STRUGGLES OF THE NIGERIAN PEOPLES

At independence, (1960) Nigeria was a multi-party democracy with a federal constitution. Its parliamentary system gave promise of evolution towards a stable pluralist political system. However, this system was soon undermined by the nature of political forces of the time. During this period, three political parties emerged to dominate Nigerian politics: The National Council for Nigeria and Cameroon’s (NCNC), Northern People’s Congress (NPC) and Action Group (AG). However, the disagreement over the 1962/63 population census figures ruptured the Federal coalition of NCNC and the NPC. The conflict over the census exacerbated political tensions that had previously led to outbreaks of violence in the Western Region and some parts of Northern Region. These situations led to the first military intervention in January 1966. After the second coup that was a reprisal for the wanton killing of Easterners in Northern Nigeria, the Eastern Region attempted in 1967 to secede and to create an independent 1960 homeland (Biafra) which resulted in a 30-month civil war. In response, the Federal Military government began to create more state to outflank and break-up the eastern region by providing homelands for ethnic minorities of the region, but also to break –up the dominant bases of power in the west and the north. The military believed that by creating a large number of relatively weak states under a strong central government it could overcome the instability of the past. In other words, the military sought to unilaterally redefine the shape of Nigerian Federation into one consistent with its own hierarchical structure and vision. The result was the creation of multiple state structures. Though seemingly inconsistent with the logic of military rule. The military believed that elected local government would provide a more viable and legitimate form of government at the local level and further weaken the States. Few local government areas were established initially. But over the years the number grew astronomically. During the 1970s, Nigeria evolved from a poor agricultural economy into a relatively rich, oil-dominated one. The economic policy orientation during the 1970s left the country ill prepared for the eventual collapse of oil prices. Public investment was concentrated in costly, and often inappropriate, infrastructure projects with questionable rates of returns and sizable recurrent cost implications, while the agricultural sector was largely neglected.Nigeria’s industrial policy was inward looking, with a heavy emphasis on protection and government controls, which bred an uncompetitive manufacturing sector. While attending an O.A.U summit in Kampala, Uganda on Tuesday 29 July 1975, General Gowon’s government CORRUPTION IN NIGERIA. Indeed, corruption is one of the greatest challenges of the contemporary world. It undermines good government, fundamentally distorts public policy, leads to the mis allocation of resources, harms the private sector and particularly hurts the poor. Many aspect of bribery and corruption include accepting gratification, giving or accepting gratification through agent, Fraudulent acquisition of property; fraudulent receipt of property. Offences committed through postal system, deliberate frustration of investigation, making false statement or returns gratification by and through agents, bribery of public officer; using office or position for gratification; bribery transactions; false or misleading statements to the commission and attempt (conspiracy) punishable as offences. Corruption respects no national boundaries and it deeper poverty around the glebe by distorting political, economic and social life. Transparency inter national (TI) was born from the experience of people who witnessed first hand the real threat to human liver posed by corruption. Today, corruption at the highest levels captures headlines everywhere, and people are becoming aware of its disastrous consequences. Indeed, Nigeria is one of the poorest countries in the world (world Bank, 2003; united nations, 1999). Several factors contribute to the persistence of national poverty, and corruption is definitely one of them. Oil and Gas have brought wealth to Nigeria but these industries have historically provided opportunities for corruption on a massive scale. The corruption perceptions index (CPI) is a poll of polls, reflecting the perceptions of business people and country analysts, both resident and non-resident. The table below shows the relative performance of Nigeria's CPI (1980 –2002). Here, the comparisons to the results from previous years should be based on the country’s score, not its rank. A country’s rank can change suggesting that now countries enter the index and others dropout. A higher score suggests that respondents provided better ratings, while a lower score suggest that respondents revised their perception downwards. However, year-to-year in a country’s score can result not only from a changing way of a changing way of a country’s performance but also from a changing sample and methodology. With differing respondents and slightly differing methods change in a country’s score may also relate to the fact that different viewpoints have been collected and different questions being administered.

Wale Folarin Moving Back Home: Nigerian American Rapper Tells Fans He’s Relocating

Wale Folarin Moving Back Home: Nigerian
American Rapper Tells Fans He’s Relocating To Lagos Nigeria Nigerian American Rapper Wale Planning To Relocate To Nigeria After Chat With Don Jazzy Motivated by the success of Nigeria-based celebrities like Davido, Wizkid, Don Jazzy, Dbanj, Ice Prince and others, America-based Nigerian rapper Wale Folarin has made up his mind to return to motherland Nigeria. He took to Twitter today to tell fans of his plan to move back
to Nigeria. The high school drop out turned millionaire is set to release his 4th album next month. Wale Folarin is a very good friend of Wizkid and Don Jazzy. See more photos of Wale with Nigerian celebrities below.
He has been to Nigeria only twice since he was born to a Nigerian couple based in Washington DC in 1984. Though Wale seems to have made up his mind about relocating but his fans are moving against the idea because of the present unrest in the country. However he told them he has a house in Ondo. Check out his tweets below:

