The 1958 Willinks Commission Report that explains Eastern minorities (South-South) rift with Ndi Igbo.

THE FOLLOWING ARE EXCERPTS FROM THE REPORT OF THE COMMISSION APPOINTED TO “ENQUIRE INTO THE FEARS OF MINORITIES AND THE MEANS OF ALLAYING THEM”, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS “THE WILLINK COMMISSION REPORT OF JULY 1958”
THE HISTORICAL AND POLITICAL BACKGROUND.

1. “More than 98% of people who inhabit this area (the ‘Igbo Plateau’ of the Eastern region) are Igbo and speak one language, though of course with certain differences of dialect. There are nearly five million of them and they are too many for the soil to support: they are vigorous and intelligent and have pushed outward in every direction, seeking a livelihood by trade or in service in the surrounding areas of the Eastern Region, in the Western Region, in the North and outside Nigeria. They are no more popular with their neighbours than is usual in the case of an energetic and expanding people whose neighbours have a more leisurely outlook on life.”

2. “Though there has been no great kingdom or indigenous culture in the Eastern Region, the coastal chiefs grew on their trade with the (European merchant) ships and they adopted customs, clothing and housing more advanced than those of the peoples of the interior on whom they had at first preyed for slaves. They came during the 19th Century to regard the people of the interior as backward and ignorant, and it was therefore a blow to their pride, as well as to their pockets, when the Ibos began to push outwards into the surrounding fringe of the country and particularly into the Calabar area, to take up land, to grow rich, to own houses and lorries and occupy posts in public services and in the services of large trading firms.”
“It was among the Igbos, formerly despised by the people of Calabar as source of slaves and as a backward people of the interior, now feared and disliked as energetic and educated, that the first political party formed.”

3. “It is important to remember that of this (Ogoja) Province’s 1,082,000 inhabitants, 723,000 are Ibos, almost entirely in Abakaliki and Afikpo (Divisions), while the census classifies 350,000 as “Other Nigerian Tribes.”

4. The Rivers Province …includes the two divisions of Brass and Degema, both overwhelmingly Ijaw, and the Ogoni Division. The former Rivers Division also includes over 300,000 Ibos of whom 250,000 are in Ahoada Division and 45,000 in Port Harcourt. Port Harcourt is a town of recent growth and of rapidly increasing importance; it is built on land that blonged originally to an outlying branch of the Ibo tribe, the Diobus, but is largely inhabited by the Ibos from the interior who have come to trade or seek employment….Of the total 747,000 in the Rivers province, 305,000 are Igbos, 240,000 are Ijaws and 156,000 are Ogonis.”

5. “The strip to the south of the Igbo block, is physically, divided by a block of Igbo territory, tipped by the important Igbo town of Port Harcourt and tribally divided between the Ijaws and the Ogonis.”

6. “In the whole of this non-Igbo area there is present in varying degree some fear of being over-run, commercially and politically, by the Igbos….. if Ahoada and Port Harcourt, which are really Igbo, are considered with the solid centre of Ibo population, there are 54 seats for the Ibo area and 30 for COR (Calabar, Ogoja and Rivers) in (Eastern Regional House of Assembly).”

THE FEARS AND GRIEVANCES OF MINORITIES:
7. “It was suggested (by non-Igbo petitioners) that it was the deliberate object of the Ibo majority in the Region to fill every post with Ibos (in public post and services).….when, however we came to consider specific complaints about the composition of public bodies, we found them in many cases exaggerated or unreasonable.”

8. “The allegation was put forward by counsel (to petitioners) that the Judiciary (when not European) was predominantly Igbo, with the implication that this caused fear among those who are not Ibos. But it was clearly stated in evidence by Dr. Udoma, the leader of UNIP, that no occasion could be adduced of the judiciary acting with partiality. The fact is that the legal profession is largely Igbos and the reasons for this do not seem to be Government action. It is therefore inevitable that there should be an Igbo preponderance among Judges and Magistrates. Further, it is the declared policy of Government that the Judiciary should be federal and this does not indicate a desire to control it. Again, the operation and composition of Public Service Commission here, as in the West, appeared to us in no way open to reproach.”

