why does the north have a major say in ruling the country? i recall in 2005 when the last presidential elections were still warming up. That was during objs administration then and some northeners were saying ; in 2007 power MUST return to the north. what actually gave them the back up to use the word MUST? and eventually their wish came to pass. why has the south east and west been unable to witter the norths influence? is the population of the north higher than both the south-east and south-west? or is it because the occupy a greater land mass or what? I think the north can prevent the southerners from ruling for 20 years. but can the south prevent the north from ruling for just 4 years?

Answer to your questions

OBJ

and other similar idioits like him.

They have never have vision of good leadership.

You see, the question of whether North, South, West or East rule the country would not have being important had there being good governance.

Indeed the 'entitlement mindset' of the North is only becomes necessary because the only industry that the North has is the federal goverment and state allocations and budget sharing.

The North seems politically savvy but very unintelligent same as OBJ.

I say that word with respect, assuming someone from the North  rule this country very well, believe me, no ones will necessary bother about whether someone from the North is the President. The close the North have to that is Murtala Mohammed. Death did not allow us to have a good assesement of what kind of a leader he is.

Good leaders are welcome from the North and every part of the country, they can rule for 1000 years I will care be less .

Hausa/Fulani majority in the North are the most United ethnic group in Nigeria and quite possibly in Africa

By now, we should have by now accept it as our fate in this country that they (northerners) are '' born to rule". The south has done little to avert this trend, so it has stuck! Sadly though, we have to live with it.

The one that hurts me most is,

Accountant General of the Federation - Ibrahim Dankwambo

Minister of Finance - Mansur Mukthar

And of late CBN Governor, Lamido Sanusi

These key positions are all held by northerners!

I am tired of these sick allegations that northerners are inherently the major problem with Nigeria. I say that Nigeria suffers from Bad Leaders period. Looking at other countries, South Africa, in particular. Nigeria still has plenty of chances to get its act together. I honestly do not care about power generation, not to say that it isn't important, but if Yar'dua wants a lasting legacy, just invest in the educational section. Fix up schools, get kids regular supplies and make school free and universal. 1. it gets kids off the streets;2. it creates employment opportunities, 3. you are investing in the huge human capital across Nigeria. Second, the Niger Delta is not lost, rather than sending guns into the region and military thugs, send CAT diggers and construction vehicle, Help them sue the oil companies for reparation--this has a two-fold effect:1. you weaken the grip of these oil companies on the nation;2. The oil companies would be the ones paying to clean and rebuild the delta. Investing in the downstream sector of the oil industry is a must, no longer can Nigeria sit back and collect 'rent' It is high time that the oil companies were nationalized. Saudi Arabia did it with huge booms to its economy, as did Venezuela, why not Nigeria? The power problem is no problem at all, a few billion dollars in tax breaks and subsidies can spurn a homegrown light industry in solar manufacturing, An industry that can light up Nigeria in 10 years or less without the construction of huge traditional power plants. Imagine me, a simple internet bum with all these visionary ideas, and now imagine an actual leader that was fairly elected rather than selected, would not their vision and ambition surpass mine? If you want to know that is wrong with Nigeria look no further than the military, it is these asses that have ruled Nigeria and a still ruling it till today.

obiem:

By now, we should have by now accept it as our fate in this country that they (northerners) are '' born to rule". The south has done little to avert this trend, so it has stuck! Sadly though, we have to live with it.

The one that hurts me most is,

Accountant General of the Federation - Ibrahim Dankwambo

Minister of Finance - Mansur Mukthar

And of late CBN Governor, Lamido Sanusi

These key positions are all held by northerners!

and YET the banking sector is almost 99% sustained by the south, the stock exchange is southern, all the import and export activities that grow the economy, oil that makes up 95% of govt revenue is from the south.

Why are northerners in charge of the economy then? what do they contribute?

davidylan:

and YET the banking sector is almost 99% sustained by the south, the stock exchange is southern, all the import and export activities that grow the economy, oil that makes up 95% of govt revenue is from the south.

Why are northerners in charge of the economy then? what do they contribute?

Allah Akbar

tunku:

I am tired of these sick allegations that northerners are inherently the major problem with Nigeria. I say that Nigeria suffers from Bad Leaders period. Looking at other countries, South Africa, in particular. Nigeria still has plenty of chances to get its act together. I honestly do not care about power generation, not to say that it isn't important, but if Yar'dua wants a lasting legacy, just invest in the educational section. Fix up schools, get kids regular supplies and make school free and universal. 1. it gets kids off the streets;2. it creates employment opportunities, 3. you are investing in the huge human capital across Nigeria. Second, the Niger Delta is not lost, rather than sending guns into the region and military thugs, send CAT diggers and construction vehicle, Help them sue the oil companies for reparation--this has a two-fold effect:1. you weaken the grip of these oil companies on the nation;2. The oil companies would be the ones paying to clean and rebuild the delta. Investing in the downstream sector of the oil industry is a must, no longer can Nigeria sit back and collect 'rent' It is high time that the oil companies were nationalized. Saudi Arabia did it with huge booms to its economy, as did Venezuela, why not Nigeria? The power problem is no problem at all, a few billion dollars in tax breaks and subsidies can spurn a homegrown light industry in solar manufacturing, An industry that can light up Nigeria in 10 years or less without the construction of huge traditional power plants. Imagine me, a simple internet bum with all these visionary ideas, and now imagine an actual leader that was fairly elected rather than selected, would not their vision and ambition surpass mine? If you want to know that is wrong with Nigeria look no further than the military, it is these asses that have ruled Nigeria and a still ruling it till today.

Quoted for truth.

as long as im concern, they are not contributing anything meaningful to these nation, apart from "cow and onions", how much can that generate to the federal account?

Cos they are
1. Collected
2. Dedicated to themselves
3. United.
4. DOnt make too much noise unlike Yoruba and the Easterners.
5. They are good at playing games.

SANUSI LAMIDO SANUSI( now CBN governor) answers your question in this article he wrote around 1999/2000.

The Igbos, The Yoruba and History
By Sanusi Lamido Sanusi

sanusis@ubaplc.com



Every moment in life is a moment of history. Every present action immediately becomes past and roles played today will be remembered tomorrow with pride or shame, satisfaction or regret. Yet some moments are clearly more momentous than others, and represent far greater opportunities and dangers. These are often moments of crisis, a word which in its Japanese form is written with two characters, the one representing danger, the other opportunity.

The deaths of ‘Yar Adua, Abacha and Abiola plunged Nigeria into a crisis. That is, a period portending great danger for the corporate body called Nigeria as well as near limitless opportunities for progress, for a departure from the tension, the stagnation, the corruption and the injustices associated with the dark period known as the Abacha days. For the leaders of Southern Nigeria and, in particular, the two dominant tribes, the Igbo and Yoruba, it represented an opportunity once more to make a move for the presidency, and shift power (whatever that means) [b]away from the North which has come to be portrayed as the source of all the problems of the nation. [/b]The desire to win over power is the natural goal of political activists. The use of propaganda, blackmail, lies, bribery, deception, even threats of secession has been the hallmark of many an astute political strategy aimed at attaining set goals. Yet the choice of which method is appropriate to a specific polity in a specific historical context is a difficult one, requiring a high sense of perception, a knowledge of history, a natural intelligence and political sophistication. In choosing the path of black-mail and ethnocentric diatribe, the leaders of the South have once more displayed to the world their political naivete, and set the stage for another defeat that may see them remaining in opposition for the next four years.

