Ogbemudia‘s regime and post-civil war reconstruction of economic and social infrastructure in western Igboland, 1970-1975

Abstract

With the outbreak of the Nigerian Civil War on 6 July, 1967, Western Igboland which bordered Biafra being part of the Midwest State, was under the jurisdiction of the Federal government. The Biafran incursion into the Midwest State on 9 August, 1967 and the Federal forces re-conquest and occupation turned Western Igboland into a theatre of war and contest between the contending forces which led to devastations of economic and social infrastructure in the area. At the end of the Civil War, the Federal Military government under General Yakubu Gowon put forward the Post-Civil War Reconstruction programmes of Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and Reconciliation (3Rs), whose assignments were focused on the former Biafran enclave of East-Central State. Midwest State was excluded from the assignments of the Post-Civil-War Reconstruction programmes of the Federal government, damaged infrastructure in Western Igboland were reconstructed by the Midwest State Government under Col. Samuel Ogbemudia with assistance from the Federal government and international voluntary agencies. It is against
this background, that this paper examines the Midwest State government‘s efforts in restoring the damaged economic and social infrastructure in Western Igboland.