Nigerian History Research Articles

Suffering Together: Photos and Stories of Nsukka Residents During Nigeria's 2023 Currency Redesign Crisis

The Central Bank of Nigeria's (CBN) attempt to redesign the 200, 500, and 1000 naira notes by December 2022 led to a cash crunch and humanitarian crisis, exposing the federal government's shortsightedness and inherent weakness. Amidst the crisis that peaked between late January and February 2023, opportunities for social connections and shared experiences emerged. In this essay and visual archive, I explore the financial crisis phenomenon in Nsukka metropolis, Southeastern Nigeria, from a historical perspective, integrating personal insights, respondents' views, and archival sources. Analysis of observational notes, visual and textual data through the lens of Critical Theory reveals the importance of social connection and cultural ideology among Nsukka residents during a difficult time in Nigerian history. Photographic images of crowded bank scenes and remarks like "You are not the only person" evoke personal and public misery and frustration during the currency redesign crisis. The argument is that those in power can create complex situations like artificial scarcity of valuable commodities for questionable reasons, while the masses bear the brunt and enact and demonstrate servility in the process.

Encountering Mudi Yahaya’s Nina Fischer-Stephan’s Respectful Gaze in Lagos

ABSTRACT Mudi Yahaya’s film Nina Fischer-Stephan’s Respectful Gaze (2022) is a reconstruction of Nigerian history presented through a meta-representational forcefield of images. The film is a documentary work that explores the resurgent vitality of the German photographer’s archive from the early 1960s. In the Nigerian context, this film explores how forms of historical mediality are conditioned by a multiplicity of aesthetic and creative modes that strengthen the power of moving images to document historical memory. Drawing on social media archives such as the Nigerian Nostalgia Project, a Facebook account where Fischer-Stephan’s historical photographs circulate, I examine the ways in which the film engages the critic in reading a film derived from photographic texts that have been mediated in multiple ways.

Politics and Census in Nigeria: Challenges and the Way Forward

Population is very vital to the government for nation building of a country especially, Nigeria. Nigeria’s population has been contentious and politicized since colonial times. Census statistics embodies an essential database prerequisite for measuring the physical and social well-being of a nation’s population. Hence, for any country to realize its development potentials, it requires a comprehensive population database support to guide its socio-economic programs, planning and implementation. The fusses in Nigeria census steered the cancellation of the 1962 general population census which was repeated in 1963.The Population of an area is considered a political weapon, a condition desiderata for provision of amenities, infrastructure and in fact, guides wealth allocations and fiscal planning. Regrettably, Nigeria is yet to produce an acceptable and satisfactory demographic data for infrastructural development and nation building. Scholars of Nigerian history appear not to have paid adequate attention to nation building in Nigeria as a result of inaccurate population database. Hence, it is a perception of issues of politics and population census this paper tend to address. Qualitative research methodology was adopted for effective analyses. The paper concluded that inherent contemporary issues have continued to defeat the main aim of population census as an instrument for strategic planning and sustainable development. Lack of accurate census figures has contributed to Nigeria’s policy summersault and under development. It is unfortunate that in this 21st century Nigeria still does not have effective and reliable census data due to the fact that politicization, Falsification of population census result, religion rivalry, ethnicity stimulation and fluctuation of period of conducting census serves as a controlling force against accuracy of population census figures.

A Short Review on The Application of Potential Field Methods for Geothermal Energy Exploration

There is quite a long history in Nigeria of Geothermal energy exploration. Geothermal energy resources are available in every part of Nigeria beneath the subsurface. The resources, however, vary in concentration in all the geological parts of the country. This paper reviewed the prospects of geothermal energy exploration by using the potential field (magnetic and gravity) technique for the exploration activities. The potential field data is capable to provide information on the subsurface structures after some filtering techniques (in case of magnetic) or data corrections (in case of gravity) have been applied to the raw field data. The processed data is capable to scan the lateral and vertical extent of anomalous zones beneath the surface. Geothermal energy, if properly exploited would contribute to the generation of clean energy in Nigeria for domestic and industrial purpose.