One marvels at the never-ending cycle which sees Southern Politicians play into the hands of their northern counterparts. For a people who take pride in the depth of their Western Education and who have often expressed contempt for the “backwardness” and “illiteracy” of their northern brothers, southern politicians have presented to the world the ever-present proof that “book – knowledge” and intelligence are not necessarily correlated. One recalls Chief Awolowo’s description of Shagari as a “glorified Grade Two Teacher”. It was missing on Awolowo’ that the more contemptible the adjectives he used to describe Shagari, the lower he sank in the eyes of perceptive watchers, as the man he was describing had clearly shown that he was better by defeating him in a race both participated in from start to finish.

Western Liberal Democracy is a product of the nation-state. It takes as given, the corporate existence of the state and establishes institutions and the rule of law such as to ensure that the system, rather than an individual, is relied upon for safeguarding individual rights and societal values. To the extent that Nigerians have decided to pursue the path of the Western Nations (or at least those in power have decided that this is the way to go) participants would do well to bear this fact in mind. A democratic system is primarily about Institutions and the rule of law. It is not about individuals. We need a system, based on laws and a constitution agreed upon by all, that guarantees each and every Nigerian wherever he is from the right to full political participation and unfettered expression. A system that protects each and every one of us from the tyranny of an individual. A system in which our dignity and liberty are not protected only when the president comes from our own part of the country.

Abacha was a corrupt, ruthless dictator – period. Where he was from is immaterial. All Nigerians, Northerners and Southerners, Muslim and Christians, suffered from the corruption and injustices of his regime with the exception of a small band of family members, sycophants and traitors who joined him in looting the coffers of our nation. Those who stood against his tyranny and spoke out for freedom and equity suffered: among them Obasanjo, Yar Adua, Abiola, Rimi, Ige, Lamido, Nwakwo and Ken Sarowiwa. A cursory look at the list of those detained, framed, murdered, lied against, pauperized and otherwise abused in the last five years will prove to honest persons that Abacha was no respecter of region or religion and that he represented the least form of humanity degenerating dangerously close to bestiality, which is why, like Pharaoh, he is remembered today for his evil rather than his good, for no good of his can obviate the memory, etched in the individual and collective consciousness of Nigerians, of what it is like to live in an environment of terror, not knowing who next will be struck with impunity.

In pretending that these are not the issues, in teaching their followers to oppose Abacha not for his corruption, greed and cruelty but for his ethnic origins, in portraying the annulment of the June, 1993 election as an act against the Yoruba, in pretending that Abiola’s death in prison was in some way different from ‘Yar Adua’s death in prison, in claiming that the solution to this country’s predicament lies in changing the ethnicity of the president and producing a “Southern” President: in all this, the political leaders of the South have displayed the highest degree of naivete, the lowest sense of responsibility and the crudest application of their intellectual faculties. Worse than all this, they have played straight into the hands of their political rivals, the Northern Politicians.

The history of Nigeria since independence is too recent, too many real-life participants are still alive, for it to be rewritten with impunity as a political strategy. It was only in the 1960’s that the Nigerian Army’s officer corps was predominated by officers of Igbo extraction. It was only in 1966 that a group of such officers decided to destroy the peace of this nation and wage a war against other tribal groups. That was when the five majors decided to eliminate the Premiers of the North and West while letting the Igbo Premier go scot-free, to assassinate the Prime Minister who was a northerner after having advised the Igbo president to flee and letting the Igbo Senate leader go scot-free. To execute the Minister of Finance who was from the Mid-West; to execute the most senior military officers from the North and the West while letting the most senior military officer and army commander who was Igbo go scot-free. Not one prominent Igbo leader, military or civilian was touched . All the prominent civilian and military leaders from other regions were executed. The Igbo senate leader, acting for the Igbo president in his absence was, by the constitution, mandated to swear - in the most senior NPC minister as Prime minister. He did not. Instead, having consulted his Igbo President, and the president alone, he handed over power to the Igbo GOC in flagrant disregard for the provisions of the constitution. The speech of Nzeogwu, the magazines and newspapers published in the six months of the Ironsi government, his declaration of a unitary state, the provocation of northerners by Igbo traders who laughed at them in Sabon Gari markets, all of these are too recent, too well-documented to be rewritten.

The Igbo people were responsible for the first military coup in this country; They were responsible for the first attempt at ethnic cleansing; They were responsible for the first violation of constitutionally laid down succession procedures; they were responsible for the destruction of the federation and the creation of the unitary system of which they are now victims (since the initial objective was for the Igbos to dominate the other groups); they were responsible for Nigeria’s first civil war.

It makes no sense, in the face of these facts, repeat facts, for the Igbos to shed tears today and claim to have always been an aggrieved party. It will convince no one. Granted, the Igbo people as a whole must not be punished for the action of some. Granted, there can never be full reconciliation without justice and equity. Granted, the Igbo people, like all Nigerians, have the right to fight against perceived injustices. The way to do this is by integration into the country, by joining broad-based parties and establishing a system that guarantees all individuals and groups their rights and liberty. It is not by crying Biafra again. It not by following the man who led them to defeat and ran away to come back later and enjoy his wealth. The Igbos have always had alliances with other parts of the country. The astute political strategy is to go into one now. Tribalism will lead to defeat, once more, and even more humiliation.

As for the Yoruba, they have not been known to call for secession or the break-up of the country until recently in the aftermath of the June 12 crisis and Abiola’s death. One may not agree entirely with their description of themselves as peaceful people, but they clearly are a peace –preferring people, consistent with their well-known nature of seeking maximum enjoyment from life at minimal personal cost. The Yoruba instinctively know that more can be gained in peacetime than in war. Being business people, they have an acute sense of the risks of war and its implication in terms of destruction of accumulated wealth and property.

Yet in spite of this, the Yoruba have in their politics displayed two consistent streaks that have consistently kept them in opposition and cost them opportunities for coming to power. The first is vanity – a dangerous state of self-delusion borne of imagined intellectual and academic superiority over opponents and rivals alike. Thus, Yoruba politicians have consistently underestimated their northern opponents who thrive on wily intrigues and far-sighted manipulation of the political process. They have also assumed to their peril that other southern tribes would naturally acquiesce to their leadership and be lured into a southern alliance whose objective is to help secure supremacy and power for the south – west. Even the so-called Oduduwa republic assumes that the people of the former mid-west who had fought for an independent region in the sixties will willingly resubmit themselves to Yoruba domination. This is all in addition to the recent utterances of Afenifere calling for excision of the Yoruba of the north from Fulani domination, a call dismissed by a prominent northern Yoruba leader, Sunday Awoniyi, for its banality and presumptuousness.

