History of Nigeria has a lot of dark pages. Dramatic changes go far back to the British colonial rule. The tussle for the creation of states in Nigeria started from there as many people believed that they did not get enough land. Still, it`s a history of States in Nigeria. Who managed to create the current map of the states and how minority problems have been settling for all these years?
In the 19th century, the British Empire started to conquer parts of Nigeria and establish control and authority over the conquered regions. These areas were called Protectorates. These protectorates were the Northern Protectorates, Oil River and Lagos. Later, in 1914, these protectorates were amalgamated, which provided the birth of the new country – Nigeria.
History of States creation in Nigeria
In 1954, British rule recognized three major regions of Nigeria, which were the Western, Eastern and Northern Provinces. In 1960, Nigerians took their country back from the British Empire. The Great Britain handed the rule of the country to Nnamdi Azikiwe, who was a Governor-General of the region. Still, Sir Tafawa Balewa was elected as a prime minister of Nigeria in 1960 and was killed six years later.
In 1963-1967 there were four regions in Nigeria.
- Northern Region
- Western Region
- Mid-Western Region
- Eastern Region
States creation in Nigeria and their creators
In 1967, General Yakubu Gowon came to power via a coup d’état. He was responsible for the creation of new states in Nigeria. Three major regions of Nigeria were divided into twelve states:
- North-Western State
- Kaduna State
- Kano State
- North-Eastern State
- Kwara
- Benue-Plateau State
- Western State
- East-Central state
- Lagos State
- Mid-Western (Bendel) State
- Cross River State
- Rivers State
In 1976, General Murtala Mohammed created Nineteen more states in Nigeria. Federal Capital Territory Abuja was carved out of Niger State. The North West States were divided into Niger and Sokoto. Northern Eastern State was divided into Bauchi, Gongola, and Borno. Benue-Plateau was carved into Plateau and Benue. Western State was separated into Ondo, Ogun, and Oyo. The East Central States were separated into Imo and Anambra. Therefore, in 1976, there were 36 states in Nigeria.
- Oyo
- Ondo
- Cross River
- Rivers
- Niger
- Sokoto
- Borno
- Kano
- Kaduna
- Bendel
- Ogun
- Lagos
- Kwara
- Gongola
- Bauchi
- Imo
- Anambra
- Plateau
- Benue
In 1987, Nigeria still stayed under the military rule. General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida was responsible for the creation of new states, like Aka Ibom and Katina, which were carved out of Cross Rivers State. Therefore, Nigeria had 21 states in 1987.
In 1996, the general created ten more states in Nigeria:
- Delta
- Abita
- Kogi
- Jigawa
- Taraba
- Osun
- Yobe
In 1991, Nigeria had the total number of thirty states.
READ ALSO: Richest state in Nigeria
In 1996, General San Abacha came to power. He managed to create six more states, which gives us a current number of 36 states. The new states were:
- Nasarawa
- Ebony
- Ekiti
- Gombe
- Bayelsa
- Zamfara
The Last National Conference during the President Jonathan`s Administration recommended creating 19 more states in Nigeria which should be carved out of the six geopolitical zones. Therefore, if the Federal Government approves – Nigeria is going to have a total number of 55 states in the future.
Current 36 States and capital
- Abia State. It was created on the 27th of August 1991. The Capital of the state is Umuahia. The state is previously known as Imo State.
- Adamawa State. It was created on the 27th of August 1991. The Capital of the state is Yola. The state is previously known as Gongola State.
- Akwa Ibom State. It was created on the 27th of September 1987. The Capital of the state is Uyu. The state is previously known as Cross River State.
- Anambra State. It was created on the 27th of August 1991. The Capital of the state is Awka. The state is previously known as Anambra State.
- Bauchi State. It was created on the 3rd of February 1976. The Capital of the state is Bauchi. The state is previously known as North-Eastern State.
- Bayelsa State. It was created on the 1st of October 1996. The Capital of the state is Yenagoa. The state is previously known as Rivers State.
- Benue State. It was created on the 3rd of February 1976. The Capital of the state is Makurdi. The state is previously known as Benue-Plateau State.
- Borno State. It was created on the 3rd of February 1976. The Capital of the state is Maiduguri. The state`s previous entity is known as North-Eastern State.
- Cross River State. It was created on the 27th of May 1967. The Capital of the state is Calabar. The state`s previous entity is known as South-Eastern State from 1967 to 1976 and Eastern Region before 1967.
- Delta State. It was created on the 27th of August 1991. The Capital of the state is Asaba. The state`s previous entity is
States creation in Nigeria and their creators
Abuja Federal Capital Territory should also be mentioned. It was created on the 3rd of February 1976. The previous entity of the territory is known as North-Western, North Central, Benue-Plateau States. Now you can give the answer to the question: “How many states are in Nigeria?”
Minority issues and the creation of states in Nigeria
According to the official information, Nigeria has about 250 ethnic groups. Still, this number is pretty rough as different scientists give different numbers, like Onige Otite, who suggests the existence of 374 ethnic groups in Nigeria. Wente-Lukas gives the biggest number of ethnic groups – 619. There is no general method of distinguishing these groups. They are scattered across the states, and the division of the states in the history of Nigeria only make the things worse in the case of minorities and ethnic groups.
Politically and numerically, there are three major ethnic groups in Nigeria:
Rest ethnic groups constitute different degrees of minorities. It`s true, even the minorities have millions of representatives, like Tiv, Nupe, Ibibio, Edo, Fulani, Kanuri, and Ijaw. Throughout the history of Nigeria, ethnic groups demanded their own territories. The first division of the country into four states increased the political crisis within a country.
States creation in Nigeria and their creators
Further division into 12 States led this crisis to the Nigerian Civil War 1967-1970. The current 36 states of Nigeria keep the balance between minorities, and the organization of 6 informal geo-political zones corresponds to the ethnic-regional groupings.
READ ALSO: Geopolitical zones in Nigeria and their states
0naze
No comments:
Post a Comment