Socio-historical Review on Minority Rights in the First Republic of Nigeria

Abstract

The colonial design of imposing a socio-political intermingling between the different social groups of Nigeria during the colonial era did not pay a cautious attention to the variety of cultures and cultural relations that had existed among the pre-colonial people of Nigeria prior to the advent of colonialism. Thus, the various social groups with their differentials in political organization and cultural orientation came to defy any scientific attempt for the classification of the different people of Nigeria during the colonial and post-colonial epochs. One is obliged to concede at once that the identification of minorities is almost entirely dictated by ethnic identities and loyalty. In place of tribalism, which now has a negative connotation, ethnic identities have emerged as the preferred terminology. The tribe has been defined as a group of people who have cultural and political unity, similar customs and
usage and who have descended from a common ancestor. In the case of Nigeria, three major factors have been considered.