Rubuta ci gaba don wannan sakin layi - A cikin 1963, al'ummar ta kafa jamhuriya ta tarayya, tare da Azikiwe a matsayin shugabanta na farko. Rashin daidaituwa da kuma cin hanci da rashawa na tsarin zabe da siyasa ya haifar da juyin mulki biyu a shekarar 1966. Juyin mulki na farko ya faru ne a watan Janairun 1966
kuma galibi sojoji 'yan kabilar Igbo ne ke jagoranta a karkashin Majors Emmanuel Ifeajuna da Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu. 'Yan juyin mulkin sun yi nasarar kashe Sir Ahmadu Bello da Abubakar Tafawa Balewa tare da fitattun shugabanni na Yankin Arewa da kuma Firayim Minista Samuel Akintola na Yankin Yamma, amma masu juyin mulkin sun yi gwagwarmaya don kafa gwamnatin tsakiya. Shugaban Majalisar Dattawa Nwafor Orizu ya mika ikon gwamnati ga Sojoji, a karkashin jagorancin wani jami'in Igbo, Janar Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi. Daga baya, juyin mulkin da aka yi a shekarar 1966, wanda jami'an sojoji na arewa suka tallafawa, ya sauƙaƙe hauhawar Yakubu Gowon a matsayin shugaban soja. Tashin hankali ya tashi tsakanin arewa da kudu; Igbos a biranen arewa sun sha wahala tsanantawa kuma da yawa sun gudu zuwa Yankin Gabas.