The British Conquest and Resistance of Sokoto Caliphate, 1897-1903: Crisis, Conflicts and Resistance

The contact the Africans had with the Europeans dated back to the 9th century, However, the European presence and penetration did not take place until the late 15th and the first-half of the 19th centuries respectively. The exploration was pioneered by the Dutch and the Portuguese and the British dominated the period. By the middle of the 19th century, the presence of the Europeans had started to gain momentum and thus threats to African kingdoms as well as chiefdoms. It was the situation that posed threats to the Sokoto Caliphate established by the Jihad of Uthman Dan Fodio in 1804. The British conquest and the peoples’ resistance is the thrust of the paper. It examines the weighty issues that surrounded the conquest of one of the most organised caliphate in the Western Sudan. The academic paper is presented in historical methodology adopting the interpretative approach. Keywords: British, Conquest, Resistance, Sokoto Caliphate

The Doldrums of Nigeria’s Amalgamation: A Historical Re-Appraisal

With a long historical background of interactions, the various ethno-linguistic groups occupying different regions and established on distinct cultural backgrounds, religious affiliations and political creeds were merged by the British authority in what became known as the 1914 Amalgamation. It was supposedly to be a historical landmark for Nigeria giant stride for greatness. However, those dreams and aspirations have never been realized. Thus, since the amalgamation, efforts have been geared towards a truly national integration where the chasm of distinct ethnic, cultural, religious and political ideologies would be assimilated into a united Nigeria. In colonial and post-colonial Nigeria, the British administrators and the Nigerian political leaders had respectively designed policies and programmes to ensure united country. Nevertheless, the lacunas among the regions and ethnic compositions have continued to widen founded on crisis of colonial creation, nationalists’ vituperations and politicians’ imbroglio. Hence, the doldrums in various facets of development in centenary Nigeria has remained endless. Consequently, Nigeria’s developmental stride has been stalled. The paper examines the doldrums of unity that have bedeviled hundred years of Nigeria. The methodology adopts primary and secondary sources as well as internet materials presented in text interpretation and thematic chronology. Keywords: Doldrums, Nigeria, Amalgamation, Colonialism, Nationalis

The Sublimeness of Sleaze in the NNPC in the Fourth Republic, 1999 – 2007:A Historical Conspectus

The discovery of crude oil in Nigeria in 1956 ushered in hope for economic prosperity and rapid developmental opportunities for the nation. Hence, in subsequent years, the Federal Government established the Nigerian National Oil Company (NNOC), a regulatory body to monitor and regulate oil production activities. However, the inefficiency and lapses in NNOC resulted in the emergence of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) in 1977. Nonetheless, the new agency had been a subject of criticism consequent upon its inadequacy to manage, monitor and control oil production and accountability within and outside the country. The inefficiency over the years assumed an unprecedented progression which metamorphosed into sublime of sleaze in the Fourth Republic. It is in the light of this malfeasance that the discourse examines in historical perspective the decadence of decorum in NNPC in the Fourth Republic. The methodology is thematic, chronological and analytical making use of primary and secondary sources. The scholarly essay posited that NNPC under the ex-president, Olusegun Obasanjo’s eight years in office witnessed the most scandalous sleaze the oil sector had ever experienced. The paper offered some caveats for NNPC operations in subsequent years if Nigeria must reap the reward ? in all ramifications ? of the oil discovery in 1956. Keywords: Sublimeness, Sleaze, NNPC, Fourth Republi