The second streak is self-centredness. Of all the tribes in Nigeria who sometimes fight for parochial reasons, the Yoruba are the only group who clearly believe they are Nigeria. When they have what they want, Nigeria is good. Otherwise it is bad. When a Yoruba candidate loses an election (like Awolowo did in 1979 and 1983) it is rigging. When he wins (like Abiola in 1993) it is a landslide victory in a free-and-fair election. When Buhari overthrew a democratically elected and sworn-in government headed by Shagari, he was hailed as a reformer who came to fight corruption. When his tribunals jailed ‘progressive’ Yoruba governors for theft he became unpopular. When Babangida dissolved the election of Adamu Chiroma and Shehu ‘Yar Adua as flag-bearers of NRC and SDP the decision was hailed as patriotic and courageous even though it led to an extension of military dictatorship. When the same man annulled Abiola’s election it was a travesty of democracy. The list is too long to go through.

As a result of these two characteristics, the Yoruba have tended to be received by all other groups in Nigeria with one sentiment: mistrust. The Igbo people believe to this day that the Yoruba led them into the war pretending to be with them and dumped them at the last moment. During the Second Republic, a grand alliance of four opposition parties capable of winning power from the NPN achieved nothing when it became clear that for the Yoruba the issue was not one of supplanting a conservative government and installing a progressive one, but of securing the presidency for a Yoruba candidate – Chief Awolowo.

NADECO, whose members had been strident opponents of Abiola branding him Babangida’s boy, suddenly look up June 12 and tribalised the cause. Subsequent to Abiola’s death, the memorandum NADECO submitted to the Government of Abdulsalam Abubakar was such a comical exercise in vain hallucination and naïve optimism that one wonders if those that drafted it were in complete possession of their mental faculties.

The Yoruba have become Nigeria’s wailing tribe, detaching themselves from the rest of the country and alienating the people they hope to rule; abusing other Nigerians through their vociferous media and hoping for votes from the same Nigerians on ballot day.

The lesson in all this is that the Igbo, Yoruba and all Nigerians must learn by now that no one can win a national election on a tribal platform. Those clamoring to join Ojukwu’s Igbo party, and those attempting to transform Afenifere/NADECO into a tribal party are heading for a resounding defeat at the polls.

The presidency can, and perhaps should, move to the south. But it will be to a southerner who contests on the platform of Nigeria, not of his tribe. A southerner committed to the system, to the rule of law and to the principles of peace, justice, equity and freedom, not of avenging real or imagined wrongs; a Southerner like Chief Abiola who stands the chance of winning.

This is an opportunity to make (or unmake) history. But, sadly, it is being thrown away once more in what may be the commencement of a new cycle of defeat, frustration and wailing.

well ok, he made his point, on the igbos, the yorubas and not much said on the holy fulani-hausa

but on all that so called election i believe ? which one of them can he said that was free, fair and safe??

if the north practises what the koran says, people like RIbadu should be fronting for them

why them the likes of ibb,abacha them ?

if that man really wana test the south, well igbos , let their be election between Ribadu and Obj, sure marjority igbos,yorubas? will vote for ribadu

so his insight on his nigeria history is qustionable!! period

and all those years they ve being in power, the north still sinks!! wonder why??

well it could said there are poeple that chose to live as the want!!

nobody is stupid anymore

if the north really respect the nigerians its high time the likes of ibb and co has to go

united hmmm not sure anymore, it looks like some people has been profitting from something, but thats entirely open to another debate

well ok, he made his point, on the igbos, the yorubas and not much said on the holy fulani-hausa

It was very obvious that SLS set out, in that article, to defend Hausa/Fulani against the popular notion that they are the problem of Nigeria. . . as the starter of this topic is also saying.

The article was an attempt by SLS, being an educated Fulani man, to remind Southerners too, of their own excesses.


My personal view is that the whole country, and not a specific tribe, is responsible for the state of Nigeria today.

and for the igbos laughin at the mallams god in the market sq in kano in the 60s hmm ha

now in the 2000s how many times the moslem in UK,US, Malaysia,Saudis etc go on burning churches and killing poeple igbos

the north will be forced to wake the islamic ass at some point

for now the system hasnt turn against them, enjoy till it last

time is moving, and the world should be moving as well

One thing is obvious. The days of northern domination is OVER. The fact that Yar'Adua is in power does not mean that the rest of the south is not fed up with the north. Let the north try to hold on to power after Yar'Adua's full tenure and see if this nation would not erupt in violence.
For the south-south that once looked upon the Igbos as rebels to openly call the north a parasite? That's a writing on the wall.

jarus

It was very obvious that SLS set out, in that article,  to defend Hausa/Fulani against the popular notion that they are the problem of Nigeria. . . as the starter of this topic is also saying.

The article was an attempt by SLS, being an educated Fulani man, to remind Southerners too, of their own excesses.


My personal view is that the whole country, and not a specific tribe, is responsible for the state of Nigeria today

yes u are right but then i got my few question for him

defending his side aint bad idea but then u should be able to adresss the presnt precipitation, antecedents

based on that, i got a big wahala with him


The so called northe that really respect the nigerians should be fronting people that practises what koran says

and them those so called election should be free and fair, i think

now becomerich over to u, he claimed to know so much on nigeria, and dnt bloody talk about benin cotonu, adress the writer

ep

One thing is obvious. The days of northern domination is OVER. The fact that Yar'Adua is in power does not mean that the rest of the south is not fed up with the north. Let the north try to hold on to power after Yar'Adua's full tenure and see if this nation would not erupt in violence.
For the south-south that once looked upon the Igbos as rebels to openly call the north a parasite? That's a writing on the wall.

i think u are misassimilating the writers motives, this is not about the north dominace in power, however as aan igboman, he accuses the igbos of a lot of things which im not in the position to defend, but he also failed to know that abacha and ibb and co loots are all smiling in the foreign banks

well like they said to every story there is always two side

and as for one of the slave master that ruled nigeria to come out on BENtv in UK not long ago to talk on nigeria, am not sure on some? of the things he said about the igbos should hold!!

Nethertheless weather be it true or not, the average mallam cannot continue to be taking for a ride

the world is moving, and the world aint just about koran i must say

but niether way, like he said in his article, the present will be past, but some has the greater momentun in reminsce

so there u go, this is 2009

now becomerich over to u, he claimed to know so much on nigeria, and dnt bloody talk about benin cotonu, adress the writer

. . .and u are sure BCR can defend Yoruba without his usual 'Let's join Benin' conclusion?

well jarus

this man is complete jack of all trade

he has worked for the elites companies all over canada, yet cannot aford mulitple vist to naija, wey he dey hide in canada

he lived in the north

he talk too much rubish just like the writer said some yoruba? do hahhahh

seriously i think his post is highly needed here cuz i wana measure his capacity of handling issues in this one

without that bloody benin-contnuo

@ post

It simple, the south is not as united as the north. Infact i used to think that hausas were the only people in the north not knowing that there are several other groups over there.

Jarus:

SANUSI LAMIDO SANUSI( now CBN governor) answers your question in this article he wrote around 1999/2000.

The Igbos, The Yoruba and History
By Sanusi Lamido Sanusi

sanusis@ubaplc.com



Every moment in life is a moment of history. Every present action immediately becomes past and roles played today will be remembered tomorrow with pride or shame, satisfaction or regret. Yet some moments are clearly more momentous than others, and represent far greater opportunities and dangers. These are often moments of crisis, a word which in its Japanese form is written with two characters, the one representing danger, the other opportunity.

