Rivers State: The Struggle for its Creation and its Aftermath
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31150/ajshr.v4i3.2080Keywords:
Struggle, Creation, Aftermath, Rivers StateAbstract
Saturday, the 27th of May, 1967, represents a significant milestone in the history of Nigeria. On that day, General Yakubu Gowon, Head of State and Commander-in-Chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces, had proclaimed a structural change in the geopolitical configuration of Nigeria. He announced the creation of twelve states to replace the four existing regions of which Nigeria had been composed. Of the twelve states that were created, Rivers State epitomized the fulfilment of a longstanding struggle that predated the creation of the state by nearly three decades. This treatise shall therefore be a concise narrative of the nature of the struggle for the creation of Rivers State. In it, we shall explain the dynamics of the struggle for self-determination of the River’s people based on the geopolitical and economic conditions that were prevalent at the time. In doing so, we shall highlight the various movements that worked towards the actualization of the state, and emphasize the aftermath of its creation expressed in, amongst other consequences, the birth of another related state named Bayelsa, with the prospect of more states to be created in the future.
References
Alagoa, E.J. (1999). Introduction. In E.J. Alagoa (ed.) The Land and People of Bayelsa State: Central Niger Delta. Port Harcourt: Onyoma Research Publications. pp. 2-3.
Boro, I., (1982). The Twelve-Day Revolution. Benin: Udodo Umeh Publishers. pp. 96-105.
Coleman, J.S. (1958). Nigeria: Background to Nationalism. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. pp. 224-227.
Interview with Dr. Gabriel Okara, b. 1921, Bomoundi, 2015.
Naanen, B. (1999). State Movements. In E.J. Alagoa and A.A. Derefaka (eds.) The Land and People of Rivers State: Eastern Niger Delta. Port Harcourt: Onyoma Research Publications. pp. 339-350.
Obubo I.R., “Rodger William Obubo: Pioneering Political Activist – A written Narrative of the contributions of Mr. Rodger William Obubo, first Secretary General of the Ijaw State Union, to the Ijaw struggle for self-determination.” issued in 2016.
Ogan, C. (1980). Alfred Diete-Spiff: A Legacy of Development in the Niger Delta. Port Harcourt: Onyoma Research Publications. pp. 556-558.
Okorobia, A.M., “The Niger Delta: A Developmental History,” (Unpublished Manuscript).
Olali, S.T. A Report on Major Boardman Esinkuma Nyananyo, Captain George Nanyam Amangala and Captain Notthingham Dick. (Unpublished Manuscript).
Olusanya, G.O. (1980). The Nationalist Movement in Nigeria. In O. Ikime (ed.). Groundwork of Nigerian History. Port Harcourt: Onyoma Research Publications. p. 536.
Olusanya, G.O. (1980). Constitutional Developments in Nigeria. In O. Ikime (ed.). Groundwork of Nigerian History. Port Harcourt: Onyoma Research Publications. pp. 556-558.
Siollun, M., Oil, Politics and Violence: Nigeria’s Military Coup Culture (1966-1976). New York: Algora Publishing. p. 12.
Zuofa, A. and Odondiri, P.G.O. (1999). State Movements. In E.J. Alagoa (ed.) The Land and People of Bayelsa State: Central Niger Delta. Port Harcourt: Onyoma Research Publications. pp. 234-242.