NIGERIAN STRUGGLES - Rapid Shift to Capitalism

The war led directly to this rapid growth of the working class. By the beginning of 1942 the harbors of West Africa became busy ports of call for convoys bound for the Middle and Far
Eastern theaters of war. Simultaneously a great chain of airports grew up near the main towns for handling the stream of aircraft carrying men and supplies to North Africa and the Far East. A huge construction program ranged from the building of mud huts in military camps to the building of up- to-date airdromes, new roads, railroads and harbor facilities. These activities were accompanied by the intensified exploitation of vital raw materials, such as ores, foodstuffs, lumber and rubber.To supply the necessary manpower
thousands of natives were literally hurled from their primitive agrarian and tribal mode of living into the modern world of machinery and capitalism. These developments produced far-
reaching dislocations in the social structure of Nigeria. Processes that in peacetime would have taken generations are today being completed in weeks or months. Simultaneous with the rapid rise of the trade-union movement there has developed a large and powerful Nigerian nationalist movement in which the trade unions play a leading part. This political movement has cut across tribal traditions, religious ties, Mohammedan, Christian, Pagan, and the barrier of diverse
native languages. Nigeria, with its numerous native states and tribes, has hitherto been bound together only by geographical proximity and the bureaucratic apparatus of the British
imperialist overlords. Now its people are developing a national consciousness.
The nationalist movement took on definite shape in August 1943 when a delegation of editors of West African newspapers in Great Britain issued a memorandum on “The Atlantic Charter and West Africa.” Basing their claim on Clause 3 of the Atlantic Charter which affirms “the right of all people to choose the form of government under which they may live,” they asked for the immediate abrogation of the Crown Colony system of government and the substitution of representative government. The authors of the memorandum declared “that factors of capitalism and imperialism have stifled the normal growth of these territories.” The memorandum set forth a series of proposals for reforms in education, health, social welfare, agriculture, mining, finance, trade and commerce. Upon the return of the press delegation to Africa, a campaign
to popularize these demands was started under the leadership of Nnamdi Azikiwe, editor of the West African Pilot, largest Nigerian daily newspaper, and secretary of the delegation. On
January 20 of this year a constitutional convention was held in Lagos, capital of Nigeria, which formulated and adopted a
draft constitution and a program of economic and social reforms. The convention set up the National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons for the purpose of uniting in federation all progressive organizations in the country. The June 26 Daily Comet reports that 126 organizations have affiliated with the Council. Among them are sixty tribal unions,
the two leading political parties – the Nigerian National Democratic Party and the Union of Young Democrats eleven social clubs, eight professional associations. The most significant are the two leading trade union organizations – the West African Union of Seamen and the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria with its 86 affiliated unions and membership of over 500,000. An editorial in the May 17 West African Pilot says that the Council has a following of over 6 million people. Alarmed by these developments the British Colonial Government set about to counter the popular insistence on a new constitution. Shortly after this convention a White Paper containing proposals for the reform of the Constitution of Nigeria was issued with the approval of the British Colonial
Secretary, in the name of Sir Arthur Richards, Governor of Nigeria. By this proposed constitutional revision the British imperialists sought to prevent the emanation of a draft
constitution from the people themselves through the Constitutional Convention.
Calling a special meeting of the Legislative Council in March, Richards presented a constitutional draft demanding immediate acceptance before the people had an opportunity to study it. The Council, made up of a majority of white officials and a minority of hand-picked chiefs, voted acceptance.
At the same session of the Legislative Council Richards secured approval for two bills. One granted the British Government the right to confiscate all African lands wherever minerals were discovered. The other gave the Governor power to dispose of any chief who supported the Nationalist movement against the British.
Taking up the challenge of the Governor, Azikiwe called upon the natives to rally around the National Council, and fight to defend their ancestral lands. Without these the Nigerians will surely sink into further economic enslavement like the natives of South Africa and Kenya. Mass meetings throughout Nigeria
passed resolutions denouncing the “Uncle Toms” who voted support for Richards and demanded that the Colonial Office rescind the undemocratic constitution and take its hands off the African lands. In the face of this nation-wide insurgency the Governor flew to London to consult with the Colonial Office. Meanwhile the natives collected over $50,000 for the
expenses of a delegation to London. Head of the delegation was Herbert Macauly, Nigeria’s “elder statesman,” who successfully fought the British thirty years ago when the Government attempted to confiscate tribal lands belonging to Chief Elako, active ruler of Lagos. The delegation of twelve included representatives from the most important tribes, Christian, Moslem and Pagan. Azikiwe was appointed secretary.