The deaths of ‘Yar Adua, Abacha and Abiola plunged Nigeria into a crisis. That is, a period portending great danger for the corporate body called Nigeria as well as near limitless opportunities for progress, for a departure from the tension, the stagnation, the corruption and the injustices associated with the dark period known as the Abacha days. For the leaders of Southern Nigeria and, in particular, the two dominant tribes, the Igbo and Yoruba, it represented an opportunity once more to make a move for the presidency, and shift power (whatever that means) [b]away from the North which has come to be portrayed as the source of all the problems of the nation. [/b]The desire to win over power is the natural goal of political activists. The use of propaganda, blackmail, lies, bribery, deception, even threats of secession has been the hallmark of many an astute political strategy aimed at attaining set goals. Yet the choice of which method is appropriate to a specific polity in a specific historical context is a difficult one, requiring a high sense of perception, a knowledge of history, a natural intelligence and political sophistication. In choosing the path of black-mail and ethnocentric diatribe, the leaders of the South have once more displayed to the world their political naivete, and set the stage for another defeat that may see them remaining in opposition for the next four years.

One marvels at the never-ending cycle which sees Southern Politicians play into the hands of their northern counterparts. For a people who take pride in the depth of their Western Education and who have often expressed contempt for the “backwardness” and “illiteracy” of their northern brothers, southern politicians have presented to the world the ever-present proof that “book – knowledge” and intelligence are not necessarily correlated. One recalls Chief Awolowo’s description of Shagari as a “glorified Grade Two Teacher”. It was missing on Awolowo’ that the more contemptible the adjectives he used to describe Shagari, the lower he sank in the eyes of perceptive watchers, as the man he was describing had clearly shown that he was better by defeating him in a race both participated in from start to finish.

Western Liberal Democracy is a product of the nation-state. It takes as given, the corporate existence of the state and establishes institutions and the rule of law such as to ensure that the system, rather than an individual, is relied upon for safeguarding individual rights and societal values. To the extent that Nigerians have decided to pursue the path of the Western Nations (or at least those in power have decided that this is the way to go) participants would do well to bear this fact in mind. A democratic system is primarily about Institutions and the rule of law. It is not about individuals. We need a system, based on laws and a constitution agreed upon by all, that guarantees each and every Nigerian wherever he is from the right to full political participation and unfettered expression. A system that protects each and every one of us from the tyranny of an individual. A system in which our dignity and liberty are not protected only when the president comes from our own part of the country.

Abacha was a corrupt, ruthless dictator – period. Where he was from is immaterial. All Nigerians, Northerners and Southerners, Muslim and Christians, suffered from the corruption and injustices of his regime with the exception of a small band of family members, sycophants and traitors who joined him in looting the coffers of our nation. Those who stood against his tyranny and spoke out for freedom and equity suffered: among them Obasanjo, Yar Adua, Abiola, Rimi, Ige, Lamido, Nwakwo and Ken Sarowiwa. A cursory look at the list of those detained, framed, murdered, lied against, pauperized and otherwise abused in the last five years will prove to honest persons that Abacha was no respecter of region or religion and that he represented the least form of humanity degenerating dangerously close to bestiality, which is why, like Pharaoh, he is remembered today for his evil rather than his good, for no good of his can obviate the memory, etched in the individual and collective consciousness of Nigerians, of what it is like to live in an environment of terror, not knowing who next will be struck with impunity.

In pretending that these are not the issues, in teaching their followers to oppose Abacha not for his corruption, greed and cruelty but for his ethnic origins, in portraying the annulment of the June, 1993 election as an act against the Yoruba, in pretending that Abiola’s death in prison was in some way different from ‘Yar Adua’s death in prison, in claiming that the solution to this country’s predicament lies in changing the ethnicity of the president and producing a “Southern” President: in all this, the political leaders of the South have displayed the highest degree of naivete, the lowest sense of responsibility and the crudest application of their intellectual faculties. Worse than all this, they have played straight into the hands of their political rivals, the Northern Politicians.

The history of Nigeria since independence is too recent, too many real-life participants are still alive, for it to be rewritten with impunity as a political strategy. It was only in the 1960’s that the Nigerian Army’s officer corps was predominated by officers of Igbo extraction. It was only in 1966 that a group of such officers decided to destroy the peace of this nation and wage a war against other tribal groups. That was when the five majors decided to eliminate the Premiers of the North and West while letting the Igbo Premier go scot-free, to assassinate the Prime Minister who was a northerner after having advised the Igbo president to flee and letting the Igbo Senate leader go scot-free. To execute the Minister of Finance who was from the Mid-West; to execute the most senior military officers from the North and the West while letting the most senior military officer and army commander who was Igbo go scot-free. Not one prominent Igbo leader, military or civilian was touched . All the prominent civilian and military leaders from other regions were executed. The Igbo senate leader, acting for the Igbo president in his absence was, by the constitution, mandated to swear - in the most senior NPC minister as Prime minister. He did not. Instead, having consulted his Igbo President, and the president alone, he handed over power to the Igbo GOC in flagrant disregard for the provisions of the constitution. The speech of Nzeogwu, the magazines and newspapers published in the six months of the Ironsi government, his declaration of a unitary state, the provocation of northerners by Igbo traders who laughed at them in Sabon Gari markets, all of these are too recent, too well-documented to be rewritten.
The Igbo people were responsible for the first military coup in this country; They were responsible for the first attempt at ethnic cleansing; They were responsible for the first violation of constitutionally laid down succession procedures; they were responsible for the destruction of the federation and the creation of the unitary system of which they are now victims (since the initial objective was for the Igbos to dominate the other groups); they were responsible for Nigeria’s first civil war.

It makes no sense, in the face of these facts, repeat facts, for the Igbos to shed tears today and claim to have always been an aggrieved party. It will convince no one. Granted, the Igbo people as a whole must not be punished for the action of some. Granted, there can never be full reconciliation without justice and equity. Granted, the Igbo people, like all Nigerians, have the right to fight against perceived injustices. The way to do this is by integration into the country, by joining broad-based parties and establishing a system that guarantees all individuals and groups their rights and liberty. It is not by crying Biafra again. It not by following the man who led them to defeat and ran away to come back later and enjoy his wealth. The Igbos have always had alliances with other parts of the country. The astute political strategy is to go into one now. Tribalism will lead to defeat, once more, and even more humiliation.

As for the Yoruba, they have not been known to call for secession or the break-up of the country until recently in the aftermath of the June 12 crisis and Abiola’s death. One may not agree entirely with their description of themselves as peaceful people, but they clearly are a peace –preferring people, consistent with their well-known nature of seeking maximum enjoyment from life at minimal personal cost. The Yoruba instinctively know that more can be gained in peacetime than in war. Being business people, they have an acute sense of the risks of war and its implication in terms of destruction of accumulated wealth and property.

Yet in spite of this, the Yoruba have in their politics displayed two consistent streaks that have consistently kept them in opposition and cost them opportunities for coming to power. The first is vanity – a dangerous state of self-delusion borne of imagined intellectual and academic superiority over opponents and rivals alike. Thus, Yoruba politicians have consistently underestimated their northern opponents who thrive on wily intrigues and far-sighted manipulation of the political process. They have also assumed to their peril that other southern tribes would naturally acquiesce to their leadership and be lured into a southern alliance whose objective is to help secure supremacy and power for the south – west. Even the so-called Oduduwa republic assumes that the people of the former mid-west who had fought for an independent region in the sixties will willingly resubmit themselves to Yoruba domination. This is all in addition to the recent utterances of Afenifere calling for excision of the Yoruba of the north from Fulani domination, a call dismissed by a prominent northern Yoruba leader, Sunday Awoniyi, for its banality and presumptuousness.

