Inventing tradition in central Nigeria: a study of changing political institutions among the Igede, 1900 – 1976

Abstract

This study examines the transformation of political institutions among the Igede of Central Nigeria between 1900 and 1976. It finds that the political institutions of the Igede exhibited dynamism in every epoch of the people's history. It therefore argues that although the Igede political institution began as a decentralized political system, it had already evolved into a semi-centralized political system at the eve of the colonial contact. It further argues that although the colonial government restructured the political institutions in line with the indirect rule policy, it nonetheless obstructed the course of the pre-colonial efforts at the emergence of semi-centralized political institutions and destroyed the social basis of power among the Igede. It was in the post-independence era that the Igede political institution attained full centralization with the people, once again returning to play an active role in the process under democratic dispensation. It therefore concludes that political institutions among the Igede witnessed fundamental changes across all historical epochs and therefore disagrees with the Eurocentric conception of the pre-colonial past of African societies in terms of static and unchanging processes. It also concludes that the Igede have shown that giving a democratic environment they are capable of reinventing their traditional political institutions to meet the demand of socio-economic development and contributing to the evolution of a Nigerian legacy. This study is based on content analysis of oral and written source materials, which were subjected to the rigour of historical criticism.