Violence-as-Norm in the Postcolony

Abstract In this paper, we explore forms of statist violence in both colonial and postcolonial contexts to underscore it as a constant in a postcolonial location like Nigeria. In addition to exploring how statist violence works, we also position civic dissent as a strategy employed in the colony and postcolony to confront statist violence. Our theorization of “violence-as-norm” is motivated by earlier ideas like the works of the South Asian Subaltern Studies Collective, Tejumola Olaniyan’s “postcolonial incredible,” Toyin Falola’s views on violence within Nigerian history, and Achille Mbembe’s notions of banality and vulgarity in the postcolony. Our paper engages with Peter Omoko’s Majestic Revolt to demonstrate how “violence-as-norm” mediates colonial violence and civic dissent. Furthermore, by close-reading Chiedozie Omeje’s “When Cowards Win,” we explore postcolonial forms of violence through the EndSARS movement against police brutality in Nigeria to demonstrate how civic dissent is performed and ruptured in the contemporary moment. Ultimately, our research positions the Fanonist category of violence as a way to imagine the inherent coloniality of postcolonial nation-states, thereby extending the critique of the nation-form in postcolonial studies.

‘When There Is a Ban, There Is a Way’: Everyday Gambling and the Nigerian Political Economy, 1977–83

AbstractThis article focuses on the gambling milieu in Nigeria between the late 1970s and early 1980s. I consider the moment when the Federal Military Government (FMG) banned gambling nationwide, and ask why it became such a divisive issue during this tenuous period in Nigeria's history. I argue that amid impending transitional elections to a democratic regime, gambling embodied three key tensions that saturated Nigerian political and civil society during this period: job creation, the state's relationship with private capital, and the division of political power. Additionally, I propose that examining gambling's recreational value alongside its functional significance opens new avenues for the study of the gambling phenomenon in Africa that move beyond ethical considerations.

The pen and the plow: Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart and the reimagining of African culture

Chinua Achebe’s magnum opus, Things Fall Apart, remains a key work of world literature, shedding powerful light on the complexities of African culture long suppressed by Western narratives. Born and raised in Nigeria, Achebe became not only a celebrated writer, but also a cultural ambassador, working to promote recognition and respect for the rich traditions and history of his homeland. With Things Fall Apart, Achebe has not only told a story, but also written a counter-narrative that opposes the Western view that often misinterprets or oversimplifies African civilizations. Central to Achebe’s literary philosophy was a belief in the sanctity and power of personal stories. He firmly believed that the stories of those on the margins of society, the marginalized, should be told by people who experienced and felt them directly. These stories, Achebe believed, would be authentic, nuanced, and profound, giving readers a real insight into the African experience. Through the lens of Things Fall Apart, one isn’t merely reading about African traditions, but rather, immersing in them. Achebe masterfully manages to weave a tapestry of life, love, conflict, and change that forces readers to rethink their perceptions and understanding of Nigerian history and African culture as a whole. Achebe’s influence was not limited to his narratives, however. His critique of non-native narrators, who often painted Africa with broad, uninformed strokes, resonated widely in literary circles. Achebe emphasized the dangers of allowing others to define one’s own story and underscored the urgency for authentic African voices to reclaim their narrative. Through his works and advocacy, Achebe has not only offered narratives, but revolutionized the discourse on African culture in literature.

Nationhood and Memory: A Reading of Remi Raji’s ‘Web of Remembrance’

This paper examines how nationhood and memory are profoundly connected in Remi Raji's poetry collection "Web of Remembrance." Raji's poetic endeavour explores the complex interrelationship between personal and collective memory, focusing on how these memories influence and shape national identity. His poetry encourages readers to interact with their country's past and critically consider its implications for the present and future by drawing on the rich historical and cultural fabric of Nigeria. Raji skillfully combines his own experiences with more general historical events through the use of vivid images and potent language. He preserves and reimagines pivotal periods in Nigerian history in his poems, which serve as archives of memory. The paper emphasizes the value of inclusivity and a communal memory that includes the experiences of all citizens, as depicted in the use of literary elements like allusion, symbolism, and metaphor to eloquently connect the past and present. The collection of Raji’s poems serves as a starting point for discussion by challenging readers to reflect critically on their past and create a future that is influenced by a conscious awareness of national issues and challenges. Thus, the paper articulates the role that memory plays in transforming a country's consciousness and emphasizes the importance of Raji's work in promoting a better awareness of Nigeria's past and cultural traditions.

