Ambition and impatience, not separatist sentiment, best explain the coup motive

Evidence

Two contrasting theses have been suggested to explain the motives behind the attempted coup: these junior officers had support from key Northern political leaders and their frustrations reflected the dissatisfaction of the people of the region with the union, or these young and ambitious officers felt entitled to higher ranks because of their superior education in comparison with their commanding officers and were too impatient to address their concerns through established channels. The evidence marshaled to support the first thesis is quite slim, and the second scenario seems more plausible. — Abdi Ismail Samatar, Africa’s First Democrats, 631