The second streak is self-centredness. Of all the tribes in Nigeria who sometimes fight for parochial reasons, the Yoruba are the only group who clearly believe they are Nigeria. When they have what they want, Nigeria is good. Otherwise it is bad. When a Yoruba candidate loses an election (like Awolowo did in 1979 and 1983) it is rigging. When he wins (like Abiola in 1993) it is a landslide victory in a free-and-fair election. When Buhari overthrew a democratically elected and sworn-in government headed by Shagari, he was hailed as a reformer who came to fight corruption. When his tribunals jailed ‘progressive’ Yoruba governors for theft he became unpopular. When Babangida dissolved the election of Adamu Chiroma and Shehu ‘Yar Adua as flag-bearers of NRC and SDP the decision was hailed as patriotic and courageous even though it led to an extension of military dictatorship. When the same man annulled Abiola’s election it was a travesty of democracy. The list is too long to go through.

As a result of these two characteristics, the Yoruba have tended to be received by all other groups in Nigeria with one sentiment: mistrust. The Igbo people believe to this day that the Yoruba led them into the war pretending to be with them and dumped them at the last moment. During the Second Republic, a grand alliance of four opposition parties capable of winning power from the NPN achieved nothing when it became clear that for the Yoruba the issue was not one of supplanting a conservative government and installing a progressive one, but of securing the presidency for a Yoruba candidate – Chief Awolowo.

NADECO, whose members had been strident opponents of Abiola branding him Babangida’s boy, suddenly look up June 12 and tribalised the cause. Subsequent to Abiola’s death, the memorandum NADECO submitted to the Government of Abdulsalam Abubakar was such a comical exercise in vain hallucination and naïve optimism that one wonders if those that drafted it were in complete possession of their mental faculties.

The Yoruba have become Nigeria’s wailing tribe, detaching themselves from the rest of the country and alienating the people they hope to rule; abusing other Nigerians through their vociferous media and hoping for votes from the same Nigerians on ballot day.

The lesson in all this is that the Igbo, Yoruba and all Nigerians must learn by now that no one can win a national election on a tribal platform. Those clamoring to join Ojukwu’s Igbo party, and those attempting to transform Afenifere/NADECO into a tribal party are heading for a resounding defeat at the polls.

The presidency can, and perhaps should, move to the south. But it will be to a southerner who contests on the platform of Nigeria, not of his tribe. A southerner committed to the system, to the rule of law and to the principles of peace, justice, equity and freedom, not of avenging real or imagined wrongs; a Southerner like Chief Abiola who stands the chance of winning.

This is an opportunity to make (or unmake) history. But, sadly, it is being thrown away once more in what may be the commencement of a new cycle of defeat, frustration and wailing.

Those who portray themselves as neutral judges must apply same standards to everyone in passing their judgements.

The parts in bold are very contradictory. Why is it a taboo to judge the whole north by the deeds of the past power holders from the north but acceptable to heap the blame on the entire Igbo race because of the misadventure of 4 Igbo officers.

So the Igbo civilians deserved to be massacred in the north because traders "laughed" at northerners at Sabon Geri market ? Yeah, just like the Igbo provocation by that cartoon in Denmark.

I presume it is also acceptable to pass a collective judgement on the Yorubas because of those he mentioned ?

Bravo ! I will know when I see an unbiased opinion, but I will pass on this one.

i thought nigeria is supposed to be a state with unity in diversity, right?
what's wrong with the northern leaders? how can u judge leaders like ahmadu bello,tafawa balewa,& murtala(even though he didn't rule for so long)? i believe we have more,it's just a matter of time

Jarus:

SANUSI LAMIDO SANUSI( now CBN governor) answers your question in this article he wrote around 1999/2000.

The Igbos, The Yoruba and History
By Sanusi Lamido Sanusi

sanusis@ubaplc.com



Every moment in life is a moment of history. Every present action immediately becomes past and roles played today will be remembered tomorrow with pride or shame, satisfaction or regret. Yet some moments are clearly more momentous than others, and represent far greater opportunities and dangers. These are often moments of crisis, a word which in its Japanese form is written with two characters, the one representing danger, the other opportunity.

The deaths of ‘Yar Adua, Abacha and Abiola plunged Nigeria into a crisis. That  is, a period portending great danger for the corporate body called Nigeria as well as near limitless opportunities for progress, for a departure from the tension, the stagnation, the corruption and the injustices associated with the dark period known as the Abacha days. For the leaders of Southern Nigeria and, in particular, the two dominant tribes, the Igbo and Yoruba, it represented an opportunity once more to make a move for the presidency, and shift power (whatever that means) [b]away from the North which has come to be portrayed as the source of all the problems of the nation. [/b]The desire to win over power is the natural goal of political activists. The use of propaganda, blackmail, lies, bribery, deception, even threats of secession has been the hallmark of many an astute political strategy aimed at attaining set goals. Yet the choice of which method is appropriate to a specific polity in a specific historical context is a difficult one, requiring a high sense of perception, a knowledge of history, a natural intelligence and political sophistication. In choosing the path of black-mail and ethnocentric diatribe, the leaders of the South have once more displayed to the world their political naivete, and set the stage for another defeat that may see them remaining in opposition for the next four years.

One marvels at the never-ending cycle which sees Southern Politicians play into the hands of their northern counterparts.  For a people who take pride in the depth of their Western Education and who have often expressed  contempt for the “backwardness” and “illiteracy” of their northern brothers, southern politicians have presented to the world the ever-present proof that “book – knowledge” and intelligence are not necessarily correlated. One recalls Chief Awolowo’s description of Shagari as a “glorified Grade Two Teacher”. It was missing on Awolowo’ that the more contemptible the adjectives he used to describe Shagari, the lower he sank in the eyes of perceptive watchers, as the man he was describing had clearly shown that he was better by defeating him in a race both participated in from start to finish.

Western Liberal Democracy is a product of the nation-state. It takes as given, the corporate existence of the state and establishes institutions and the rule of law such as to ensure that the system, rather than an individual, is relied upon for safeguarding individual rights and societal values. To the extent that Nigerians have decided to pursue the path of the Western Nations (or at least those in power have decided that this is the way to go) participants would do well to bear this fact in mind. A democratic system is primarily about Institutions and the rule of law. It is not about individuals. We need a system, based on laws and a constitution agreed upon by all, that guarantees each and every Nigerian wherever he is from the right to full political participation and unfettered expression. A system that protects each and every one of us from the tyranny of an individual. A system in which our dignity and liberty are not protected only when the president comes from our own part of the country.

