very lucrative $400,000 Public Relations contract with a U.S. Public Relations Firm to project its own side of the story and that the head of the firm tendered his resignation in protest at Ojukwu's refusal to allow land corridors as this cnfirmed to him that Ojukwu preferred to use the images of starving kwashiokor children as propaganda rather than accept the offer that the Gowon led government had been pressured by the International Community to offer to Biafra.
 Below is the letter of resignation by Robert S. Goldstein of Robert S. Goldstein enterprises.

Open Letter Of Resignation To Odumegwu Ojukwu

FROM Robert S. Goldstein (Public Relations Representative of Biafra in  the United States) (Published in the Morning Post, Lagos, August 17,  1968)
As your Public Relation’s Representative in the United States, it is my  distasteful duty to tender my resignation based on the following points:
POINT 1 - In November of  1967 when we met in Umuahia, you and your Cabinet were very impressive. You told  me of the woes of your little Republic, that thousands of people had died, were  dying and more were prepared to die for freedom’s sake.
You and your Cabinet told me you believed world opinion would help your cause  if you could get your story across.
You expressed the opinion that very few if any people in the United States  knew of the plight of the Biafrans.
You asked me to tell the world that Britain had teamed up with Russia in a  conspiracy with the Federal Government of Nigeria to murder every Ibo in Biafra.  You suggested I use my talents to induce the Press to write about the Biafran  side of the war, as at that time all news came out of Lagos.
You will recall I did not take the assignment that day but stayed on several  days before deciding to take that job.
To help win the  peace
At that time I stated to you and your cabinet that I was taking the  assignment making it crystal clear I would try my best to help win the peace not  the war.
POINT TWO – I immediately  arranged the first world Press conference in Biafra inviting the US Press as  well as journalists and television people from England, France, Switzerland,  Africa and other parts of the Globe. This was the first news break through. I  arranged regular trips into Biafra for the world Press, helped set up stringers,  etc., so that your statements and the statements of your Cabinet would be  heard.
At that time, I was absolutely positive you were right and your cause was a  just one in the best interests of the free world and your countrymen.
POINT THREE – Finally the  Republic of Biafra was recognized first by Tanzania, then quickly followed by  Gabon, the Ivory Coast and Zambia. Our public relations work was paying off,  world opinion was starting to side with us.
Peace talks were arranged at Kampala. I thought that if anyone walked away  from the table it would be the Federal Government. But to my dismay it was  Biafra that left the Conference. After all the fighting and killing, I knew that  peace would not come easy but I could not understand leaving the Peace  Conference until the last point was negotiated and the avenue explored.
POINT FOUR - Then urgent  telex messages were received from ‘Biafra’ telling of tens of thousands of  people starving in the refugee camps, the villages, the bush country – stating  if something weren’t done in the next few months over a million women, children  and aged would be starved to death. I immediately contacted the Press, urgently  petitioned the State Department for action on their part. Food, medicine and  milk were sent to the only available ports open for immediate shipment to ‘Biafra’ via land routes through Federal and Biafra territory, under the  auspices of world organizations such as the International Red Cross among  others.
Then came the incredible answer from ‘Biafra’ that land corridors could not  be acceptable until there was a complete ceasefire, and that an airlift was the  only solution to feed the starving.
You then appeared before the various Heads of State and representatives of  the OAU at Niamey in Niger. I fully expected you to at least accept the world  help that was offered your starving throngs. However, you delayed, hoping to use  these unfortunates with world sympathy on their side as a tool to further your  ambition to achieve war concessions at the upcoming peace talks in Addis Ababa.  Thus innocent victims continue to perish needlessly of starvation, the most  agonising death that can befall any living creature.
POINT FIVE – This was  incredible to me. I am now convinced that I have been used by you and your  cabinet to help in military adventures of your origin….using your starving  hordes as hostages to negotiate a victory.
If at some later date, following the isuance of this letter, you do concede  to allow a mercy land corridor…would you expect me to agree to espouse before  the world Press the incredible delay of your decision. What explanation could I  honestly give for the needless prolongation of this horror.
Inconceivable  acts
I pray this communication may in some small way influence you to move  affirmatively, allowing the mercy land corridor to be born.
It is inconceivable to me that you would stop the feeding of thousands of  your countrymen (under auspicies of world organizations such as the  International Red Cross, World Council of Churches and many more) via a land  corridor which is the only practical way to bring in food to help at this time.  It is inconcivable to me that men of good faith would try to twist world opinion  in such a manner as to deceive people into believing that the starvation and  hunger that is consuming ‘Biafra’ is a plot of Britian, Nigeria and others to  commit genocide.
POINT SIX – I cannot in all  conscience serve you any longer. Nor can I be a party to suppressing the fact  that your starving thousands have the food, medicine and milk available to  them…..it can and is ready to be delivered through international organizations  to you. Only your constant refusal has stopped its delivery.
I am this date, tendering my resignation and am returning to Mr. Collins Obih  of the African Continental Bank all the fees you have given me (Letter of Credit  No. 354 $400,000 US.)
I have sent your representative in New York a Bond in the amount of 800.000  pounds that I was holding in your behalf. I have also this date, sent the Bond  of 200,000 pounds issues by the Central Bankl of Nigeria back to them for  disposal.
POINT SEVEN – I am now  convinced that one Nigeria is the only solution to peace. I also call upon you  Mr. Ojukwu to allow your starving people to be fed. Their well-being is of deep  concern to me as well as other right thinking people of the world. Your acting  in the utmost haste in this matter is in my opinion the first step toward any  lasting peace in your country.”