This series is sort of a public learning engagement. In fact, I think I am far too ignorant about Nigeria’s history. I am reading about Nigeria to enable me ask the right or appropriate questions. Yes. I want to be able to ask more appropriate questions by the end of this series. We find more effective solutions by asking the right questions.
Follow-up on the series in case you missed the introduction: Reading Nigeria 1
Dear Fellow,
A good evening to you. I hope your week started well.
I have commenced reading What Britain Did to Nigeria by Max Siollun. However, I have been unable to spend up to one hour and thirty minutes with the book since commencement. I have been quite busy lately.
Without further ado, let’s move on.
Into the Book
The following is an excerpt from the book’s introduction:
Nigeria’s colonial history matters because Nigeria matters. When the country became independent in 1960, the British Empire shrank by more than 50 per cent and Africa’s independent population doubled. . . . Nigeria is one of the few formerly colonised nations whose people view their country’s colonial era as a golden age. . . . To some extent Nigerians bear the blame of not presenting alternative narratives of colonialism and for allowing the British accounts become the standard version of their history. . . . Defenders of the British Empire compare it with other empires, and point out that it was not uniquely brutal, that violence was a central feature of all colonising nations, and that modern citizens to feel guilt for the actions of their ancestors. . . . This book will discuss British colonialism in one country and demonstrate that modern Nigeria’s character and problems are not organic and did not arise in vacuum. Britain made it what it was. Accounts of Nigeria tend to jump straight to the seminal dates of 1914 (the year it was created) or 1960 (the year it gained independence), yet the core foundational ingredients of Nigeria’s existence and problems were laid before and between these dates. . . . Hopefully this book will . . . demostrate that, to some extent, colonialism made Nigeria a copy-and-paste version of Britain.
Thought-provoking statements there, right? I was drawn to this book simply because a review stated that it hints at some historical links to Nigeria’s current problems.
Today’s Convo
Recall, I mentioned in the intro that ‘I will share questions inspired by my reading.’ The following are today’s questions to set the ball rolling.
Will it benefit us as a country if we commit to writing “alternative narratives” of our colonialism history? Yes, or No; how and why?
Siollun writes: ‘Nigerian schoolchildren are often taught that “Mungo Park discovered the River Niger”. Yet, it had been known to millions of Africans who lived close to the river, fished in it, or sailed on it for centuries before Park’s arrival’ (p. 16). How terrible is this instruction to Nigerian schoolchildren and the entire continent? Is it that the natives did not have a name for the “River Niger” or that the rule states that the person who popularise it decides the name? Or is this another case where the storyteller is the master?
Kindly share your thoughts in the comment, Fellow.
The Story Teller is the master. Always the master.
I was at a training recently and all the materials we used was in American context meaning it's an American material. The facilitators kept saying, "even though these materials are not from here but these are what we are face with on a daily basis here too".
After the training, I had to ask, "if you kept saying these are what we are also face with here, then how comes you are not contextualizing the material to us for better comprehension and easy to relate with"?. As an organization don't you think it's high time you document such cases to be used here and even abroad?
Must we always wait for these "white people to document things for us"? Why can't we also tell our stories. Why are we not proud of telling our story, history and documenting events that has to do with us?
Nobody could answer me and then the most senior facilitator answered eventually that they will see to that🤷.
Tongjal, this is one of our problems in Africa, we are not proud of our heritage enough to tell the world about it nor document it for the future. Our inferiority complex will always tell us that we are not good enough or our history Is not worth hearing and the white man will come and see everything good with it and help us document them and ofcourse giving credit to himself😢.