FEATURE ARTICLE

Francis Kizito ObeyaThursday, October 2, 2014
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NIGERIA: NOTES ON A 100-YEAR OLD MARRIAGE

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t has been a hundred years since the administrator, Frederick Lugard joined Northern and Southern Nigeria in matrimony. To some, it has been a blissful matrimony and for others, it has been a marriage made in the very depths of Hell and with diabolical intentions. History records that in the lead up to the amalgamation of the regions that today make up Nigeria, only the British had any reason to smile. To them, forming a single entity out of the cacophony they had subjugated under The Crown, would be more cost effective in terms of governance, fiscal responsibilities and overall administration. Instead of burning the candle at both ends, the colonial masters believed that the job could be done at half the price with a maximum return on investments. To the North laid grasslands and open plains which soothed the moods of the colonials and their families as well as arable lands which could be exploited for crop and animal husbandry. To the South beckoned great forests and groves of palm trees as well as mineral wealth. Petroleum, though recently discovered, also made the south a jewel in the eyes of the colonial masters. If the men who served the British queen worried about the feelings of the four hundred and something ethnic groups that would be pitched in to that union, they did not show it. All they focused upon were the benefits that accrued from the melding of the two regions that had little in common, and its resultant economic sensibility.

Meanwhile this arranged marriage was greeted with apprehension from the participants. In the north, the leadership, having earlier embraced a civilization established along the Islamic culture, remained conservative and suspicious of the colonials and struggled to accommodate their demands without giving up too much of their Islamic affiliations. Consequently, a sizeable amount of its population remained largely uneducated (in Western education) and ill-prepared to compete against their southern neighbors who held all the cards as far as embracing Western culture and entering contemporary culture was concerned. The north felt ill-equipped for such a clash and saw a possible threat from the south. This insecurity notwithstanding, did not prevent the amalgamation of the regions, with the duo remaining different as night from day, held together only by the profiting British. There was really nothing to worry about as long as the colonial master was on hand to keep the peace, administer the regions; albeit, through indirect rule, provide employment, foster trade and share the national cake among the people. If any group felt marginalized, disgruntled, dissatisfied or misrepresented, they kept their discontent to themselves. They had already seen what happened to any person or persons who pissed off Her Majesty. The highway of history was littered with sultans, Oonis,Obas,kings and princes who had been deposed, killed or sent on exile for daring to stand up to the empire on which the sun cannot set.

Cracks began to appear in this otherwise perfect harmony when the British Empire began to broach the issue of independence. Once again, an unprepared Northern Nigeria had her reservations as she had not trained enough of her citizens to compete with her better prepared partner in the South. Such fears were also emphasized by the local political parties which existed along ethnic lines instead of having a national face. Whatever fear the north harbored as a result of its unpreparedness to compete against the south was soon overcome, with the allure of the abundant mineral resources available in the south, as well as the promise by the colonial master to give her a political edge over her southern "better half." Even before the Union Jack could be lowered in favor of the green white green on October 1st 1960, northern Nigeria had more seats in parliament than southern Nigeria. The prime minister was of northern origins, and the powerful Sardauna of Sokoto held unbelievable powers and influence over the fledgling government as he raced against time to give his subjects a competitive edge against the overwhelming hordes that threaten to overrun them in the emerging independent Nigeria.

The south, on the other hand, with its kaleidoscope of ethnic groups, did not worry much about the fears of her northern partners as southerners, particularly the Igbo from the south eastern part of the country, migrated north, recording outstanding successes in commerce, education and the civil service. Soon, they held most of the positions that were being vacated by the colonial overlords, to the chagrin of the northerners. Many northerners complained as the opportunities that were available at the time were quickly swooped up by their southern brothers either because the latter were the only qualified persons to do the job, or they had insider information of available vacancies which the former did not. After independence, the Nigerian society rumbled along ethnic lines, deviating from its intended national outlook as the various parties whipped up tribal sentiments among their members, feeding off of the existing suspicions and distrust.

