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Resources Report Commentaries Minute by MG Smith on the report of the Willink Commission
Resources Report Commentaries Minute by MG Smith on the report of the Willink Commission | Minute by MG Smith on the report of the Willink Commission |
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| Sunday, 07 September 2008 01:13 | |
Minute by MG Smith on the report of the Willinks Commission15 May 1958 Extract from Minute by MG Smith on pressure from Balewa for self-government on 2 Apr 1960 The Minorities and Fiscal Commissions have not yet reported, but from what we know of the likely contents of the Minorities Commission report and of the very firm demand for new States recently reaffirmed by the Action Group (and supported by the EKET by-elections), there may well be trouble both in Nigeria and at the resumed conference over the settlement of the minority problems. Achieving this settlement, taking the shock of Regional Self-Government in the North and preparing for Federal elections late in 1959 is likely to give all of us here and in Nigeria a full and anxious time up to the end of 1059.] 432 Co 554/1541 17 July 1958 Minute by MG Smith on the report of the Willink Commission [The Willink Commission published its report in mid-1958 after an exhaustive series of hearings across the country: Commission appointed to Enquire into the fears of Minorities and the Means of Allaying them. It rejected demands for the creation of new regions but recommended strengthening safeguards for minorities throughout the federation, not least through incorporating provisions on fundamental rights in the constitution and the reinforcement of the federal nature of the NPF. The rejection of new regions caused considerable dissatisfaction, with Awolowo describing the report as 'astonishing' and Stapledon noting 'there will be palavar over this', with reference to the rejected proposal for a COR region; Northern leaders however welcomed the fact that the North was not to be broken up with the creation of a Middle Belt Region and that the Ilorin-Kabba boundary would not be changed, subject to a possible plebiscite.] 2. The Report is a very careful and detailed examination of the many problems that were presented to the Commission. The Commission began to hear evidence in the Western Region, and apart from their first brush with with the Government's representative there, Chief Williams, they seem to have had no difficulty with any Nigerian authority, and to have received an enormous mass of evidence from every conceivable source, small and great. As a result, the Report, quite apart from the value of its recommendations, is likely to be a document of permanent value and interest as an analysis of the day-to-day problems of an emergent democracy. Many of the problems catalogued, as the new balance of forces in Nigeria takes the place of the old pattern of rule by Chiefs and minor Kingdoms could no doubt be paralleled in many under-developed countries throughout the world. 3. From the first, the Commission ruled that they were concerned, not with political minorities (which tomorrow might become political majorities), but with ethnic and religious minorities which are necessarily of a more permanent nature. But their hearings of the fears and grievances of these latter minorities still opened the door to the expression of a great variety of complaints, fears, and accusations on economic, social and political grounds. 4. The pattern of the Report follows the travels of the Commission. They began in the West, and went from there to the East, and then for a brief visit to the Southern Cameroons, and finally to the North. They returned to Lagos in between these Regional visits for some general consultations. They decided that they should not be concerned with the Southern Cameroons, since it is a Trust Territory, not necessarily to be regarded as a permanent part of the Nigeria into which they were to enquire. But in dealing with the Northern Region, they necessarily take account of the Northern Cameroons, parts of which, as associated with Adamawa and Benue, are concerned with the Middle Belt problem. 5. Part II, pages 6-33, deals witht he West. Here the Commission were confronted with all the expected questions -- fears of Yoruba domination, wistful memories of the departed glory of Benin, the potential clash of Christian and Muslim, with its effect on education, and a whole series of specific allegations: discrimination in Public Service appointments and in scholarship allocations, discrimination in economic affairs, 'strong arm' interference by squads of the Action Group, inteference by the Regional Government in Local Government affairs, the bringing of excess influence to bear on the Chiefs, and gerry mandering with Parliamentry constituencies. All these questions are carefully analysed, and are mainly disposed of with suitable comments, which is often more favourable to the well-documented case of the Regional Government than might have been expected. This comment applies even to the accusations of gerry mandering, on which at the time we received comments from the Regional Governor, (who strongly remonstrated with the Executive Council), which were distinctly adverse to his Ministers's actions. In the course of these comments, the Commission (page 20) helpfully recommend the establishment of a single Electoral Commission for Nigeria, to be responsible for both Federal and Regional Elections. 