The Igbo, one of Nigeria’s three major ethnic groups, are an important power bloc in the nation’s political equation. Yet, the Igbo nation has strangely failed to make its influence count politically as the major ethnic groups schemed to dominate political power at the centre since the country’s return to democratic rule in the Fourth Republic. But the root of the South-East political stagnation dates back to the first decade of Nigeria’s post-independence history. A look at the political trajectory of the Igbo will reveal how one of Nigeria’s largest and significant ethnic groups has slipped from the commanding height of political dominance it once occupied to the margins of power. After a stint at the top echelons of power in the First and Second Republics with Nnamdi Azikiwe and Alex Ekwueme occupying prime positions, the Igbo, who also had completely dominated post-independence civil service, have had their political influence reduced significantly. The political decline of the Igbo nation has been attributed to a number of factors including the dynamics of politics of that era. They Igbo elite have also been blamed for pursing narrow self-interest rather than the common good of the entire Igbo nation. The military coup that terminated the government of Tafawa Balewa government triggered a chain of bloody events. The military putsch believed to have been hatched and executed by a predominantly revolutionary Igbo officers led by Major Kaduna Nzeogwu revealed that the ethnic group also dominated the military institution that emerged when the British left. But the coup, which wiped out many of the leading politicians of that era, triggered a chain of events that threatened to consume the nation. The Igbo, of course, became the target of widespread suspicion as other ethnic groups perceive them as having an agenda to dominate political power. The fear of Igbo dominance was further heightened when viewed against the backdrop of the first coup. The Northern political class who had felt that they were the main target soon began to plot revenge. The result was a mass hysteria of Igbo paranoia that resonated well beyond independence culminating in the civil war. The resultant bloody counter coup of July 1966 instigated by the aggrieved Northern political class and executed by Northern military officers was to avenge the killings of politicians from the region. The major casualty of the counter coup was the head of state. Maj.-Gen. J.T.U. Aguiyi Ironsi, an Igbo. Within the period, the Igbo, who had been a powerful force at independence, soon began to suffer politically. The Northern pogrom of 1966 and the subsequent civil war completed the violent struggle for power by the major ethnic groups with the North playing a major role in seeing to the political capitulation of the Igbo nation. Needless to say that the period after civil war was a difficult one for the Igbo. The civil war took a heavy toll that a once leading ethnic group had been reduced to just fighting for its survival. After the war, the half-hearted attempt to re-integrate the Igbo back into economic and political mainstream did little to bring back its lost glory. But several years after the events of hate and violence-filled decade, the Igbo have fought back, through sheer resilience, to regain what they have lost economically. But how have they fared politically decades after? What is particularly responsible for the near stagnation of the Igbo politically in the Fourth Republic? Will the Igbo gain presidential power anytime soon? These questions are germane when we consider that the last time the group attained notable political position was in the Second Republic when Ekwueme became a deputy to President Shehu Shagari. Now, more than three decades after the demise of the Second Republic and 14 years into the Fourth, the Igbo nation still trails other major ethnic groups politically. Not even have they been found worthy to occupy the position of vice-president. This is even noteworthy when one considers that smaller ethnic groups have sought and attained more political relevance.
Posted on: Tue, 14 Oct 2014 10:19:59 +0000
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