Things took a sharp turn for the worse one night when, on January 15th 1966, a faction within the Army, took matters in their hands and killed off many of Nigeria's leadership, a bulk of which happened to be of northern origins. Coincidentally, many of the leaders of southern origin escaped unscathed. Matters were also not helped by the fact that the men who had perpetrated these acts were southerners. This event would widen the chasm that existed between the north and south even further. The backlash of this 'revolution' was the killing of southerners, especially those of Igbo extraction, thus causing them to flee back to their geographic region. These series of unfortunate events resulted in a brief separation of the north and south as the South and South-eastern part of the country pushed for self-determination in a new country called Biafra. War ensued, Biafra lost and had to be reined back into the federation, thus returning the south back into the marriage.

But it has remained an unhappy marriage with the various tribes struggling to make sense of the direction the successive Nigerian leaders have been taking the country. When they grow tired of civilian rule, the military was often asked to take over and vice versa. There have been eight military rulers at the helm of affairs since her independence in 1960. The people only had the chance to elect five. Each successive regime has brought its share of promises (empty and full), hopes (false and realistic), and dreams both rich and shattered into the union. What has remained constant has been the mutual distrust among the tribes as each viewed the other as the root cause of the nation's stunted growth. Matters are not helped with the continuous pollution of southern waters by oil companies, whose profits bring little or no development to the region itself; or the constant thirst of northern Nigeria for a return to her Islamic origins through sharia law and everything that comes with it. In recent times, global terrorism has taken a hand in the turn of events as Boko Haram, a determined offshoot of Al Qaeda threatens the lives of many in northern Nigeria, as they wreak havoc on the inhabitants there.

Much has happened in the most populous black country in the world since the last 100 years. She has grown from a collection of native tribes who "killed its first white man and tied his iron horse to a tree", to a powerful modern nation on a quest for greatness but never finding it due to the shortcomings of its leadership. Nigeria has been touted as one of the fastest growing economies in the world but that has not translated to better life for many Nigerians. The wealth remains concentrated in few hands with the rich getting richer, many times through questionable means, while the poor continue to buckle under the weight of abject penury that pervades the atmosphere. Corruption, that hydra-headed monster that unites the north and south, has a chokehold on the country and her powerless leaders struggle to find ways to effectively tackle the practice only to get sucked in it themselves. Till date, no effective anticorruption policy has been put in place and each agency established to tackle the vice often winds up as a tool for witch-hunting those who fall out of favor with the government in power.

Like every marriage, the Nigerian matrimony has seen its share of bliss and blizzards, with one region, at one point or the other, threatening to 'leave and go my papa house.' But cooler heads often prevail and through timely interventions, convince the estranged partner to return to the marriage. Certain powers that be have predicted that this wedlock will not last beyond 2015 but this writer can only remind the naysayers of the tale of the bumble bee. The engineers say that it is aerodynamically impossible for the bumble bee to take off the ground in flight (it has short wings and a relatively huge body.) The bumble bee thinks otherwise and flies all the same. We have had very great moments, in sports, in economics, in agriculture, in manpower and development. Admittedly something went wrong along the line and we were diverted from our course into the abyss but just as the great sage Bongos Ikwue sang; "a dried river never loses its name." There is so much promise of a bright future. There are signs that show that our tomorrow is going to be way better than our today and yesterday and good Nigerians cannot wait for the glory days to return. Ogelohipiyi. For now we go through all the phases of a marriage, enduring the tough times where both partners stick to their guns, believing in their right to be right, not yielding, not listening to the other's opinions, not backing down, not looking away and just about had it up to here. But with a little backrub and a little sweet talk, all will be forgiven and we shall get back to discussing the future of the family and the children's school fees.

One hundred years. The rings are still on our fingers. The love is still in our hearts- despite the scars.

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