The Nigerian state and its quest for nationhood: A critical reflection

Abstract

Heterogeneous societies have an arduous task of wielding together their often divergent values and interests into commonly held belief and sentiments about the country they tacitly or expressly agreed to form. The various nationalities in the present day Nigeria agreed to come together in 1914 under the supervision of the British colonialists. More than a century later, the country is still grappling with issues of power and resource sharing, indigeneship, marginalization, among others. This paper utilized qualitative research approach to gain an insight into the nature and character of the Nigerian state and its quest for nationhood. Subsequently, relevant sources of this research were fairly and professionally scrutinized, understood and tested with the available literature for the purpose of the research. Inter alia, it included scan-reading, comprehensive and critical reading and writing down ideas. Authoritative scholarly sources were reviewed, during a desktop study. Within the framework of political integration theory, the paper observed that though the power elite mount the view that the country is one indivisible and indissoluble entity, there are those who believe that the people must negotiate the social compact to remain together as one country. The opponents of the implementation of the 2014 Sovereign National Conference report are only buying time because the revolutionary pressure in the country could likely bring about the breakup of the country or create a solid foundation for nationhood that can be achieved only if the teething concerns of Nigerians are resolved. These include: distributive justice, good governance, popular participation and true federalism.

Keywords: Development, Governance, Marginalization, Nationalism, Sustainability