9. “In the Police, which in this region alone is wholly Federal, the number of Ibos in the higher appointments is not out of proportion to the Ibos in the region. The force is now federally controlled and although there are a large number of Ibos in the lower ranks, this is due to the fact that it has for long been a tradition among the Ibos to offer themselves for recruitment in this force in far greater numbers than any other tribe.”

10. “we noted that in five years, 1952 – 1957, from a total of 412 secondary scholarships, 216 were awarded to persons living in the COR areas, while the figures for post-secondary scholarships were 211 out of 623. The latter is about the right proportion of one-third, the former considerably in excess. It was suggested that scholarships awarded to non-Ibos were of an inferior kind and that the best scholarships went to Ibos, but we were, unable to see that this claim held any validity. On the evidence before us, we conclude that the allegations of discriminations in the matter of scholarships are unjustified.”

11. “It was further suggested that loans by the Eastern Regional Finance Corporation, the Eastern Region Development Board, and the Eastern Region Development Corporation were made with some degree of preference to Ibos. It did appear that most of the loans made by these bodies were to Ibos, but that is not to say that this was necessarily improper. Ibos constitute two thirds of the population of the region and have a bigger share of financial and commercial responsibility than their numbers warrant.”

12. “That there should be modern streetlight in Onitsha, and not Calabar, was also quoted as example of discrimination; it proved however that Onitsha Urban District Council had financed this measure from their own resources.”

13. “The question of land was repeatedly raised, it being resented by the Efiks and Ibibios that the Igbos should acquire land at all in their territory while the methods by which it was obtained were also questioned. There is no doubt that on the Igbo Plateau there is insufficient land for the people and the Igbos are thrusting outwards where possible they acquire land and use it either for cultivation or building…..This is a matter which will require legislation sooner or later and it will be delicate to handle, but the economic process is in itself healthy and we had little sympathy with a witness who remarked that there is much undeveloped land in the district and he was anxious that it should not fall into the hand of the Igbos… We believe that Governments in Nigeria should be careful not to try to protect minorities by introducing measures that would restrict development....”

Thank you Gowon for listening to the minorities in the South East.

The British should have created states for the minorities in the Eastern region, Western region and Northern region.

DubaiLandLord:
Ibo

Swears.
Tell me something about the west

DubaiLandLord:
Thank you Gowon for listening to the minorities in the South East.

The British should have created states for the minorities in the Eastern region, Western region and Northern region.

And how developed are they today.
In Uyo, starting back then till this very, they refused (don't sell) lands to Igbo's -whats the consequence, the today's level of underdevelopment there.
No hate here I do not mean infrastructural development, you get the consequence now?

DubaiLandLord:
Thank you Gowon for listening to the minorities in the South East.

The British should have created states for the minorities in the Eastern region, Western region and Northern region.

Gowon gave them states with one hand but stole all their resources with the other hand

gidgiddy:


Gowon gave them states with one hand but stole all their resources with the other hand

Maybe we Fulanis is better than the Igbos.
Hw good everyone faring now

AfonjaFula:


And how developed are they today.
In Uyo, starting back then till this very, they refused (don't sell) lands to Igbo's -whats the consequence, the today's level of underdevelopment there.
No hate here I do not mean infrastructural development, you get the consequence now?

Almost every part of Nigeria is underdevelop.

DubaiLandLord:
Almost every part of Nigeria is underdevelop.

Do you know why?
Because hate was intensified and competition died with the death of regional government.

Removing Igbo from the background remains ultimate.

gidgiddy:


Gowon gave them states with one hand but stole all their resources with the other hand

The Southerners should have rejected the total control of the petroleum sector by the FG. They should have insist on the arrangement we had before independence.

But is now in the past sha, we need to work out away to get things right.