Abacha was a corrupt, ruthless dictator – period. Where he was from is immaterial. All Nigerians, Northerners and Southerners, Muslim and Christians, suffered from the corruption and injustices of his regime with the exception of a small band of family members, sycophants and traitors who joined him in looting  the coffers of our nation. Those who stood against his tyranny and spoke out for freedom and equity suffered: among them Obasanjo, Yar Adua, Abiola, Rimi, Ige, Lamido, Nwakwo and Ken Sarowiwa. A cursory look at the list of those detained, framed, murdered, lied against, pauperized and otherwise abused in the last five years will prove to honest persons that Abacha was no respecter of region or religion and that he represented the least form of humanity degenerating dangerously close to  bestiality, which is why, like Pharaoh, he is remembered today for his evil rather than his good, for no good of his can obviate the memory, etched in the individual and collective consciousness of Nigerians, of what  it is like to live in an environment of terror, not knowing who next will be struck with impunity.

In pretending that these are not the issues, in teaching their followers to oppose Abacha not for his corruption, greed and cruelty but for his ethnic origins, in portraying the annulment of the June, 1993 election as an act against the Yoruba, in  pretending that Abiola’s death in prison was in some way different from ‘Yar Adua’s death in prison, in claiming that the solution to this country’s predicament lies in changing the ethnicity of the president and producing a “Southern” President: in all this, the political leaders of the South have displayed the highest degree of naivete, the lowest sense of responsibility and the crudest  application of their intellectual faculties. Worse than all this, they have played straight into the hands of their political rivals, the Northern Politicians.

[b]The history of Nigeria since independence is too recent, too many real-life participants are still alive, for it to be rewritten with impunity as a political strategy. It was only in the 1960’s that the Nigerian Army’s officer corps was predominated by officers of  Igbo extraction. It was only in 1966 that a group of such officers decided to destroy the peace of this nation and wage a war against other tribal groups. That was when the five majors decided to eliminate the Premiers of the North and West while letting the Igbo Premier go scot-free, to assassinate the Prime Minister who was a northerner after having advised the Igbo  president to flee and letting the Igbo Senate leader go scot-free. To execute the Minister of Finance who was from the Mid-West; to execute the most senior military officers from the North and the West while letting the most senior military officer and army commander who was Igbo go scot-free. Not one prominent Igbo leader, military or civilian was touched . All the prominent civilian and military leaders from other regions were executed. The Igbo senate leader, acting for the Igbo president in his absence was, by the constitution, mandated to swear - in the most senior NPC minister as Prime minister. He did not. Instead, having consulted his Igbo President, and the president alone, he handed over power to the Igbo GOC in flagrant disregard for the provisions of the constitution. The speech of Nzeogwu, the magazines and newspapers published in the six months of the Ironsi government, his declaration of a unitary state, the provocation of northerners by Igbo traders who laughed at them in Sabon Gari markets, all of these are too recent, too well-documented to be rewritten.
[/b]
The Igbo people were responsible for the first military coup in this country; They were responsible for the first attempt at ethnic cleansing; They were responsible for the first violation of constitutionally laid down succession procedures; they were responsible for the destruction of the federation and the creation of the unitary system of which they are now victims (since the initial objective was for the Igbos to dominate the other groups); they were responsible for Nigeria’s first civil war.

It makes no sense, in the face of these facts, repeat facts, for the Igbos to shed tears today and claim to have always been an aggrieved party. It will convince no one. Granted, the Igbo people as a whole must not be punished for the action of some. Granted, there can never be full reconciliation without justice and equity. Granted, the Igbo people, like all Nigerians, have the right to fight against perceived injustices. The way to do this is by integration into the country, by joining broad-based parties and establishing a system that guarantees all individuals and groups their rights and liberty. It is not by crying  Biafra again. It not by following the man who led them to defeat and ran away to come back later and enjoy his wealth. The Igbos have always had alliances with other parts of the country. The astute political strategy is to go into one now. Tribalism will lead to defeat, once more, and even more humiliation.

As for the Yoruba, they have not been known to call for secession or the break-up of the country until recently in the aftermath of the June 12 crisis and Abiola’s death. One may not agree entirely with their description of themselves as peaceful people, but they clearly are a peace –preferring people, consistent with their well-known nature of seeking maximum enjoyment from life at minimal personal cost. The Yoruba instinctively know that more can be gained in peacetime than in war. Being business people, they have an acute sense of the risks of war and its implication in terms of destruction of accumulated wealth and property.

[b]Yet in spite of this, the Yoruba have in their politics displayed two consistent streaks that have consistently kept them in opposition and cost  them  opportunities for coming to power. The first is vanity – a dangerous state of self-delusion borne of imagined intellectual and academic superiority over opponents  and rivals alike. Thus, Yoruba politicians have consistently underestimated their northern opponents who thrive on wily intrigues and far-sighted manipulation of the political process. They have also assumed to their peril that other southern tribes would naturally acquiesce to their leadership and be lured into a southern alliance whose objective is to help secure supremacy and power for the south – west. Even the so-called Oduduwa republic assumes that the people of the former mid-west who had fought for an independent region in the sixties will willingly resubmit themselves to Yoruba domination. This is all in addition to the recent utterances of Afenifere calling for excision of the Yoruba of the north from Fulani domination, a call dismissed by a prominent northern Yoruba leader, Sunday Awoniyi, for its banality and presumptuousness.
[/b]
The second streak is self-centredness. Of all the tribes in Nigeria who sometimes fight for parochial reasons, the Yoruba are the only group who clearly believe they are Nigeria. When they have what they want, Nigeria is good. Otherwise it is bad. When a Yoruba candidate loses an election (like Awolowo did in 1979 and 1983) it is rigging. When he wins (like Abiola in 1993) it is a landslide victory in a free-and-fair election. When Buhari overthrew a democratically elected and sworn-in government headed by Shagari, he was hailed as a reformer who came to fight corruption. When his tribunals jailed ‘progressive’ Yoruba governors for theft he became unpopular. When Babangida dissolved the election of Adamu Chiroma and Shehu ‘Yar Adua as flag-bearers of NRC and SDP the decision was hailed as patriotic and courageous even though it led to an extension of military dictatorship. When the same man annulled Abiola’s election it was a travesty of democracy. The list is too long to go through.
[b]
As a result of these two characteristics, the Yoruba have tended to be received by all other groups in Nigeria with one sentiment: mistrust. The Igbo people believe to this day that the Yoruba led them into the war pretending to be with them and dumped them at the last moment. During the Second Republic, a grand alliance of four opposition parties capable of winning power from the NPN achieved nothing when it became clear that for the Yoruba the issue was not one of supplanting a conservative government and installing a progressive one, but of securing the presidency for a Yoruba candidate – Chief Awolowo.

NADECO, whose members had been strident opponents of Abiola branding him Babangida’s boy, suddenly look up June 12 and tribalised the cause. Subsequent to Abiola’s death, the memorandum NADECO submitted to the Government of Abdulsalam Abubakar was such a comical exercise in vain hallucination and naïve optimism that one wonders if those that drafted it were in complete possession of their mental faculties. [/b]

The Yoruba have become Nigeria’s wailing tribe, detaching themselves from the rest of the country and alienating the people they hope to rule; abusing other Nigerians through their vociferous media and hoping for votes from the same Nigerians on ballot day.

The lesson in all this is that the Igbo, Yoruba and all Nigerians must learn by now that no one can win a national election on a tribal platform. Those clamoring to join Ojukwu’s Igbo party, and those attempting to transform Afenifere/NADECO into a tribal party are heading for a resounding defeat at the polls.