Ethno-Religious Crises and Terrorism as Bane of Economic Development and Good Governance in Contemporary Nigeria

The history of Nigeria is replete with ethno-religious crises and diverse acts of violence that have characterized its existence as a nation. Nigerian’s crises have taken an exponential dimension, from ethnic clientelistic tendencies to religious bigotry and now the new terrorism-killer herdsmen who go about as armed bandits and are kidnapping for ransom, sacking and uprooting communities, seizing farmlands from the autochthonous occupants who hitherto use to cultivate such farmlands for subsistent and commercial purposes. The main objective of this paper was to examine how ethno-religious crises and terrorism in Nigeria have hampered economic development and good governance and to show how the new terrorism originated, its causes and effects that have retarded economic growth and good governance and advance possible measures that could address the menace of these killer herdsmen/armed bandits. Giving the socio-historical nature of the theme, qualitative research methodology was used. This involved content analyses of available secondary sources and focus group discussions. From the data collection and technique of data analysis, the researchers were inspired to anchor the research on the attachment theory. From the non-statistical data gotten through personal communication and in various focus group discussions, the results revealed the starkest truths. It was revealed that religious fundamentalist jihadists lack childhood attachment to good parental upbringing, thus lending credence to the attachment theory discussed in the paper. The study also revealed that these jihadists have over the years been planning to overthrow the secular Nigerian government and that these new religious expantionists are bent on Islamizing the Nigerian state and that as conquering and apocalyptic warriors, they have links with other Fulani who share same Fulanization ideology and vow to enshrine Sharia law at whatever cost-including meaningful economic development and good governance. The paper concluded and recommended among other things that the restructuring of the Nigerian state to reflect true federalism is one of the surest ways of arresting the present insecurity situation in Nigeria.

Interrogating the Role of Indigenous Interest Groups in Mitigating Electoral Violence in Nigeria

Since the country's return to a democratic system in May 1999, Nigeria's history is rich with instances of election violence and conflicts. There is evidence in Akwa Ibom State that elections pose a threat to the state's stability and security due to the possibility of election violence. Studies have demonstrated that free and fair elections reduce conflict and produce trustworthy leadership. Using the Etim-Ekpo Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State as a case study, this paper examines the influence of indigenous interest groups in the reduction of electoral violence in Nigeria. The research design for this study was a case study. Dialectical Materialism: The J-Curve Hypothesis of Unfulfilled Hopes, a radical political-economic framework, and pluralist theories were investigated for the study's background. Seventy (n = 70) purposefully selected participants, including members of youth or interest groups, community leaders, and security professionals, provided data. Eighty percent of the responders were male, while twenty percent were female. The ages of respondents ranged between 18 and 48 years, and thematic analyses provided answers to five research questions. Political party/candidate competitiveness, arms proliferation, and unemployed youths as political thugs caused electoral violence. Election violence included gunshots, kidnappings, and vote box theft. Finally, indigenous interest groups could reduce electoral violence by working with state actors on peace-building strategies, mobilizing, educating, and involving youth in the electoral process and election security, supporting efforts to change the "Electoral Act" to favor online voting and mail-in ballots, and collaborating on water education. All governments should support alternative voting procedures, weapons control, and amnesty programs to map and check small arms. Nigeria's national, state, and local governments could prevent election violence via peace-building.

