The Politics of Biafra and Future of Nigeria


Book Description

The Politics of Biafra and Future of Nigeria is a reflection on the importance of history in addressing present realities and the future of coexistance of Nigeria’s multi ethnic society. It analyses the ideological struggles and conflict in Biafra during the war with Nigeria from 1967-1970, the impact of the war and the relevance of those struggles to the current agitations for a new state of Biafra. In this historical and analytical work, the author observes that nearly fifty years after the end of the Nigerian-Biafra war in 1970, Nigeria is still grappling with the Biafran dilemma. No matter its pretensions, Nigeria will at some point have to reform its present pseudo federal arrangement to create a more inclusive, equitable and proper federal structure. If not, the country will continue to face epileptic developmental thrusts, militancy in the Niger Delta and a ruinous intensifying clamour for self-determination by disadvantaged ethnic groups, especially the Igbo. The author argues that in the world, in the era of technology inspired globalisation, it is impossible to hold an unwilling people hostage in any country without negative consequences. He makes a case for a new order in Nigeria, expressing the view that Nigeria is caught in a vicious circle of graft and instability and nothing will change until Nigeria finds the proper foundational matrix to galvanise the talents and resources of the people and create a productive economy.




The Future of Nigeria


Book Description

Ever since the British created Nigeria in 1914 without regard to the cultural differences and incompatibility of the people in the northern and southern protectorates, the nation has been wracked by problems. The Nigerian civil war fought from 1967 to 1970 and the agitation for restructuring of the political system are just a few examples of the violence that has crippled the nation. With the Nigerian people issuing a sustained call for change, it’s clear that they are not satisfied with the current system of government. So far, leaders have not responded to the discontent, but they’d be well served by holding a referendum to decide what kind of political system to adopt. The referendum must be conducted if Nigeria has any chance of stepping away from the precipice. With a plebiscite, the government would not only make headway on overcoming the problems but regain the trust of its people under an acceptable system of government and reposition the country with clear direction. If Nigerians don’t continue to demand change – and if leaders don’t pay attention to them – the country will continue to be plagued by discontent, ethnicism, disunity, unpatriotism and nepotism, leading to balkanization of Nigeria. This book – an updated version of Nigeria on the Precipice – highlights topics such as: • how minerals and other natural resources across Nigeria can support federalism; • why leaders continue to seek ethnic gains at the expense of national interest; • why militancy, self-determination have emerged as a sign of discontent.




The Politics of Biafra: And the Future of Nigeria


Book Description

The Politics of Biafra is a reflection on the importance of history in addressing present realities and the future co-existence of Nigeria's multi ethnic society. It analyzes the ideological struggles and conflict in Biafra during the war with Nigeria from 1967-1970, the impact of the war and the relevance of those struggles to the current agitations for a new state of Biafra. In this historical and analytical work, the author observes that nearly fifty years after the end of the Nigeria-Biafra war in 1970, Nigeria remains confronted with the Biafra dilemma. No matter its pretensions, Nigeria will at some point have to reform its present pseudo federal arrangement to create a more inclusive, equitable and proper federal structure. If not, the country will continue to face epileptic developmental thrusts, militancy in the Niger Delta and a ruinous intensifying clamor for self-determination by disadvantaged ethnic groups, especially the Igbo. Appendix - Three part essay by Professor Chukwuma Soludo.




Reflections on the Nigerian Civil War


Book Description

A Comment on the First Edition: THE SUNDAY TIMES (Lagos) "The most unimpassioned account, to date, of the Nigerian civil War...Reflections is a book for any shelf..."




A History of the Republic of Biafra


Book Description

The Republic of Biafra lasted for less than three years, but the war over its secession would contort Nigeria for decades to come. Samuel Fury Childs Daly examines the history of the Nigerian Civil War and its aftermath from an uncommon vantage point – the courtroom. Wartime Biafra was glutted with firearms, wracked by famine, and administered by a government that buckled under the weight of the conflict. In these dangerous conditions, many people survived by engaging in fraud, extortion, and armed violence. When the fighting ended in 1970, these survival tactics endured, even though Biafra itself disappeared from the map. Based on research using an original archive of legal records and oral histories, Daly catalogues how people navigated conditions of extreme hardship on the war front, and shows how the conditions of the Nigerian Civil War paved the way for the country's long experience of crime that was to follow.




The Future That Vanished


Book Description

In Colonial Africa, a British Commodore in command of the newly formed Royal Nigerian Navy in the late 50s recognizes the future potential of a young man recruited as a cadet and proceeds to lay down a growth plan for him. The story recounts the making of a career naval officer in the prestigious Royal Naval College in England and in the Indian Navy as the young man acquits himself honorably by rising to expectations. However, politically motivated events interrupt the promising future. A summary of the political history of Nigeria enables the reader to understand the events that led to the secession of Biafra. The authors war diary is used to narrate the part played by the Biafra Navy during the civil war that ensued and after it was all over.




The Nigeria-Biafra War


Book Description

"The papers in this book originated from a conference that examined the Nigeria-Biafra War (1967-70) focusing primarily on the Biafran side of that war organized at Marquette University in 2009"--Acknowledgements.




New Perspectives on the Nigeria-Biafra War


Book Description

New Perspectives on the Nigeria-Biafra War: No Victor, No Vanquished analyzes the continued impact of the Nigeria-Biafra war on the Igbo, the failure of the reconstruction and reconciliation effort in the post-war period, and the politics of exclusion of the memory of the war in public discourse in Nigeria. Furthermore, New Perspectives on the Nigeria-Biafra War explores the resilience of the Igbo people and the different strategies they have employed to preserve the history and memory of Biafra. The contributors argue that the war had important consequences for the socio-political developments in the post-war period, ushering in two differing ideologies: a paternalistic ideology of “co-option” of the Igbo by the Nigerian state, under the false premise of ‘No Victor, No Vanquished,” and the Igbo commitment to self-preservation on the other.




The Nigeria-Biafra War, OAU and the Politics of Diplomatic Recognition of Biafra, 1967 – 1970


Book Description

A historical methodology of analysis that is thematic, chronological and descriptive was adopted in this study of the Nigeria - Biafra war of 1967 -1970 particular regarding the Organization of African Unity(OAU) and the Politics of Recognition given to Biafra during the Civil War. The focus of this book is to unearth the factors that propelled the four African states to declare support and accord de facto recognition to the Biafran regime against the OAU's position. The nature, dimension, significance and the implications of such recognition were also analyzed. The tittle of the work is not only interesting but inviting. It spans across the diverse disciplines of History, International Relations, Political Science and International Law. The results indicate as follows: (i) Diplomatic recognition of Biafra by four African state became an elixir to the prolongation of the Nigeria-Biafra war. (ii) The credibility of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) appeared severely tarnished given the contradictions inherent in its charter vis-a-vis the national interests and dispositions of some of its member nations. (iii) Nigeria’s insistence that the conflict was its internal affairs also presented another contradiction, as by so doing, Nigeria purported to be a judge in its own cause by way of adjudication and negotiations. (iv) The blockade and quarantine of Biafran territory meant to emasculate the economy and society of the secessionist enclave, inadvertently succeeded in galvanizing international sympathy for the Biafran cause; besides giving a lie to the aforementioned mantra of Nigeria’s internal affairs, as mentioned earlier. (v) Despite the enormous humanitarian question raised and sustained by the war, power politics and international realist perspective prevailed at the end.