The presidency can, and perhaps should, move to the south. But it will be to a southerner who contests on the platform of Nigeria, not of his tribe. A southerner committed to the system, to the rule of law and to the principles of peace, justice, equity and freedom, not of avenging real or imagined wrongs; a Southerner like Chief Abiola who stands the chance of winning. 

This is an opportunity to make (or unmake) history. But, sadly, it is being thrown away once more in what may be the commencement of a new cycle of defeat, frustration and wailing.   

This article is enough to disqualify this man for the job in a civilized nation. How can the southerners get a fair share of his governance when he is already prejudiced?

Nwanne m Aloy! I am as disgusted as you are.
This article spell TRIBALISM!!!!!
This man is not qualified to be a CBN governor!
How then can we move forward? Northerners have an inferiority complex that guides their actions.
My Joy is that their time is almost up but they do not know.

Northern Nigerians are a very UNITED people. We look at the people in the north and fail to realise that there are several unique tribes of which the largest in numbers should be the Hausas, the Kanuris and the Fulanis.

The Fulanis and the Hausas fought for years before the Hausas were conquered. Yet when the Fulanis realised they could not dominate the Hausas for lack of numbers, they integrated into the Hausa royal families and now the average Fulani lives side-by-side the Hausa. None superior, none inferior. Even after the British came and left they still remained as one.

Look at the Binis and the Lagosians. The Binis would have continued to oppress the Lagosians till eternity if not that they called in the British to enter into neo-colonialism. The southerners will always remember that we are not one, circumstances brought us together therefore they'll seek every means to disintegrate into the most minute groups.

The Kanuris and the Hausa/Fulanis are also very distinct and different people. The Kanuris in the East, the Hausas in the Central and the Fulanis to the west. But when they do things, It's together. Most of us do not even know how different these people are because of their oneness.


When the British came here, they saw the Fulani system of government was what was best for Nigeria and most of their colonies and in as much as they tried to educate us in their own western system, and break down the Northern educational system, at the end of the day they realised that the Fulanis were far ahead in terms of politics. As far as the 1800's, Uthman bin Fodee (Usman dan Fodio) had written several books on how to conquer and rule, govern and manage people. We down here were still living mostly on trial and error.


Look at people who are still fighting over who really owns Warri and all sorts of tribal trivialities.

Disunity, therefore we are not ready. Funny enough the North will give you power in order to continue ruling. They work with a handbook.

wbb

Jarus:

SANUSI LAMIDO SANUSI( now CBN governor) answers your question in this article he wrote around 1999/2000.

The Igbos, The Yoruba and History
By Sanusi Lamido Sanusi

sanusis@ubaplc.com



Every moment in life is a moment of history. Every present action immediately becomes past and roles played today will be remembered tomorrow with pride or shame, satisfaction or regret. Yet some moments are clearly more momentous than others, and represent far greater opportunities and dangers. These are often moments of crisis, a word which in its Japanese form is written with two characters, the one representing danger, the other opportunity.

The deaths of ‘Yar Adua, Abacha and Abiola plunged Nigeria into a crisis. That is, a period portending great danger for the corporate body called Nigeria as well as near limitless opportunities for progress, for a departure from the tension, the stagnation, the corruption and the injustices associated with the dark period known as the Abacha days. For the leaders of Southern Nigeria and, in particular, the two dominant tribes, the Igbo and Yoruba, it represented an opportunity once more to make a move for the presidency, and shift power (whatever that means) [b]away from the North which has come to be portrayed as the source of all the problems of the nation. [/b]The desire to win over power is the natural goal of political activists. The use of propaganda, blackmail, lies, bribery, deception, even threats of secession has been the hallmark of many an astute political strategy aimed at attaining set goals. Yet the choice of which method is appropriate to a specific polity in a specific historical context is a difficult one, requiring a high sense of perception, a knowledge of history, a natural intelligence and political sophistication. In choosing the path of black-mail and ethnocentric diatribe, the leaders of the South have once more displayed to the world their political naivete, and set the stage for another defeat that may see them remaining in opposition for the next four years.

One marvels at the never-ending cycle which sees Southern Politicians play into the hands of their northern counterparts. For a people who take pride in the depth of their Western Education and who have often expressed contempt for the “backwardness” and “illiteracy” of their northern brothers, southern politicians have presented to the world the ever-present proof that “book – knowledge” and intelligence are not necessarily correlated. One recalls Chief Awolowo’s description of Shagari as a “glorified Grade Two Teacher”. It was missing on Awolowo’ that the more contemptible the adjectives he used to describe Shagari, the lower he sank in the eyes of perceptive watchers, as the man he was describing had clearly shown that he was better by defeating him in a race both participated in from start to finish.

Western Liberal Democracy is a product of the nation-state. It takes as given, the corporate existence of the state and establishes institutions and the rule of law such as to ensure that the system, rather than an individual, is relied upon for safeguarding individual rights and societal values. To the extent that Nigerians have decided to pursue the path of the Western Nations (or at least those in power have decided that this is the way to go) participants would do well to bear this fact in mind. A democratic system is primarily about Institutions and the rule of law. It is not about individuals. We need a system, based on laws and a constitution agreed upon by all, that guarantees each and every Nigerian wherever he is from the right to full political participation and unfettered expression. A system that protects each and every one of us from the tyranny of an individual. A system in which our dignity and liberty are not protected only when the president comes from our own part of the country.

Abacha was a corrupt, ruthless dictator – period. Where he was from is immaterial. All Nigerians, Northerners and Southerners, Muslim and Christians, suffered from the corruption and injustices of his regime with the exception of a small band of family members, sycophants and traitors who joined him in looting the coffers of our nation. Those who stood against his tyranny and spoke out for freedom and equity suffered: among them Obasanjo, Yar Adua, Abiola, Rimi, Ige, Lamido, Nwakwo and Ken Sarowiwa. A cursory look at the list of those detained, framed, murdered, lied against, pauperized and otherwise abused in the last five years will prove to honest persons that Abacha was no respecter of region or religion and that he represented the least form of humanity degenerating dangerously close to bestiality, which is why, like Pharaoh, he is remembered today for his evil rather than his good, for no good of his can obviate the memory, etched in the individual and collective consciousness of Nigerians, of what it is like to live in an environment of terror, not knowing who next will be struck with impunity.

In pretending that these are not the issues, in teaching their followers to oppose Abacha not for his corruption, greed and cruelty but for his ethnic origins, in portraying the annulment of the June, 1993 election as an act against the Yoruba, in pretending that Abiola’s death in prison was in some way different from ‘Yar Adua’s death in prison, in claiming that the solution to this country’s predicament lies in changing the ethnicity of the president and producing a “Southern” President: in all this, the political leaders of the South have displayed the highest degree of naivete, the lowest sense of responsibility and the crudest application of their intellectual faculties. Worse than all this, they have played straight into the hands of their political rivals, the Northern Politicians.