Nigeria’s Compliance with the Yaoundé Code of Conduct in the Cases of Piracy and Armed Piracy of the Nigerian State in the Gulf of Guinea in 2016-2021

Through adherence to the Yaoundé Code of Conduct and its execution in eradicating piracy and armed piracy instances that happened in the Gulf of Guinea from 2016 to 2021, this study evaluates Nigeria's history, progress, and response to piracy. The goal of this study is to examine Nigeria's compliance with the Yaoundé Code of Conduct as shown in its papers and historical development in accordance with the documentation from the literature review. The data was processed using qualitative approaches, namely research on descriptive research, which focuses on employing analysis to provide an overview or description of a scenario. The information received is analyzed utilizing non-reactive research methods after being gleaned from pertinent literature investigations. This approach will process information from reliable sources, including primary and secondary data, which will then be examined in accordance with predetermined theories and concepts to provide a response to the problem formulation. According to the study's findings, from 2016 to 2021, Nigeria adhered to the Yaounde Code of Conduct in situations of piracy and armed piracy. Nigeria is actively creating and putting into effect a national maritime security strategy to safeguard its marine affairs from all kinds of illegal activity. In compliance with the Yaounde Code of Conduct, Nigeria enacted the POMO ACT which made Nigeria the first country with an anti-piracy law and cooperated in the protection of vessels in accordance with the articles contained in the Yaounde Code of Conduct. However, Nigeria's strict emphasis on adhering to the Yaounde Code of Conduct hasn't worked to stop piracy because it doesn't deal with the underlying issues.

An analysis of political homophobia, elitism and social exclusion in the colonial origins of anti-gay laws in Nigeria

Critical Legal Studies suggests that any serious legal advocacy must critically engage with the social and political subtext of the law in order to yield positive outcomes. This suggestion is equally applicable to advocacy for sexual and gender minorities in contexts such as Nigeria. Based on this premise, this article employs theories of political homophobia, elite power and social exclusion to analyse the social and political context surrounding the evolution of criminalising laws during the colonial phase of Nigeria's history. The article proceeds to show that political homophobia, through laws that criminalised same-sex relationships, was a strategic tool utilised under the colonial administration to protect colonial interests and maintain the legitimacy of colonisation. This strategy was a colonial imperative regardless of whether or not the local population may have agreed to or participated in the process. The outcome of, and incentive for, this process of political homophobia included the social exclusion of a large majority of the population for the benefit of an elite class. It is argued that an understanding of the rationale behind the colonial evolution of anti-gay laws can provide an insight into the entrenchment of political homophobia in Nigeria and similar legal systems in Africa and challenge the rhetoric that these laws reflect African values.

Ola Oloidi in the Development of Modern Art History in Nigeria, 1980 – 2020

Employing historiography, this article traces the roles of the art historian, Ola Oloidi, in the origin and development of modern Nigerian art history. The study of art history in Nigeria before Oloidi’s intervention was akin to anthropology. In the mid-1980s, he presumably changed this trend. He originated what is today known as the history of modern Nigerian art and initiated strategies to reposition art historical studies in their correct perspective. He defended the cause of modern Nigerian art and art history through incisive and insightful texts buttressed with objective, constructive, and critical arguments. Thus, he left indelible footprints in the field of art historical studies in Nigeria. Ola Oloidi’s innovative and ground-breaking ideas about art and its reportage in Nigeria provide an inestimable fount of knowledge that other Nigerian art historians have drawn from to further advance historical discourses that deepen understanding of modern Nigerian art. He bequeathed the Art Historical Association of Nigeria (AHAN) to art historians to fight against anthropological dominance and the scientification of the art historical space.

