Why we jettisoned regional system, split Nigeria into 12 states – Gowon

Why we jettisoned regional system, split Nigeria into 12 states – Gowon

Former Nigeria’s Head of state and elder statesman, General Yakubu Gowon (retd), has revealed why he balkanized Nigeria into a 12-state federation.

At independence in 1960, Nigeria ran a regional system with the nation divided into three autonomous and relatively homogenous regions:  east, west and north.

The southern region was dominated by the yorubas, the east had Igbo as majority with other minority ethnic groups, while the north had the Hausa and Fulani as the dominant group with a cluster of different ethnicities in the Middle Belt.

The Mid-West region was later carved out of the Western region in 1964.

However, Gowon, after taking over and becoming the head of state in 1966 following a bloody coup that claimed the live of his predecessor and other top government officials, split the country into 12 states 1967 in the build up to the civil war.

Speaking on the balkanisation of the country, Gowon said that the move was aimed at dousing tension and removing the fear of northern hegemony by other federating unit.

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He disclosed this when a delegation of the Senator Ibrahim Shekarau-led League of Northern Democrats paid him a courtesy visit at the Yakubu Gowon Centre, in Abuja.

The elder statesman also urged Northern elites to build a consensus around issues that would better serve the greater interest of Nigeria as a whole.

He noted that Nigeria must take precedence over regional affiliation.

“I firmly believe, as I have always said, that the responsibility of maintaining Nigeria’s true democracy rests on the north, and Baba Tafawa Balewa embodied this ideal.

“Let me also say that I hope your visit is not just about returning to the old thinking where the north prioritises the north, the west prioritises the west, and the east prioritises the east-until, of course, the Mid-West emerged to think for itself.

“My position has always been that whatever the north does must serve the greater interest of Nigeria. From your speech, I understand that this is your intention-to ensure the north, in its current state, focuses on national unity.

“It was for this reason that I supported the creation of multiple states, to prevent any one region from becoming too powerful and threatening the country’s unity,” he said.

 

Why we jettisoned regional system, split Nigeria into 12 states – Gowon