The 'mistake' of 1914
by
Katsina State, Nigeria
Many Nigerians especially southerners seem to believe that the amalgamation of northern and southern protectorates by the British in 1914 was a colossal mistake. They contend that northern and southern Nigeria are too different to make a workable nation, hence they attribute much of Nigeria’s problems today to that historic ‘error’. As an Nkrumaist Pan Africanist who believes in the unification of black Africa, I find such notion disturbing.
Even in pre-colonial Africa, multi-ethnic nations existed. The Benin empire comprised Edos,Urhobos, Yorubas and some Igbo speaking peoples. The influence of the Oyo Empire extended into modern day Ghana. The Sokoto caliphate was multi-ethnic, in fact most of the great African empires Mali, Songhai, Ashanti, Zulu etc were composed of more than one ethnic group. Around the world today multi-ethnic nations are the norm rather than exception. Even Britain our erstwhile colonial master is an amalgam of English, Welsh, Scots, Norrnans, Saxons, Angles, etc. It is therefore likely that even without colonialism multi-ethnic nations would have emerged in Africa today.
On closer scrutiny the apparently irreconcilable dichotomy is actually between the core North and the rest of the country. In culture and way of life most Middle Belt peoples have more in common with the South than with the core North. In fact many Middle Belters have strong historic and ethnic affiliation with the South — the Kwara/Kogi Yorubas and their south western cousins; Idomas of Benue and Yalas of Cross River; the Igalas had more historical interaction with the Igbos and Edos than their fellow Hausa ‘northerners.’
The lumping by the British of these Middle Belters (many of whom were never part of and resisted the Sokoto Caliphate), with the Hausa Fulani-Kanuri as ‘one North’ was part of an elaborate strategy to emasculate the political restive South just as the federal government included the most oil producing Igbos in Rivers State to politically and economically undermine the Ndigbo (still considered Biafrans). The Middle Belters have not help matters. Some of them capitalized on the political dominance of the core North to ride to power and position. That notwithstanding, would the Southern anti-amalgamationists estrange their cousins in the Middle Belt because of their difference with the Hausa/Fulani?
Even indigenous pre-Islamic Hausa-Fulani culture was not much different from that of other Nigerians. The difference came with the violent enthronement of Islam in the 1804 jihad. Prior to that most Hausas were pagans (Maguzawa) who had little or no interest in Islam even though they had been aware of it for over eight hundred years. Like other indigenous pre-colonial Africans the pre-Jihad Hausas never fought, killed, persecuted or discriminated on the basis of religion. They Intermarried freely (without religious pre-conditions) with other neighbouring African peoples.
Thus, it is apparent that the major irreconcilable difference between the core North and the rest of the country is religious Christianity and Islam, two mutually antagonistic intolerant foreign faiths each claiming exclusive access to God. Islam takes the antagonism further - Take neither Jews nor Christians as friends or helpers (Q 5:51); Make war on infidels(unbelievers; who dwell around you (Q 9:123); Fight against those of the book (Christians and Jews) who believe neither in Allah nor the last day (Q 9:29); Make war on them until unbelief is no more and Allah’s religion reigns supreme (Q 8:39).
True, there are Muslims in the Southwest and Middle belt. They practice Islam with common sense and moderation presumably because they were Islamized by persuasion rather than forcefully by jihad as in the core North. Ilorin the only part of Yorubaland Islamized by jihad is also the only part of Yoruba land that erupts in religious violence. The ongoing Sharia crisis in the core North lends further credence to this position. It was probably in premonition of this that Major Orkar attempted to excise the Sharia states.
The age old rivalry between Christians and Muslims began in Medieval Europe and the Middle East. Thus, we black Africans are fighting a proxy war for control of the African mind by these alien white doctrines when we should be upholding and propagating our Indigenous spiritual traditions (Maguzanchi, Orisa) which if properly understood is vastly superior to these divisive foreign religions.
Among other things, we African traditionalists believe that humans can never fully comprehend the nature of God in all his glorious ramifications. This was the basis of our religious tolerance as God in his infinite complexity could manifest differently to his diverse creations. He could have made us all Arabs or Jews, but he made me an African and African I shall proudly remain. In claiming exclusive access to God these foreign faiths presume complete understanding of our complex multifarious creator (a human impossibility), otherwise how could they arrogantly and ignorantly claim no other approach is possible? This naďve, erroneous claim is the basis of intolerance in Islam and Christianity.
Historically in Europe, the Middle East and Africa the inordinate compulsion of Christians and Muslims to dominate and spread their parochial doctrine has led to wars, conflict, persecution, pogrom and discrimination. Can any religion responsible for such atrocities be truly regarded as Godly? And dem say we(African traditionalists) no civilize! None of the other major faiths (Hinduism, Buddhism, Shintoism, Confuscianism) over which Christians and Muslims claim supremacy is responsible for even a tenth of the human suffering caused by these two obnoxious doctrines from the Middle East.
Thus it can be surmised that the historic mistake responsible for Nigeria’ s north-south dichotomy which is inimical to our nationhood and unity is not Lord Lugard’s 1914 amalgamation but the earlier introduction of invidious alien religions. A Hausa man would prefer his daughter to be the concubine of an Arab (Islam allows it Q 23:2 - 5) rather than marry a non-Muslim fellow Hausa (how much more of an Ijaw or Urhobo). Such mentality is not conducive for the development of nationhood as marriage is one institution that can truly integrate our diverse peoples.
It is absurd that we black Africans believe we can only find spiritual salvation in alien white doctrines even when science (genetics, palaeontology and archaeology) affirm that we are the premier race (progenitor of all other race) and the cradle of civilization. We have sold our birthright for much less than a meal of porridge. Of the three major races (Negroid, Caucasians and Mongoloids) we are the only ones so spiritually and culturally-subservient to others. It is no coincidence that we are also the least developed and progressive inspite of our abundant resources. We Africans must emancipate our minds from this mental and spiritual slavery if we are to realize our full potential and reclaim our premier position (our birthright) in the committee of nations. As long as we are culturally and spiritually dependent on other peoples we will always lag behind them.
December 2001