The history of Nigeria since independence is too recent, too many real-life participants are still alive, for it to be rewritten with impunity as a political strategy. It was only in the 1960’s that the Nigerian Army’s officer corps was predominated by officers of Igbo extraction. It was only in 1966 that a group of such officers decided to destroy the peace of this nation and wage a war against other tribal groups. That was when the five majors decided to eliminate the Premiers of the North and West while letting the Igbo Premier go scot-free, to assassinate the Prime Minister who was a northerner after having advised the Igbo president to flee and letting the Igbo Senate leader go scot-free. To execute the Minister of Finance who was from the Mid-West; to execute the most senior military officers from the North and the West while letting the most senior military officer and army commander who was Igbo go scot-free. Not one prominent Igbo leader, military or civilian was touched . All the prominent civilian and military leaders from other regions were executed. The Igbo senate leader, acting for the Igbo president in his absence was, by the constitution, mandated to swear - in the most senior NPC minister as Prime minister. He did not. Instead, having consulted his Igbo President, and the president alone, he handed over power to the Igbo GOC in flagrant disregard for the provisions of the constitution. The speech of Nzeogwu, the magazines and newspapers published in the six months of the Ironsi government, his declaration of a unitary state, the provocation of northerners by Igbo traders who laughed at them in Sabon Gari markets, all of these are too recent, too well-documented to be rewritten.

The Igbo people were responsible for the first military coup in this country; They were responsible for the first attempt at ethnic cleansing; They were responsible for the first violation of constitutionally laid down succession procedures; they were responsible for the destruction of the federation and the creation of the unitary system of which they are now victims (since the initial objective was for the Igbos to dominate the other groups); they were responsible for Nigeria’s first civil war.

It makes no sense, in the face of these facts, repeat facts, for the Igbos to shed tears today and claim to have always been an aggrieved party. It will convince no one. Granted, the Igbo people as a whole must not be punished for the action of some. Granted, there can never be full reconciliation without justice and equity. Granted, the Igbo people, like all Nigerians, have the right to fight against perceived injustices. The way to do this is by integration into the country, by joining broad-based parties and establishing a system that guarantees all individuals and groups their rights and liberty. It is not by crying Biafra again. It not by following the man who led them to defeat and ran away to come back later and enjoy his wealth. The Igbos have always had alliances with other parts of the country. The astute political strategy is to go into one now. Tribalism will lead to defeat, once more, and even more humiliation.

As for the Yoruba, they have not been known to call for secession or the break-up of the country until recently in the aftermath of the June 12 crisis and Abiola’s death. One may not agree entirely with their description of themselves as peaceful people, but they clearly are a peace –preferring people, consistent with their well-known nature of seeking maximum enjoyment from life at minimal personal cost. The Yoruba instinctively know that more can be gained in peacetime than in war. Being business people, they have an acute sense of the risks of war and its implication in terms of destruction of accumulated wealth and property.

Yet in spite of this, the Yoruba have in their politics displayed two consistent streaks that have consistently kept them in opposition and cost them opportunities for coming to power. The first is vanity – a dangerous state of self-delusion borne of imagined intellectual and academic superiority over opponents and rivals alike. Thus, Yoruba politicians have consistently underestimated their northern opponents who thrive on wily intrigues and far-sighted manipulation of the political process. They have also assumed to their peril that other southern tribes would naturally acquiesce to their leadership and be lured into a southern alliance whose objective is to help secure supremacy and power for the south – west. Even the so-called Oduduwa republic assumes that the people of the former mid-west who had fought for an independent region in the sixties will willingly resubmit themselves to Yoruba domination. This is all in addition to the recent utterances of Afenifere calling for excision of the Yoruba of the north from Fulani domination, a call dismissed by a prominent northern Yoruba leader, Sunday Awoniyi, for its banality and presumptuousness.

The second streak is self-centredness. Of all the tribes in Nigeria who sometimes fight for parochial reasons, the Yoruba are the only group who clearly believe they are Nigeria. When they have what they want, Nigeria is good. Otherwise it is bad. When a Yoruba candidate loses an election (like Awolowo did in 1979 and 1983) it is rigging. When he wins (like Abiola in 1993) it is a landslide victory in a free-and-fair election. When Buhari overthrew a democratically elected and sworn-in government headed by Shagari, he was hailed as a reformer who came to fight corruption. When his tribunals jailed ‘progressive’ Yoruba governors for theft he became unpopular. When Babangida dissolved the election of Adamu Chiroma and Shehu ‘Yar Adua as flag-bearers of NRC and SDP the decision was hailed as patriotic and courageous even though it led to an extension of military dictatorship. When the same man annulled Abiola’s election it was a travesty of democracy. The list is too long to go through.

As a result of these two characteristics, the Yoruba have tended to be received by all other groups in Nigeria with one sentiment: mistrust. The Igbo people believe to this day that the Yoruba led them into the war pretending to be with them and dumped them at the last moment. During the Second Republic, a grand alliance of four opposition parties capable of winning power from the NPN achieved nothing when it became clear that for the Yoruba the issue was not one of supplanting a conservative government and installing a progressive one, but of securing the presidency for a Yoruba candidate – Chief Awolowo.

NADECO, whose members had been strident opponents of Abiola branding him Babangida’s boy, suddenly look up June 12 and tribalised the cause. Subsequent to Abiola’s death, the memorandum NADECO submitted to the Government of Abdulsalam Abubakar was such a comical exercise in vain hallucination and naïve optimism that one wonders if those that drafted it were in complete possession of their mental faculties.

The Yoruba have become Nigeria’s wailing tribe, detaching themselves from the rest of the country and alienating the people they hope to rule; abusing other Nigerians through their vociferous media and hoping for votes from the same Nigerians on ballot day.

The lesson in all this is that the Igbo, Yoruba and all Nigerians must learn by now that no one can win a national election on a tribal platform. Those clamoring to join Ojukwu’s Igbo party, and those attempting to transform Afenifere/NADECO into a tribal party are heading for a resounding defeat at the polls.

The presidency can, and perhaps should, move to the south. But it will be to a southerner who contests on the platform of Nigeria, not of his tribe. A southerner committed to the system, to the rule of law and to the principles of peace, justice, equity and freedom, not of avenging real or imagined wrongs; a Southerner like Chief Abiola who stands the chance of winning.

This is an opportunity to make (or unmake) history. But, sadly, it is being thrown away once more in what may be the commencement of a new cycle of defeat, frustration and wailing.

Nonsense!

I cannot believe the trash spewed from this guys mouth. He is just another Northern hegemonist. His speech is full of divisive and incendiary statements.

Not that he is factually incorrect per se (it is true that Igbos favoured a Unitary system of Government  ), but the language used is highly inflammatory and prejudiced. Whilst he uses 'politically correct' speak to qualify the North, his jaundiced approach to describing the history of the Igbo and Yoruba in Nigeria show him to be highly unsuitable for the post of CBN Governor.

Whilst pointing out differences and digging up old wounds between Yoruba, Igbo and their surrounding minorities, he utters not a word about the divisions within the Northern camp, divisions in the middle-belt, and the incognizant usurpation of Hausa power by the Fulani who control Hausa society absolutely.

That a Yoruba man like Jarus could find sense in his words (& most Northern positions) indicates that religion is an all encompassing tool and the most effective weapon of Imperialism.

This Sanusi Lamido guy did not set out to compare 3 different regions, he was out to tell two other regions that are always complaining about what is always holding them back.

Even if you don't like the language, but you did mention that he made some relevant points. I can see why one person should see some relevant points yet not want another to make sense of the article.

The man was telling us the crude truth.

Most southern Nigerian cultures operate in tiny societies. It won't work in today's world.

We need to change.