6. The Commission record (page 28) that virtually all Minorities appearing before them could think of nothing but a separate State, as a remedy for the dangers they feared. But in the West, as elsewhere, the Commission reached the conclusion that, on careful analysis, while there might be general arguments in favour of a new State or States, the area of such States was most difficult to define, and most proposals for new States put to them would themselves create further substantial minority problems, as the areas included minorities of other tribes who would be anything but happy under the proposed new arrangements. Because of this, the Commission did not find itself forced to examine in great detail the question of the viability of particular new States, but they offered the general comment (page 87) that the small new States proposed cannot expect to command the resources, either in money or trained manpower, of the existing Regions, and so would at best be anomalous second-class bodies, whose powers would necessarily have to be less extensive than these existing Regions. In the circumstances, the Commission concluded both in the West and throughout the rest of Nigeria that no case for the creation of a particular new State was strong enough to be sustained, and that, as the Commission's terms of reference contemplated, measures short of the creation of new States were the best that could be proposed to safeguard the interests and allay the fears of minorities. 7. There are a new variations on the fears expressed in the West. In particular the Regional Government is charged with contempt of Parliament and Parliamentary procedure, and with the diversion of public money to bodies and corporations which are mainly ints own creatures or close supporters. On page 41, the Commission offer in comparatively moderate terms criticism of this known abuse, which was of course much brought to the notice by the proceedings of the Continental Bank Enquiry. The Commission also received complaints of the over-concentration in Government hands of powers over Local Government bodies, and over County and District Courts. There were further complaints of 'strong arm' groups of NCNC supporters. There is nothing new or unexpected in all this. 8. The situation in the East is examined on pages 34-51. Here the same kind of complaints and accusations as in the West are made, but the fear of Ibo domination with Zik as the Ibos' 'tribal champion' stands out more starkly than the fears of Yoruba domination expressed in the West. 9. Again, the Commission listened to detailed proposals for a whole new group of new States. These proposals, as expected, were for a COR State (Calabar-Ogoja-Rivers Provinces), and for all the minor variants on this one large proposal, i.e. the creation of separate Rivers, Ogoja and Cross River States (the Cross River State is simply the Calabar state writ large). The Commission make a pointed reference to the spoiling tactics of the NCNC in seeking to confuse the issue over these States. Their conclusion is that there is no general support throughout the area for a COR State and not much for the proposals for Ogoja or Cross River States, but that there is considerable support, though not an overwhelming case, for a Rivers State, consisting mainly of the Ijaw people, and taking in from the Western Region the Western Ijaws. The population of this area is about 900,000 (compared with about 800,000 in the Southern in the Southern Cameroons, which is likely to become a full Region). The Commission's conclusion about this, the strongest case for a separate state presented to them, is that the area is both comparatively small and very poor, consisting as it does mainly of the delta of the Niger, and that it should, be regarded rather as a special development area, requiring particular economic assistance, than as an area fit for, and capable of maintaining a separate Government of its own. Later in the Report the Commission advance proposals for a special solution of the problem. [see 13 Below] 10. The problems of the North are divided into two sections. The general and the Middle Belt problems are dealt with on pages 52 to 73 and the Ilorin/Kabba boundary dispute is dealth with on pages 74 to 86. 11. Again the commission has brought up nothing new but it has been made to traverse carefully much familiar ground. The Commission found that, far from there being evidence of economic discrimination against the Middle Belt areas, the evidence was rather the reverse and this is what we have always understood to be the case, since the openness to education and the poverty of the middle belt areas has tended to such in a considerable proportion to the Region's Resources. The Commission confirm our understanding that there remain deep historic fears of the return, after British withdrawal, of domination by Fulani Emirs observing the letter of Islamic Law and Custom, including perhaps an extension to non-Muslim areas of Islamic restrictions on the liberties of women. There are also familiar complaints concerning the partiality of N.A. Police who tend to think of themselves as the Emir's bodyguard maintaining his personal authority against all comers, and of the dangerous fusion in the Emir and his Court of both executive and judicial authority. 12. There is an interesting reference on pages 61 and 62 to the fears expressed that Muslim influence in the North might lead to an orientation of Nigerian foreign policy contrary to the interests and general wishes of the country. In commenting on this, the Commission refer in what I think is an over simplification of the problem, to the need for Muslim opinion to be expressed through the normal Parliamentary majority before it could become effective. 