THE FALSEHOOD OF NIGERIA.“THE MISTAKE OF 1914 HAS COME TO LIGHT”

THE FALSEHOOD OF NIGERIA.“THE MISTAKE OF 1914 

HAS COME TO LIGHT”  

The foundation of any civil society is justice, fairness and equity. Amalgamation is the mixture of two or more things together according to Colin's dictionary. The amalgamation of Southern and Northern protectorate in 1914 was the height of injustice and insensitivity by the British colonialists on the right to self determination of the various ethnic groups living across the area. Any society or country built on falsehood, deception and unwilling compulsion of several homogenous people against their will into one will fail. 
The balkanisation of the Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia, Sudan, Pakistan and India is a pointer to this. Even advanced societies such as United Kingdom (Northern Ireland and Scotland), Spain (Catalonia and Basquets) Canada (French speaking part) are still battling with secessionist agitations as a result of lumping together people of diverse cultures and languages. Nigeria was actually created as a company by the British as the United Africa Company to expand British business and hegemony.
According to Chief Richard Akinjide, the British amalgamated only the administration of the southern and northern protectorates of Nigeria and not the inhabiting people. Justice demands that people should be involved in all decisions that can make them now or in the future. It is a known and unarguable fact at no time did the Yorubas, Igbos, Hausas, Itsekiris and other ethnic groups sat down together to approve their forceful union. By excluding the indigenous people from taking part in the decision that will decide their future, the British committed a deplorable crime against humanity. The amalgamation which was deliberate and calculative is today why Nigeria has refused to be a home desired by all. If the Igbos are not agitating today for Biafra, the Niger Delta would be canvassing for the control of their resources. It is known worldwide that countries with people of the same language, culture and tradition are usually united and focused on development. The British deliberately lumped together people of diverse ethnicity,language and tradition just to serve their own administrative and financial interest. Even British colonial officers such as the legendary Harold Smith has confessed that the amalgamation of Nigeria was wrong and unfair to some parts of Nigeria.
The amalgamation was done in such a way that a particular part of the country has some sort of political leverage over the other parts. Such is the political leverage that issues such as expertise, qualifications and intellectual ability are being shoved aside on the basis of Federal character. A look at admission requirements for entering Nigerian universities will highlight the injustice being meted on brilliant students from certain parts of Nigeria through their disqualification not because they did not perform better than some admitted students, but because of an unfair and illogical policy called Educationally less developed states program which demands that less intelligent students be admitted before them. This injustice is not peculiar to the education sector, it is a general norm in all spheres of life in Nigeria. This has led to promotion of mediocrity over expertise in government settings and the nation as a whole. The result of the above is the failure of Nigeria to develop economically, and politically beyond the yardstick of a third world country due to the supremacy of federal character over intelligence and expertise. Such is the flawed foundation of the country that even after over hundred years of the amalgamation, Nigeria is still battling with basic problems such as food security problems (we are still importing majority of what we are eating such as rice and others even though we have an arable land that is more than enough), inadequate power generation (despite spending over twenty trillion naira on the sector we are still generating 4000MW for a population of over 160 million when South Africa a country with half population of ours generates over 50,000MW), poor road network, poor health facilities, terrible education sector (or how do you explain students dying on the collapse of classrooms that should have been renovated) etc. This are problems synonymous with mediocrity, lack of direction, loss of sense of dignity and poor leadership born out of the apparent lopsidedness of the country structurally.

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The mistrust among the over 250 ethnic groups in Nigeria has led to unending ethnic clashes and the loss of millions of lives. The Nigerian civil war, Itsekiri Vs Ijaw, Fulani vs Agatu in the middle belt, Hausas vs Jos indigenes, Yoruba vs Hausa at mile 12 and many more are examples. Even our celebrated leaders such as Obafemi Awolowo, Nnamdi Azikiwe and Ahmadu Bello did not believe in the oneness of Nigerians considering the various divisive statements credited to them. Salient issues such as accountability and corruption cases are usually given ethnic colouration by opposing ethnic groups trying to support their kinsmen who in most cases are only using them as a means to an end. The fact that majority of European and Asian countries are made up majorly of one ethnic group and the progress, development and peace existing in such countries when compared with the homogenous countries of Africa which have been riddled with so many problems such as ethnic wars and poor leadership points to the fact the amalgamation of several ethnic groups into one as done in Nigeria was a great mistake. Conclusively, if after hundred years we are still battling with issues such as ethnic clashes, mistrust and basic economic problems such as food scarcity, then we need to have a rethink and accept the fact that the amalgamation of Nigeria which is the foundation of the entity called Nigeria is faulty and therefore will lead us to nowhere. 

can you combine two companies together without their consent? Is it legal to fuse together two companies to form a new (separate) company which has a unique name, identity and existence without any implied or expressed consent? I doubt it. The British government amalgamated the southern and northern protectorates to form the present Nigeria without seeking their consent. If two companies cannot be legally combined together to form a new (separate) company then the joining together of the two protectorates without their consent is a mistake. If Nigeria is really meant to be united and blended into a single united country through amalgamation, do you think there will be need for us calling for unity everyday? The constant call of unity after amalgamation is as a result of the fact that amalgamation of the country has failed to unite the people. why should we still continue to make use of something that has failed in what it is meant to do? Is it not a mistake if such amalgamation failed in performing what is necessary intended for? Biafra is the only hope and the restoration is imminent. 

By Ezekwereogu John 
Editor,Udeagha Obasi
for UmuChiukwu writers