Former Military Head of State, Yakubu Gowon, has defended the Federal Government’s post-civil war financial policies, stating that Igbos who had funds in Nigerian banks before the Nigerian Civil War were fully compensated with accrued interest after the conflict ended.
Gowon made the clarification in his memoir, My Life of Duty and Allegiance, while addressing long-standing claims that the administration unfairly treated Igbos by introducing the controversial £20 policy after the war.
The Nigerian Civil War, also known as the Biafran War, lasted from July 6, 1967, to January 15, 1970. Gowon served as Head of State during the conflict, while the late Obafemi Awolowo was the Federal Commissioner for Finance.
According to Gowon, Awolowo has been unfairly blamed over the £20 policy, stressing that the decision was collectively taken by the Federal Government based on expert economic advice.
He explained that after the war, the Central Bank established a panel to examine the implications of converting the Biafran currency into Nigerian currency. However, the panel concluded that such a move would be extremely difficult because the Biafran pound had never been officially recognised as legal tender in Nigeria.
Gowon said the government was also concerned that exchanging all Biafran currency at par with the Nigerian pound would severely damage the country’s economy.
“The Central Bank created a panel to examine all the effects of converting the Biafran pound into another currency, but it was clear this would be a tough task because from the start, the Biafran currency wasn’t officially recognized as legal tender in Nigeria.
“Because there were so many Biafran pounds in use, the Federal Government realized it couldn’t exchange all of them at the same value as the Nigerian currency without causing the economy to fail.
He added that economic experts recommended paying every adult from the former Biafran territory a flat sum of £20, regardless of the amount of Biafran currency they possessed.
“Economic specialists suggested that the Federal Government should set the payment to around 20 Nigerian pounds for every adult from Biafra, no matter how much Biafran money they bring back.
“We agreed to the proposal and made it our official policy, especially because we couldn’t figure out the small and large details needed to print the Biafran currency.”
Gowon, however, maintained that individuals who could provide evidence that they had money in Nigerian bank accounts before the war received the full value of their deposits, along with accrued interest, in Nigerian currency.
“However, everyone who left Nigeria but had proof that they had money in Nigerian banks got the full amount of their money plus the interest it earned, all in Nigerian currency. It would have been a bad idea to choose a different path,” he said.
