1966-1980

The end of the Nigeria-Biafra War was marked by the magnanimous proclamation of “no victor, no vanquished” by the General Yakubu Gowon-led Federal Military Government (FMG). This was widely welcomed and immediately followed by the policy of “Reconciliation, Rehabilitation, and Reconstruction(3Rs)” toward the victims of the war. In a national broadcast, titled “The Dawn of National Reconciliation,” Gowon declared that the task of reconciliationhadtrulycommenced.1 The harsh conditions of surrender expected fromthe FMGdidnot
materialize; rather, the period was marked by the magnanimity of the FMGinpronouncements that guaranteed the personal safety and security of the Igboandtheir properties, the right to re-side and work anywhere in Nigeria, thereabsorption of civil/public servants of Igbo extraction into the civil serviceandthe military, and the granting of general amnesty to the Igbo. John de St. Jorre,
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whose popular account referred to the conflict as “The Brothers’ War,” arguesthat
this was probably the only armed conflict of its magnitude in history, perpetratedwith so much viciousness and bitterness, where no reprisals, trials, or executionsoccurred.2 It is on this backdrop, this study examines the post-civil war policieswith reference to property act law in Nigeria, 1966-1980