The Economic Prospects of Sustainable Labour Migration and the Need for a Legal Framework in Nigeria

Sustainable development has been a germane concept to international policy since the year 1992. The concept of Sustainable development also serves as a springboard for understanding labour migration as a phenomenon for the economic viability and social sustainability of developing and developed nations. This is because labour migration is a phenomenon that is rooted within the strata of socio-political sustainability, one of the recognized pillars of sustainable development. From the standpoint of migration history in Nigeria, migration has persisted internally in the form of rural-urban migration driven by varying socio-economic factors and externally, in the form of labour migration with a significant number of young Nigerians, many of whom are not deterred by the risks associated with travelling to Europe via unsafe paths, exploring some of these paths. Nigerian youths consisting of individuals aged between 15-35 years also comprise the largest population of migrants from the Global South seeking opportunities in other countries outside Europe. The ILO, the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs-Statistical Division and the International Organization for Migration in development circles have advanced the discourse of labour migration whilst prompting countries to mainstream strategies that would allow the benefits of labour migration to be fully maximized. An ethical legal framework in sending countries (being developing countries in most cases, and in this instance referring to Nigeria) and receiving countries (being developed countries in most cases and in this instance referring to countries in Europe). It is within this framework that the economic prospects of labour migration can be properly reaped. In establishing a legal framework for Nigeria, it is important to consider what the country stands to lose with sustained outflow of youths and professionals required for nation building to Europe and sectors in Europe, this consideration would guide the concessions that can be made in the design of Bilateral Labour Agreements between Nigeria and Sending countries. The researcher of this work ultimately contemplates the realization of a legal framework in the form of a legislation that will strongly define labour migration in Nigeria, which would also be a consolidation of prior efforts channeled towards establishing a labour migration policy for Nigeria. The Research methodology utilized in this work is a combination of the Qualitative Legal Research and Analytical Legal Research. This is because the work relied mainly upon non-numerical data sources relative to the topic at hand and after evaluating these sources, put forward a subjective view.

Farmers-Herders Conflicts in Nigeria: Rethinking the Influence of Foreign Herders in North Central Region

The Farmers-herders conflict can be said to be as old as Nigeria's history, but has increased significant in the past decades. The migration of Fulani herders from neighbouring countries due to the porosity of the Nigeria’s borders has escalated the conflict, leading to security problems in the country. This paper explores the influence of foreign herders on the farmers-herders conflicts in North Central of Nigeria. The methodology used in this study is the qualitative approach; using the semi-structured interviews in collecting primary data, and the use of journals, articles, online publications and unpublished works related to the study as sources for secondary data. The study found an exacerbation of conflict occasioned by the influx of foreign herders and recommends that improved immigration regulations to ensure that all migrant herders entering the nation are properly registered and identified by their home country in line with the ECOWAS Transhumance Protocol. It recommends further that a task force should be established to work with the previously settled Fulani herders to detect and remove migrant herders who cross borders illegally, to assist in the internal management of migrant herders. Keywords: Conflicts, Farmers-herders, Forieign herders, Migration, Porous border

Military Factor in Nigerian History Since 1960

Military Factor in Nigerian History Since 1960

New directions for researching and writing African feminist histories

The field of African feminism, particularly Nigerian women, and feminist history, is large and expansive, covering significant topics and innovative methods and sources; yet many areas remain unexplored. In this paper, I investigate the landmarks in scholarship on women and feminist history in Nigeria and make a case for new directions. Women and feminist histories in Nigeria have focused on deconstructing the category of “women” arguing that this category and its corresponding social and cultural characteristics are western inventions. More so, that gender and gender relations were fluid concepts that did not lead to exclusion based on anatomical sex. In addition, other scholars have examined social practices like marriage, bride-price, and child labour while others have attempted critical biographies of elite Lagos women and analyzed the gendered nature of colonialism. I argue that a new research agenda must go beyond these topics in search of themes, methods, and sources to explore untapped sources and rare methodologies to chart a new course in the scholarship on Nigerian women and feminism. Underexplored topics include but are not limited to fame and protest in the pre-colonial era, sexualities scholarship that goes beyond binaries, gender and the environment and technologies of power such as guns in precolonial Nigeria. In terms of sources, new frontiers need to mine orality and oral literature to recover the voices of non– educated women who are not part of Christian cosmopolitan networks, Muslim women whose exploits in women and feminist history have been silenced by excessive attention to Christian women. Literary sources like novels and poetry, and visual evidence from photography have not received critical attention in women and feminist histories of Nigeria. I argue that these new sources and topics will lead to an inclusive history that is mindful of power in the writing of history.

