December 31, 1964

The United Progressive Grand Alliance, based in the Nigerian south, called tonight for a conference to break up the Federation of Nigeria peacefully after a massive boycott of today's national elections by millions of its supporters.

The Alliance's statement cast a pall over the future of Nigeria —the most populous nation in Africa and the continent's most prominent democracy.

The boycott in almost all areas of the south threatened to split Nigeria in two.

Voting was normal only in the vast Moslem‐dominated Northern Region, whose Nigeria National Alliance was assured of victory in this first nationwide election since Nigeria became independent of Britain in 1960. More than 300 seats in Parliament were at stake.

The boycott was almost totally effective in the Eastern Region, whose Ibo tribesmen have long feared domination by the more numerous Moslem Hausas to the North. The Nigerian South consists of three regions —the Eastern, Mid‐West and Western. The Northern Region embraces the rest of the country, covering almost two‐thirds of the land area, and is the most populous.

There was virtually no voting in Enugu, the Eastern capital, and in Port Harcourt, also in the Eastern Region, where all polling stations were; destroyed by bands of the United Progressive Grand Alliance.

Almost all the metal sheeted1 polling booths In Ibadan, the Western Region capital, werei destroyed last night. Voting was, delayed until midday when a few booths were repaired and policeman and army patrols were called out to protect small knots of Yoruba tribesmen seeking to cast their ballots. A faction of the Yorubas is allied with the Northerners in the dominant Nigeria National Alliance.

In the Lagos suburb of Mushin, two men were shot and killed and a third wounded when the police opened fire on a mob attempting to batter a temporary polling station.

The United Progressive Grand Alliance's call for a conference to break up the federation heightened fears of Western diplomats and many Nigerians here that the, Eastern Region was on the brink of secession.

The Eastern Region's National Council of Nigerian Citizens forms the backbone of the United Progressive Grand Alliance, which is allied with the Opposition Action Group of the Western Region.

Tonight's announcement said that the Progressive Grand Alliance “would not accept any government based on the results of today's elections.”

The Prime Minister, Sir Abubaker Tafawa B'alewa, rejected last‐ditch Progressive Grand Alliance demands that the election be postponed because of alleged suppression of scores of its candidates attempting to run in the North.

The result of the elections was a victory for the Northern People's Congress, which won 162 of the 312 seats in the House of Representatives, whilst the NNA held a total of 198 seats. Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa was re-elected Prime Minister of Nigeria. However, the election was marked by manipulation and violence.

The danger of secession was first noted officially by President Nnamdi Azikiwe in a dawn broadcast to the nation three weeks ago.

Considered the “father” of Nigeria's independence movement, the former National Council of Nigerian Citizens Leader from the Eastern Region called for an end to rising campaign violence throughout the federation.

https://www.nytimes.com/1964/12/31/archives/key-nigeria-party-urges-a-breakup-seeks-parley-on-dissolution-after.html

nlfpmod, Mynd44, OAM4J

Not much has changed today. The patterns of old are still visible.

👉Bar the recent emergence of the OBIdients, there is still not much interest in the elections across the years.
👉The North and The South are still valid terms in Nigerian economic and political climate, with a lot of meanings and undertones.
👉The North experiences peaceful elections year after year. Most of the electoral violence is down South.
👉The East still exhibits an almost unanimous voting pattern (choosing to massively boycott then Vs choosing to vote a particular candidate now)
👉Northern Nigeria have always had the numbers. Always.
👉Electoral violence is synonymous with elections in Nigeria.
👉 Lagos probably exhibits the higher levels of electoral violence.
👉 Elections had always been a game for the elites. The opinion of the masses are secondary.
👉 Call it Biafra, Oduduwa Nation, or whatever name it bore or choose to bear, Nigeria always had to contend with agitations.

This is for those who LIE against Ojukwu saying that he single-handedly declared secession from Nigeria in 1967.
Apparently the political events in Nigeria as of 1964 (THREE YEARS PRIOR) already headed things in that direction.
BTW not much has changed since then.

onumadu:
This is for those who LIE against Ojukwu saying that he single-handedly declared secession from Nigeria in 1967.
Apparently the political events in Nigeria as of 1964 (THREE YEARS PRIOR) already headed things in that direction.
BTW not much has changed since then.

Exactly. I was quite surprised to see foundations of what we experience today in those years.

It was not a great idea to outlaw History from our curriculum. Easier to solve problems when the root cause is known.

DesChyko:


Exactly. I was quite surprised to see foundations of what we experience today in those years.

It was not a great idea to outlaw History from our curriculum. Easier to solve problems when the root cause is known.

Those who outlawed History from curriculum knew exactly what they were doing.
Somehow they think that they can keep Nigeria together by force or lies.
Nothing keeps a country together like truth and justice.

Nothing has changed except that millions have died and many more will die before the incompatible contraption disintegrates.
Just 4years after independence, calls for disintegration had started renting the air. It's obvious Nigeria was never meant to be.

Yujin:
Nothing has changed except that millions have died and many more will die before the incompatible contraption disintegrates.
Just 4years after independence, calls for disintegration had started renting the air. It's obvious Nigeria was never meant to be.

JUST FOUR (4) YEARS AFTER INDEPENDENCE!
How could a country waste six decades going round in circles?

Hm