7.2.2. Federalism in Nigeria

Till 1914, Northern and Southern Nigeria were two separate British colonies. At the Ibadan Constitutional Conference of 1950, Nigerian leaders decided to form a federal constitution.

Before 1914, Nigeria was divided into two separate colonies governed by the British: Northern Nigeria and Southern Nigeria. In 1950, during the Ibadan Constitutional Conference, Nigerian leaders came together to discuss governance. They decided to implement a federal constitution that would bring these regions together under a more unified governance structure, recognizing the complexities of Nigeria's diverse ethnic groups.

Think of Nigeria as a school that had separate classrooms (Northern and Southern Nigeria), and the teachers (colonial leaders) decided to merge the classrooms into one larger classroom (a federal system) to improve coherence. This change aimed to create a better environment for education but also brought challenges as students had to learn to interact and cooperate with one another.

The three major ethnic groups of Nigeria—Yoruba, Ibo and Hausa-Fulani—controlled the regions of the West, the East and the North respectively. Their attempt to spread their influence to other regions led to fears and conflicts. These led to a military regime.

In Nigeria, three main ethnic groups—Yoruba, Ibo, and Hausa-Fulani—dominated different regions of the country. Their ambitions to extend influence over other regions triggered fears among the other ethnic groups, leading to heightened tensions. Eventually, these ethnic conflicts and power struggles paved the way for military rule, as stability could not be achieved through democratic means.

Imagine a sports team with three star players (fell into the role of the ethnic groups). Each player wants to be the team captain and lead the team in their own direction, causing disagreements and fights. Eventually, the coach (military regime) steps in to impose order, even though the players had hoped to work together democratically.

In the 1960 constitution, both federal and regional governments jointly controlled the Nigerian police. In the military-supervised constitution of 1979, no state was allowed to have any civil police.

The shift in governance structures affected the control of law enforcement in Nigeria. In the 1960 constitution, both federal and regional governments had a say in how the police operated. However, with the military's rise to power in 1979, states lost their autonomy regarding their police forces, leading to a situation where no state was permitted to maintain its civil police.

Picture a neighborhood watch program that is run collectively by all nearby communities until a central authority decides to assign the job of safeguarding the neighborhoods to a single team of security guards, stripping away the local communities' ability to control their safety and security.

Though democracy was restored in Nigeria in 1999, religious differences along with conflicts over who will control revenues from the oil resources continue to present problems before the Nigerian federation. Local ethnic communities resist centralised control of the oil resources.

After a period of military rule, Nigeria returned to democracy in 1999. However, the country continues to struggle with significant issues related to religious divisions and disputes over oil revenue allocation. Many local ethnic communities oppose centralized control of these valuable resources, leading to ongoing conflicts and tensions within the federation.

Think of a town where a large park generates income for its upkeep. The town council allocates funds from this income to different areas, but some residents feel that their neighborhood isn’t getting fair access to the benefits of the park. This can result in protests from those who feel left out, causing conflicts and strife within the community.

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