During the 1983 elections, Chief Obafemi Awolowo was hosted to a town hall interview in Abeokuta, where in addition to other pertinent topics of the day, he spoke on his role in the civil war, the 20 pounds policy, starvation as a weapon, change of currency, abandoned property among others. Excerpts

People who as members of the Federal Military Government at that time, were party to that decision and are today, in some cases, inheritors of power in one Nigeria which that decision of yours helped to save. How do you feel being cast in this role, and what steps are you taking to endear yourself once again to that large chunk of Nigerians who feel embittered?

As far as I know, the Igbo masses are friendly to me. In fact, whenever I visit Igboland, either Anambra or Imo, and there’s no campaigning for elections on, the people receive me warmly and affectionately. But there are some elements in Igboland who believe that they can maintain their popularity only by denigrating me, and so they keep on telling lies against me. Ojukwu is one of them. I don’t want to mention the names of the others because they are still redeemable, but Ojukwu is irredeemable so I mention his name, and my attitude to these lies is one of indifference, I must confess to you.

I’ve learnt to rely completely on the providence and vindication of Almighty God in some of these things. I’ve tried to explain myself in the past, but these liars persist. Ojukwu had only recently told the same lie against me. What’s the point in correcting lies when people are determined to persist in telling lies against you, what’s the point? I know that someday, the Igbo, the masses of the Igbo people will realize who their friends are, and who their real enemies are. And the day that happens, woe betide those enemies.

The Igbo will deal with them very roughly. That has happened in my life. I have a nickname now, if you see my letterhead, you’ll find something on top, you’ll find a fish done on the letterhead. Some people put lion on theirs, some people put tiger, but mine is fish. And fish represents my zodiac sign; those of you who read the stars and so on in the newspapers; you’ll find out that there’s a zodiac sign known as pieces. In Latin pieces mean Fish

So, I put pieces on top, that’s my zodiac sign, being born on the 6th of March. And then on top of it I write Eebudola. All of you know the meaning of that. You know I don’t want to tell a long story but Awolowo school, omo Awolowo, this started in Urhobo Land in Mid-west in those days. They were ridiculing my schools, I was building schools –brick and cement, to dpc level, block to dpc level and mud thereafter. And so the big shots in the place..”ah what kind of school is this? Is this Awolowo school? Useless school” and when they saw the children..”ah these Awolowo children, they can’t read and write, Awolowo children” that t’s how it started, with ridicule, and it became blessing, and now they say “Awolowo children, they are good people” no more ridicule about it, that’s how it started, so the Eebu becomes honor, the abuse became honor. And so, when I look back to all my life, treasonable felony, jail, all the abuses that were heaped on me, to Coker Inquiry, all sorts, and I see what has happened to the people who led all these denigration campaigns, where are they today? Those that are alive are what I call Homo Mortuus- dead living, that’s what they are.

So when I look back, I come to the conclusion that all these abuses which have been heaped on me all my life for doing nothing, doing good, they have become honour, and so Eebudola is one of my nicknames. So I’ve cultivated an attitude of indifference, I’ve done no evil to the Ibos.

During the war, I saw to it that the revenue which was due to the Iboland- South Eastern states they call it, at that time, East-central state, I kept it, I saved the money for them.And when they were liberated I handed over the money to them- millions.If I’d decided to do so, I could have kept the money away from them and then when they took over I saw to it that subvention was given to them at the rate of 990,000 pounds every month.

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