AfonjaFula:


Do you know why?
Because hate was intensified and competition died with the death of regional government.

Removing Igbo from the background remains ultimate.

Johnson Thomas Umunakwe Aguyi Ironsi killed the regional government.

Nigeria have been treating Ibos fairly.

Someone bring out the report for western region abeg let's compare

Igbos were fair to south south but what did we get ...they stole Igbo oil that's part of the state created for them and marginalized igbos ...ijaws mostly ... obigbo , egebema ndoni, etche and omuma produce 70% of rivers oil ogoni produce 20% andoni opobo ,bonny and the belle ( ijaw ) produce the rest

But obigbo , egebema ndoni, etche and omuma are among the least developed area in rivers State ...

But ijaws have mouth to talk about marginalization in the old eastern region even when an independent body said nothing of such ?

The next generation of Igbo leaders need to put igbos first

DubaiLandLord:
Johnson Thomas Umunakwe Aguyi Ironsi killed the regional government.

Yes. How about the Igbo's, who and who removed Igbo from the background. Who introduced hate and tribalism. Who prior to all this introduced fear of dominance and if concentrated to the East, which was inexistent

mrvitalis:
Someone bring out the report for western region abeg let's compare

Igbos were fair to south south but what did we get ...they stole Igbo oil that's part of the state created for them and marginalized igbos ...ijaws mostly ... obigbo , egebema ndoni, etche and omuma produce 70% of rivers oil ogoni produce 20% andoni opobo ,bonny and the belle ( ijaw ) produce the rest

But obigbo , egebema ndoni, etche and omuma are among the least developed area in rivers State ...

But ijaws have mouth to talk about marginalization in the old eastern region even when an independent body said nothing of such ?

The next generation of Igbo leaders need to put igbos first

mrvitalis:
Someone bring out the report for western region abeg let's compare

Igbos were fair to south south but what did we get ...they stole Igbo oil that's part of the state created for them and marginalized igbos ...ijaws mostly ... obigbo , egebema ndoni, etche and omuma produce 70% of rivers oil ogoni produce 20% andoni opobo ,bonny and the belle ( ijaw ) produce the rest

But obigbo , egebema ndoni, etche and omuma are among the least developed area in rivers State ...

But ijaws have mouth to talk about marginalization in the old eastern region even when an independent body said nothing of such ?

The next generation of Igbo leaders need to put igbos first

Now, they are so enjoying like UAE.
You want prove?

DubaiLandLord:
[.

Nigeria have been treating Ibos fairly.

Your last modified, can you expound?

COMMENT BY revolt

well one thing remains certain.... the so called igbo land grabbing was actually igbos buying land with their money. I have never seen or heard of any official complaint by ANY of your leaders of, how Michael okpara or zik forcefully took your lands and gave to igbo. Our fathers bought all their lands ...They didn't get them as gifts. Your fathers sold land and became envious at the sucesses of the igbos and when the opportunity came..they happily sided with the north..naturally the retreating biafran army would vent anger when informants from ogoni WHOM HAVE ALWAYS BEEN THEIR KITH AND KIN, whom married a lot of our daughters vice versa would rather go giving info to the northern back military to destroy and kill biafran forces.

AfonjaFula:


Your last modified, can you expound?

Have you ever heard of any Ibo Governor complaining he is not paid at the end of the month?

In less than 10 years after the civil war, an Ibo man became the Vice President of Nigeria.

During GEJ tenure, Ibos never complained of been marginalised

http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/jonathan-igbos-remain-pillar-of-my-govt/160312/

You guys are only pained you lost out in the centre.

Ibos are not been denied jobs in Federal parasatals, Ibos are living and working freely all over Nigeria etc

Ibos are not been marginalise in any way.

https://www.nairaland.com/745731/yoruba-marginalization-elders-met-jonathan#9018765

This is a thread about Yorubas complaining to GEJ about the way he was marginalising the South West.

Check your Ibo brothers comment on the thread.