13. The other major proposal of the Commission (pages 95 to 96) is for the creation of a Special Area to deal with the problem of the Ijaws and their swampy habitat. It is proposed that there should be a new concurrent subject ' the development of Special Areas' and that a Special Area Board should be set up by statutory provision with representatives of the Federal Government and the Eastern and Western Regional Governments together with representatives chosen by local bodies from the people of the area. The Board should be concerned in the broadest sense with the economic (and apparently to some extent the social) development of the area and should be financed by either Federal or Regional funds dependent mainly on whether the subjects dealt with were originally Federal or Regional ones. The Board would have no executive authority apart from ability to allocate its funds for the execution of particular schemes of which it approved. It would be for the Federal or Regional Governments to carry out these schemes. The Board would submit annual reports to these Governments which would be discussed in the Legislatures concerned, and if it did its work well it should be possible for the Board to be wound ip within, say, 10 or 12 years.14. We have already put to the Commission our doubts about this scheme. The scheme itself is very much an outline and it is not at all clear how the Board would acquire funds and what would be the criterion of its acquiring and spending funds; what control, if any, it would have over the expenditure it authorized and generally what influence or authority it could hope to exert, bereft as it would be of staff of its own, of general executive authority of its own, and of any political pull or influence apart from the very indirect influence of the voting power of the Ijaw Areas. Since the essence of the problem is that this voting power has already proved quite inadequate to protect the area from underdevelopment and neglect, it is difficult to see how this same voting power could support the Board. The likelihood seems to be between that if the Board were ever to be set up it would be a political football in constant play between the three Governments concerned supported for its own ends by one of them and as a consequence opposed and obstructed by the other or others. I hesitate to describe the recommendation of so distinguished a commission as half-baked but it is difficult to find another suitable adjective. I cannot believe that this Board will be created or that if created it will survive as a serious and useful contribution to the solution of a problem which the Commission recognise genuinely exists. It seems most likely that since the Commission have so clearly recognised tge existence of the problem the recommendation concerning the Board will be thought of both by the people of the area and by the AG as the germ of the acceptance of the concept of separate state, and that we shall have this concept thrust upon us forcefully at the resumed conference by Young Man River and his supporters including all the big guns of the AG. 15. I do not however, think we can further ask the Commission to reconsider so fundamental a recommendation. It will have to see the light of day and we shall have to do the best we can with it. 16. Following on their recommendation for a Special Ijaw Area, the Commission propose (pages 97 to 98) the creation of minority areas beginning with Mid West Area and Calabar. These areas sould be served by special Councils (it is recognised that the West have already created a council for Mid West affairs on the lines of the Council for Wales), who should be concerned with drawing attention to and generally promoting activities beneficial to the area and who should produce annual reports for debate in both the Regional Legislatures concerned and the Federal Legislature. The argument for debate in the Federal Legislature is in paragraph 34. The argument is that the neglect of such a minority area might create a threat to the peace requiring the ultimate intervention of the Federal Government so that the FG has a direct law and order concern in what goes on. This argument proves too much; neglect anywhere and misgovernment anywhere may lead to a threat of peace so that on these grounds the FG could claim to be concerned with every act or failure to act by a Regional Government whether or not it concerned a minority area, I do not think that this faulty reasoning will be acceptable to the Conference or will help the general standing of the Commission's report. I suggest that the Commission might be asked to reconsider this paragraph. In suggesting this we might point out to the Commission that in seeking to guard minority areas by giving their affairs this sort of publicity they would be more likely, if their recommendation were accepted, to bring about more bad blood between the Regional and Federal Governments. We know the NPC and NCNC hope to combine to win the next Fed elections. A Federal legislature dominated by these two parties might enjoy itself only too easily under the cloak of Parliamentary privilege in abusing and making unsubstantiated allegations about the conduct of affairs by the Western Regional Government in the Mid West Area. Source: "Moving to Independence, Part II". British Documents on the End of Empire, Nigeria. Series B Volume 7 Publisher: University of London for the Inst of CommonWealth Studies Symbols: AG - Action Group CO - Colonial Office MG Smith - Principal Secretary (based in London), CO, 1955-1959 NCNC - National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons NPC - Northern Peoples Congress Awo - Chief Obafemi Awolowo (Premier Western Region - 1954-1959 and leader AG) Zik - Dr N Nnamdi Azikiwe - (Premier Eastern Region - 1954-1959 and leader NCNC) Balewa - Alh Abubakar Tafawa Balewa - Prime Minister, 1959-1966, leader NPC CG Eastwood - Assistant Under-Secretary for West Africa(1955-1961) Sir J Robertson - Governor-General of Nigeria (1955-1960) |
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