Lord lugard constitution of 1914

 On January 1, 1914, Lord Frederick Lugard, the governor of both the Northern Nigeria Protectorate and the Colony and Protectorate of Southern Nigeria, signed a document consolidating the two, thereby creating the Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria. Forty-six years later in 1960, Nigeria became an independent state. Anniversaries are times for refle

ction, and given that today, just over 104 years after amalgamation, the country is still grappling with its national identity and a reanimated separatist movement, it is worth reflecting on how exactly Nigeria became Nigeria. 

Before Europeans arrived in the territory that is now Nigeria, a number of different civilizations existed whose presence is still felt today. For example, in the north, Islam was predominant. In the nineteenth century, there were two Islamic empires, the Sokoto Caliphate and the Bornu Empire. To the southwest lay numerous Yoruba city-states that generally had in common animist religion and were only sometimes united. To the southwest was an Igbo kingdom, Nri, and a collection of semi-autonomous towns and villages in the Niger River delta. Such regions were linguistically, religiously, and politically distinct.

While other colonial powers, such as the Portuguese, became involved in the region by way of the slave trade as early as the fifteenth century, the British arrived in force only in the eighteenth century. It was not until 1861 that they formally occupied their first Nigerian territory, Lagos, in a bid to protect Christian converts and trading interests, and to further their anti-slavery campaign. In 1884, the British occupied what would later become the Southern Protectorate and the Northern Protectorate piecemeal from 1900 to 1903. By 1903, the British controlled the territory that comprises modern-day Nigeria, but as three separate administrative blocks.

As early as 1898, the British considered combining the then-three protectorates to reduce the administrative burden on the British and allow the rich south to effectively subsidize the much less economically prosperous north. (The Lagos colony was later incorporated into the Southern Nigeria Protectorate for budgetary reasons). This is what Lord Lugard was referring to in his infamous description of how a marriage between the “rich wife of substance and means” (the south) and the “poor husband” (the north) would lead to a happy life for both. Some have suspected that Lugard was also referring to the political supremacy of the north over the south. The name “Nigeria” was coined by the future Lady Lugard in an 1897 London Times article. 

With Lord Lugard’s arbitrary conception of Nigeria in mind, one can begin to see the many and varied problems colonialism created in Nigeria, across West Africa, and around the world. Not least among these problems, for Nigeria in particular, was the problem of a unifying national identity. It is no wonder that diverse peoples, forcibly united into single states, sometimes turn to separatism. Contemporary examples range from Biafra (Nigeria), to Ambazonia (Cameroon), to Somaliland (Somalia), and to Azawad (Mali)

Features of Lord Lugard Constitution In Nigeria

The main features of the constitution were as follows:

The component units of the new state were the Colony of Lagos, the Northern Provinces and the Southern Provinces. The capital of the country was Lagos.

The Governor-General (Lord Lugard was the first occupant of the offlce) served as the head of government. Each province was headed by a governor.

The Lagos Colony had a legislative council, which comprised the Governor (Chairman), six officials and four nominated members, two of were Africans.

A legislative council styled the “Nigerian Council” was set up to make laws for the whole country. The body comprised the Governor-General as the Chairman, 23 official members and 13 unofficial members – seven of whom were Europeans. The remaining six were Nigerians, most of whom were traditional rulers.

The Council met once a year to discuss the governor’s speech and any decision taken could be vetoed by him.

The indirect rule policy was introduced throughout the country.

Merits of Lord Lugard Constitution In Nigeria

The constitution had the following advantages:

The constltution provided for the peaceful evolution of the Nigerian state.

The different and diverse ethnic nationalities which had previously been at each other’s throat were, for the first time, brought together under the same constitutional framework.

The legislative council and other structures established by the constitution provided a forum for Nigerians to discuss matters affecting them.

There was decentralization of government through the creation of provinces and introduction of indirect rule.

It provided a training ground for Nigerians in the art of governance.

Demerits of Lord Lugard Constitution In Nigeria

The disadvantages of the constitution included the following:

The amalgamation never really resulted in national unity as both the north and the south continued to pursue different policies.

For example, the official language of the Northern Provinces continued to be Hausa while English Language was the official language of the Southern Provinces. So, even in terms of language, they remained divided.

The two provinces continued to operate as if they were different entities or countries. Each protectorate had separate departments dealing with education, health, police, prisons and public works.

Apart from senior government officials who met regularly at the annual council meetings, there was little interaction between the people of the North and South.

The Nigerian Council was neither Nigerian in nature nor was it a true law-making body. It was a mere talkshop, which had no single elected member.

The Governor General continued to make laws for the North, which had no legislative council of its own.

The indirect rule policy strengthened the native administration system as an institution of government and this system promoted allegiance to local rather than national institutions.

The constitution had no role for the educated elites though it must be admitted that there were only a few educated people at the time