Nigeria @ 57! Happy or not?...

Nigeria's 57th independence celebration. Mixed feelings sure!!

Hey guys, it urs sincerely...
Hope y'all are good...

So to deviate a bit. It was Nigeria's independence @ 57 years of 'freedom' from our colonial masters a few days back.

So happy independence day to our beloved Nigerians in arrears!!!...

So let's talk about this a little bit.
Nigeria claimed its independence in 1960 following an independence movement.

Little bit of history...

Lagos state  was invaded by British forces in 1851 and formally annexed in 1861. Nigeria became a British protectorate in 1901. Colonization lasted until 1960, when an independence movement succeeded in gaining Nigeria its independence.

Nigeria went on to become a republic in 1963 with  Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe as the first president. This was  short-lived as She succumbed to military rule three years later after a bloody coup d'etat and Gen. Aguyi-Ironsi took over power briefly before it was taken from him forcefully. Several military leaders took over power at several periods after Gen. Aguyi. 

A separatist movement was later formed, the Republic of Biafra in 1967 headed by Lt. Col. Emeka Ojukwu, leading to the three-year Nigerian civil war, that lasted from 1967- 1970.

 Nigeria became a republic again in 1979 after new constitution was formed. This was short-lived again, as the military took over power once again. This continued on and off for about 3 decades, the last ending with Gen. Sani Abacha in 1998 after his death. Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo became the next civilian president on 29th May 1999.

Enough of the history already, i know...lol! (ps: Knowledge is power!)

Why am I dwelling on all these historic facts?!.... (you could read about it further if you want get enlightened more).

The truth of the matter is that the enemity between the major ethnic groups in Nigeria, most especially the Igbos and Hausa/fulani did not start today...This started as far back as 1960's( at least those recorded).

What the Igbos are experiencing now, have always been there if you read through the Nigerian history. From the massacre of, and i quote  'thousands' of Igbos in Northern Nigeria in 1966 just after the rule by Gen. Yakub Gowon , to the period when the civil war took place- that led to about 3.5 million deaths of Igbos consisting mostly children,  from starvation and malnutrition to brutal assassinations .

I had a talk of recent with a mentor who gave me a little life experience of the war. From her vivid descriptions, I picked interest and told myself I was going to get more insight on this issue. I even promised to start reading Nigerian historian books and have been adamantly searching for Chinua Achebe's book- There was a country.(lol!)

What's my point then?....simply there are other ways to negotiate one's agenda and preferences without war. Take a look at how devastated nations passing through horrific experiencse of hurricane and earthquakes. See how disheartened they are...

I doubt our country needs such derogatory blows of war, seeing that the first event didn't  produce much fruit...

So...my brethren happy indepence again in arrears. And let's be thankful for the relative peace in Nigeria.

Cheers.....


Ref: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Nigeria