IS COLONIALISM A BLESSING OR A CURSE?

NAME:   ATAYERO ISAAC

TEACHER: MR. ORUNGBAMI YOMI

SUBJECT: GOVERNMENT

ESSAY:  IS COLONIALISM A BLESSING OR A CURSE?

DATE : 13/11/13

   One of the more highly debated topics in the history of Nigeria is whether or not the institution of colonialism has left behind a positive or a negative legacy. This is because Nigeria’s colonialism has and continues to affect the government of the people immensely. Like any method of governance, colonialism can be seen as either a blessing or a curse because it has both constructive and unconstructive effects. However, colonialism’s unconstructive effects greatly outnumber that of the constructive effects. This is why it can be seen as a curse rather than a blessing. The impacts of these unconstructive effects can still be felt firmly in Nigeria’s political system today.  This is because colonialism’s inability to set a proper foundation for Nigeria to be ruled as a country is the basis for the numerous conflicts that are taking place in Nigeria today.

         In order to properly understand the legacy of colonialism in Nigeria, it is crucial that one firstly understands the concept of colonialism. Colonialism can be defined as the position and subjugation of a country by another foreign country, which deals with the establishment of political, economic and cultural domination. The scramble for territory in Africa by European countries led to the partition of the African continent after the Berlin Conference that took place from 1884-1885. The British colonized Nigeria, Ghana, Gambia and Sierra Leone. The British colonized these countries because they were in need of foreign materials to increase their country’s wealth and expand their empire. It is important to understand the reason behind Britain’s colonization of Nigeria because it explains the reason behind most of their actions.

           The British came into Nigeria, and their other African colonies, purely for financial and political reasons. They were not interested in learning about the diverse cultures of the people who already inhabiting the territory. The decisions they made were solely based on two principle factors: what would make the colony easy to rule and what would bring them profit quickly and easily. The initial and primary blunder of colonialism was the driving force behind it. The initial intentions of colonialism were destined to create tension in a country as irregular and diverse as Nigeria.

          Nigeria is an anomaly in the sense that it was, and still is, home to three main ethnic groups (Yoruba, Hausa and Igbo). These three major ethnic groups also consisted of many more minor ethnic groups. It is important to note that these ethnic groups, both the major and minor ones, were not homogenous. This meant that they had different languages, different political systems and different traditional values. Colonialism did not take into consideration what made these natives different and what would make them compatible. Bringing these ethnic groups together forcefully created a defective foundation and paved the way for future conflict amongst them. When the British took over Nigeria, they had to take some major steps towards making these ethnic groups governable. In an attempt to make the populace easy to govern, the British divided the territory into the following three administrations: The Lagos Colony, The Southern Protectorate and The Northern Protectorate.  

        Another important step by the British to make Nigeria easier to govern was the amalgamation of the Northern and Southern Protectorates in 1914. If the British had taken the cultures and irregularities of these ethnic groups into consideration, the amalgamation might have not taken place or would have been executed in a better fashion. The amalgamation of the Northern and Southern Protectorates by Lord Lugard in 1914 was carried out in three constitutional instruments. This is significant because it is one of the good aspects of colonialism. This is because these three constitutional instruments: The Order In Council (1912), The Letters Patent (1913) and The Nigerian Protectorate (1913), put Nigeria on the road to independence. This was the first attempt of constitution making and self governance in Nigerian history. In Nigeria, the process of creating a constitution creates an opportunity for Nigerians to participate in their own governance. This platform gives the citizens an opportunity to be represented where the decision making that affects their daily lives take place. The first phase of constitution making in Nigeria, pre-independence, took place from 1914 - 1950.

         Although colonialism put Nigeria on its way to independence, another negative outcome of colonialism is that it put Nigeria at the mercy of their former colonial masters after independence. Before allowing Nigeria to become independent, the colonial masters left behind a shabby economy that had no promise of growth. The colonial masters did this intentionally so that even after they’ve left Nigeria, Nigeria would still require their assistance to run its government. The Nigerian political leaders that initially emerged to run Nigeria as a country were unable to fulfill their potential and see their dreams for Nigeria become visible because they inherited a damaged government. The colonial legacies served as hindrances to the progress of Nigeria because the colonial policies had been threaded into the fabric of the Nigerian government. However, not all of these policies were terrible; the colonial masters did leave behind some positive policies.

        The blessings or benefits of colonialism include the construction of railways, the introduction of political party systems, the uniform civil service and the military. However, these “blessings” of colonialism are nullified by the overwhelming effects of shadows of its curses. This is because the negative effects of colonialism on Nigeria caused running these institutions to be problematic. In fact, it would have been better if Nigerians were the ones who created these institutions on their own because then they would have been able to create their own customized system of operation. Moreover, Nigeria would have to eventually create these institutions on their own, without the help of the colonial masters.

           Colonialism has proved to be a curse to the Nigerian system of government because its effects still affect the country strongly, decades after it was introduced. Colonialism has many tribulations, but its most prominent error was creating a foundation of discord amongst the Nigerian people. The decision to vehemently join three extremely dissimilar and varied ethnic groups together is still the underlining cause of many of the prominent predicaments that the country faces today. This decision coupled with the choice to make the country to vulnerable to its colonial masters after independence created a disastrous recipe, causing the country to be a challenge to govern. Given these conditions, it would be irrational for one to consider colonialism as anything but the encumbering curse that it has proven to be.