Evaluating Data from A Work Engagement Intervention among Nigerian History Lecturers

History lecturers who approach their work positively are more likely to be more engaged in their work than those who do not. Nigerian history lecturers have not been examined in terms of how psychological interventions can improve their work engagement. The present research examined the research dataset of an online rational emotive behavior therapy (online REBT) on work engagement among Nigerian history lecturers at higher education institutions. The sample consisted of 31 history lecturers, 16 of whom were randomly assigned to the online REBT group and 15 to a waiting-list control group. A repeated measures ANOVA was conducted at a level of 0.05 probability using IBM Statistical Package for Social Sciences software. Comparing the two groups, the dataset shows that history lecturers in the online intervention group exhibited significantly higher work engagement scores than those in the waiting list control group (p=.000). The one-month follow up dataset reveal that history lecturers who participated in the online REBT intervention continued to feel engaged at work compared to those in the waiting list control group (p=.000). Thus, a significant improvement in work engagement scores of history lecturers was associated with the online REBT intervention. Future studies with a larger sample size are needed.

The Nigerian Federation and Separatists’ Agitations: A Reconsideration of Contending Issues on Biafra

Federalism often arises from the desire of the peoples to form a union without necessarily losing their identities. In Nigeria, an attempt to cultivate a common national identity met with serious obstacles from separatist agitations in Nigerian history. In the light of this, the paper examines the causes of separatist agitations in Nigeria from its formative years as a British Colony and Protectorate and proffers solutions for stemming the drift toward disintegration. It observes that the history of the Federation of Nigeria is one laced with separatist agitations. The paper notes that separatist agitations, have been traced to a plethora of factors which include ethnicity, cultural diversity, vast size, revenue allocation, political instability, and ambiguities in the constitution, among others. The paper argues that these factors remain object of intense politics and generally paved way for separatist agitations in Nigeria. In recent times, separatist movements in the South East geopolitical zone have stepped-up struggles for the actualization of the sovereign state of Biafra through protests and other forms of social mobilization. The protests have triggered tension and heightened insecurity, with the security agencies applying excessive force to quell the protests in some cases. The extant literature is awash with narratives regarding the recent upsurge and persistent centrifugal demands by pro-Biafra separatists, five decades after the Nigerian civil war. Although these analyses are germane to the subject matter, they essentially suffer from disjointed empiricism, and as such unable to adequately illuminate the understanding of the renewed Biafra separatist agitations. The paper concludes that Nigeria’s unity is problematic and that the approach the government has been adopting in handling the problem is actually not working.

Digital Communication Tools Usage and Buyer-Seller Relationship: Cocoa Smallholder Farmers’ Perspectives

Cocoa farming, production and exports in Nigeria remain a study focus because of the agricultural sector revenue in the pre-crude oil era of Nigerian history. Cocoa being one of the chief sources of revenue and exporting income for the country, exposes the subsector to contention and continuous review for analysts and policymakers to improve both the farming practices and commercial viability of the sphere. This study uses a smallholder population of 87 respondents in Ondo state to describe and analyze the buyer-seller relationship of cocoa farmers in the region. This article examined the level of usage of digital communication tools among cocoa farmers and evaluated the impact of digital communication tools used on the buyer-seller relationship in the study area. ANOVA, regression analysis, Pearson correlation analysis were employed for empirical investigations. The study findings revealed that the propensity to the adoption of digital communication tools is low and widespread adoption can eliminate challenges of trust, satisfaction, and imperfect market with regards to the information in the relationship context as extended by previous studies. It is recommended that beyond Messengers and SMS, a further advancement to using other means of communication including social media and video-conferencing can aid in solving some of the issues meandering the buyer-seller relationship. Congruently, global market rivalry and international standards in cocoa farming and processing can be achieved if digital communication tools are widely adopted by farmers in the region. Keywords: Digital Communication Tools, Buyer-Seller Relationship DOI: 10.7176/JESD/13-12-02 Publication date: June 30 th 2022