If Nigeria wants to not only survive as a country, but equally thrive and prosper, it just has to overcome this insane fear of Igbo ‘domination’! There’s a negative attitude towards Igbos from certain ethnicities in Nigeria that manifests in different forms....from disdain to outright hatred!

Can any neutral reading the OP and seeing what all this envy, bile and hate has cost the Igbo race honestly say we aren’t justified in our agitation!?

DubaiLandLord:
Johnson Thomas Umunakwe Aguyi Ironsi killed the regional government.

Nigeria have been treating Ibos fairly.

But you are the one thanking Gowon for creating states. At least, the 4 Regions controlled their resources during Ironsi's time

Then Gowon came and started creating states. What Gowon didnt tell the so called minorities was that the states would not control their resources. So Gowon transferred control of resources to the Federal government then gave them states that would be powerless

Till today, they are still crying for restructuring and resource control

gidgiddy:


But you are the one thanking Gowon for creating states. At least, the 4 Regions controlled their resources during Ironsi's time

Then Gowon came and started creating states. What Gowon didnt tell the so called minorities was that the states would not control their resources. So Gowon transferred control of resources to the Federal government then gave them states that would be powerless

Till today, they are still crying for restructuring and resource control

Make we leave long talk, Ironsi killed the regions(States).

Without Aguyi Ironsi decree, Rivers and Cross River could have been sharing the oil revenue 50/50.

DubaiLandLord:
Make we leave long talk, Ironsi killed the regions(States).

Without Aguyi Ironsi decree, Rivers and Cross River could have been sharing the oil revenue 50/50.

Dude, why do you like lying? Or is this part of the ‘lying to the unbeliever is allowed in our religion’ thing, that allows you lot to tell bold-faced lies against Igbos and yet still be able to go to bed and sleep soundly with both eyes closed!?

Ironsi was the architect of the unification decree no doubt, but this was to unite the military administrators of the 4 regions under the command and control of Dodan Barracks, since it was a military regime and the regions couldn’t possibly have the level of administrative independence they had under civilian rule.

Ironsi DID NOT TOUCH THE FISCAL ARRANGEMENT IN PLACE WHEREBY REGIONS CONTROLLED THEIR OWN RESOURCES AND REMITED 50% TO THE CENTRE! Ironsi DID NOT TOUCH THE 4 REGIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE FEDERATION, WHICH WAS STILL IN PLACE UNTIL THE DAY HE DIED!

The two key aspects of Nigerias’ federal makeup mentioned above were touched and tampered with by the subsequent Gowon administration! And considering the agreement he reached with Ojukwu at Aburi was thrown in the thrash can the moment he returned back to Nigeria, we can safely deduce he definitely wasn’t the one in charge, but was the puppet on strings being pulled by shadowy forces....the real OWNERS OF NIGERIA!

I even heard the unification decree wasn’t gazetted into law even up until the time Ironsi was murdered! Don’t know how true this is though!

If you still claim Ironsi altered the pre-66 fiscal arrangement between the regions and the centre, could you provide links and references to support your claim!?

IGBOSON1:
If Nigeria wants to not only survive as a country, but equally thrive and prosper, it just has to overcome this insane fear of Igbo ‘domination’! There’s a negative attitude towards Igbos from certain ethnicities in Nigeria that manifests in different forms....from disdain to outright hatred!

Can any neutral reading the OP and seeing what all this envy, bile and hate has cost the Igbo race honestly say we aren’t justified in our agitation!?

Thats all of their mistake, that fear.

gidgiddy:


But you are the one thanking Gowon for creating states. At least, the 4 Regions controlled their resources during Ironsi's time

Then Gowon came and started creating states. What Gowon didnt tell the so called minorities was that the states would not control their resources. So Gowon transferred control of resources to the Federal government then gave them states that would be powerless

Till today, they are still crying for restructuring and resource control

Absolutely. I see sense in what you saying.
The states were created just to spike the Igbos, but tue minorities mumurism didn't allow them see that.