NIGERIA STRUGGLES

Nigeria is going through a difficult political and economic transition after decades of independence. Yet, Nigeria remains a society rich in cultural, linguistic, religious, ethnic and
political diversity. Today, the average Nigerian struggles hard to make ends meet; sees himself or herself as being poorer than he or she was previously; and finds it hard to be hopeful that things will get better soon. It is against this background that this paper sets out to increase the knowledge about state
capacity in Nigeria by taking stock of economic and governance issues. Using a simple growth model, we illustrate the interrelationships between natural resources, corruption and economic growth in Nigeria. We proposed anti-corruption policies for Nigeria and argued that building global integrity is imperative for a transparent modern economy.

FAILED STATE WATCH Nigeria Struggles to Keep It Together

After the supposed truce declared by President Goodluck Jonathan came to naught, Boko Haram gloated that it had married off the schoolgirls whose kidnapping (briefly) caught
the world’s attention. Meanwhile, the group reportedly broke 144 prisoners out of a Nigerian jail and was behind yet another suicide bombing, which took 29 lives at a Shi’a religious ritual. It has conquered another city, Mubi, and shows no sign of slowing its advances. As a sober BBC report asks, where can Nigeria’s government go from here? Its summary of the situation is nothing less
than grim: “it appears the government is now fighting not just for the territorial integrity of the nation but also for the very existence of the Nigerian state.” As Boko Haram seizes
territory it is also stocking itself with weapons and supplies, to add to what is reputed to be a fearsome arsenal.

Meanwhile, Nigeria’s soldiers have been reported to flee towns under attack alongside the civilians. Add to that the rumors that Boko Haram has infiltrated the army and there is little encouragement to be had. It may get worse once February’s Presidential elections roll around: Nigeria’s general elections are expected to be held in February and there is every indication that the process will be bloody if it goes ahead in the north-eastern states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe, where Boko Haram has its strongholds. It is also unlikely that civilians there will be convinced to cast their votes in a democratic system that is antithetical to Boko Haram’s central objective – to instil its radical form of Islamic
rule. Nigerian journalist Ahmad Salkida – who has recently had rare access to the group – says that the sect believes its “brand of Sharia is superior to the [Nigerian] constitution”.
As Council on Foreign Relations fellow John Campbell notes, these elections could be a replay of the 2011 contest, with President Goodluck Jonathan likely contending yet again with former military chief Muhammad Buhari, who won the Muslim states while Jonathan took the rest. Those elections were
accompanied by a surge in violence—and there is every chance that these will be, too. As Campbell puts it: […E]lections are an aspect of elite politics remote from the concerns and aspirations of the Nigerian people. For many
Nigerians, they may not matter very much except as a spur to ethnic, religious, and regional identities. Hence, the question is whether the February 2015 elections will further exacerbate ethnic and religious tensions, and perhaps encourage increased support for Boko Haram and other radical
movements.

Nigeria never had the sort of political stability that might see it through a threat of this magnitude. While it may be too early to declare the country a failed state, it is heading into the new year with significant damage and small hope of full repair.

Sourse-The American Interest

Nigerian Struggles

In 1998 Nigeria was tensed with perceivable tensions everywhere just before the election that would have ushered Gen. Abacha's transmutation from a Military Head of State to a civilian president through unprecedented adoptions as a sole candidate of all leading parties. The main oppositions were NADECO members who were either on exile or hiding around the country. MKO the people's choice was in a detention in Abuja. It was a harrowing experience and the darkest days of our country. Then the former UN Secretary General and Chief Emeka Anyaoku intervened, they met the two leading figures separately. Later the American Secretary of State came and suddenly there was a mysterious solution to the lingering problems.

Today, we are faced with same tension and palpable fears from all quarters. The drums of war have started and the drummers don't seem to give a damn about the consequences. Meanwhile, just like in 1998, the former UN Secretary General and Chief Anyaoku have met the two leading figures. As I write, John Kerry the US Secretary of State is meeting GMB and GEJ separately.

Can we safely conclude that a divine solution is on the way? Are there no similarities between the incidents of 1998 and 2015? I pray that we are able to conduct the elections in peace freely and fairly. I pray also that we don't lose any more life or lives in resolving our problems. I pray in particular that GMB and GEJ live longer to contribute their quotas to the peace, progress and development of our great country.

God bless Nigeria!

Source- Dan Oras

NIGERIAN BATTLES

   The struggles of the Nigerian peoples started in the nineteenth century, it has nothing to do with the overall achievements of the country but the difficulties, challenges the people were faced with. Today as a case study, the masses are still under going challenges to some extent. We can find it very frustrating like with our educational backgrounds. The system of education has rapidly declined or let us say failed.

   Education is a potent tool for fast paced development and investment in the sector. The state of education in this country will continue to fall if there is no adequate funding. It is inadequate funding that is making the education of Nigeria not to improve. If the governor play their politics right, we will get the results we all want.

   Most of these universities also have some administrative problems whereby the schools are unable to release the results of their graduates.

   In Nigeria will can still find some problems arising in the country, the masses are battling it over and over again.