"Those who are advocating for the restructuring of the Nigerian Federation into a federation of nationalities and ethnic groups have failed to grasps the substance of the historical process which produced our ethnic groups and the Nigerian polity. Not only do they repeat blatant falsehood about how Nigeria came into being, but they seem oblivious of the impossibility of demarcating the boundary between most of the ethnic groups of the contemporary Nigeria and their neighbors. These nationalities have actually no boundaries, as they intermesh into one another at the level of language, culture, identity and territory. Any attempt to carve out the territories of Nigerian ethnic groups, or even sub-ethnic groups, to create ethnically based federating units, will lead to violent conflicts and sustain civil war, because there is no basis for these boundaries at the ethnic level, given the mosaic nature of the ethnic and cultural geography of Nigeria and most of Africa". Late Dr Yusuf B Usman
There is no denying the fact Nigeria is an amalgam of two distinct Protectorates, the North and South. This was the making of Sir Lord Lugard in the 1914. The amalgamation saw the prior two different entities unified together and formed what we today have, Nigeria. This was done by the British Colonial Masters to aid their administrative conveniences, by this, they found it less difficult to administer the vast Nigerian territory, as a colony then. It was rebuffed and protested by those who conceived the joining together of the two different Protectorates as a marriage of inconvenience. This notion continue to manifest up to the contemporary Nigeria.
Today, ethnic nationalities, political bigwigs, and religious groups were all clamouring for the restructuring of the Nigerian state. But astonishingly, these interest groups were only doing such to serve their ulterior motives. They failed to realize that it's not going to be possible to divide Nigeria on the basis of ethnic and regional units. The difficulties in demarcation is clear, how could one Mark the territorial boundary between Kanuri and Bura, Nupe and Yoruba, Igala or that of Idoma, or Igbo and Tiv, Chamba and Jukun, Urhobo, the Ijaw and Itsekiri, or Fulbe and Hausa, among other Nigerian ethnic nationalities? What magic the restructuring protagonist will use to convince the powerful central government that Nigerian problems can only be solve through restructuring, and that the country should be restructured along ethnic, regional, senatorial or religious divide? They shall know that such divisions will further confound the Nigerian existing problems. Conflict of interest will further arise among different but conjoined people of diverse history. There will be too many conflicts in the battle for supremacy, the Ifes will resist Ijebus supremacy, the Ijaw, Itsekiri and Urhobo will battle each other on who's to become who and what, people from Kano, Zazzau, Katsina, Sokoto, Zamfara and Kebbi will find it difficult to reconcile on who will rule who, the Idoma, Nupe, Igala, Tiv, and Byagi will battle each other for supremacy. The Jukun, Bachama, Bura, Fulbe and Kanuri will never reach compromise on who's to rule who, the Aro Chukus, the Orlus among others will not agree each other over political power. Likewise the restructuring based on regions, for how long will the South-West allowed the South-East, the North-West, the South-South, the North-East or the North-Central or vise versa to rule the country without any part or thereof begin agitations including threats of succession. Or restructuring based on religious line, how could one create a Muslim, Christian boundary? All these will continue to create more division and problems for the contemporary Nigerian state. How could one prevent ethnic conflicts by changing the geographical situation based on ethnic line? How could one prevent the disruption, devastation and dislocation of Nigerians to attain this final solution to Nigerian problems of restructuring based on ethnic, religious, regional units as was fervently agitated for?
We already have the experience of the intensity of disputes over the demarcation of local governments and districts and the location of their headquarters, when operating on territorial principles, the economic and social cost, the disenfranchisement and disinheriting of millions of Nigerians who might turn out to be second class or non citizens in these ethnically constituted federating units as most of them made other part of Nigeria as their homes. It is note worthy that such intensity and confusions will multiply a million-fold as the federation is restructured along ethnic, religion or regional principles. We don't have to allow ourselves to have the experience of the South Sudan, which is a breakaway country from the Republic of Sudan and today facing the most catastrophe of the 21 century, including politically engineered violence and ethnic based conflicts leading to years long wanton destruction of lives and properties, political instability and a devastating famine affecting almost the whole country. This is indeed is the result of an unneeded breakaway, we must avoid this in Nigeria.
Since these agitations was born out of the failures of the Nigerian ruling elites, at the national, state local government and community levels to seriously addressed the task of reviving the economy, constructing an enduring democratic and accountable system of government and of nation building, and that overtime Nigerians have experienced the reality of the extent to which the problem of poverty, corruption, unemployment, tribalism, economic retardation, lawlessness, insecurity, violence among others inimical to the Nigerian citizens welfare and security, are generated processes operating at all levels of the country, within the clans, in villages, city, districts in local governments, states, and at the national level.
To cut it short, remedy to this ethnically, religiously, politically and regionally based agitations for restructuring is good governance, government must rise up to its responsibility by providing the needed welfare packages, ensure fair share of national economic resources, create an enabling environment where all the ethnic nationalities can play their roles towards national development, amicably solve inter-ethnic conflicts, religious clashes, politically based agitations by giving every section of the country the right to be heard and represented, provide adequate security for all citizens, and instill in the citizens the spirit of nationalism and patriotism, and that united the strong, divided the country will fall. The earlier Nigerian citizens realize that the idea of the Nigerian restructuring is a handiwork of a few, politically, ethnically and regionally vested interest groups who bend on seeing a divided Nigeria which to their belief will aid their clinching to power, the better for all of us. Nigerian elites no doubt can use and dump anyone to achieve their desirous goals. Be sensitise!
Umar Muhammad
mumarlere@gmail.com
No comments:
Post a Comment