The speech below was given by Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe on May 12th 1953 before his NCNC party caucus at Yaba,Lagos.
Please read carefully and come to your own conclusion of who is the
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A).


I have invited you to attend this caucus because I would like you to make clear our stand on the issue of secession. As a party, we would have preferred Nigeria to remain intact, but lest there be doubt as to our willingness to concede to any shade of political opinion the right to determine its policy, I am obliged to issue a solemn warning to those who are goading the North towards secession. If you agree with my views, then I hope that in course of our deliberations tonight, you will endorse them, to enable me to publicize them in the Press.

In my opinion, the Northerners are perfectly entitled to consider whether or not they should secede from the indissoluble union which nature has formed between it and the South, but it would be calamitous to the corporate existence of the North should the clamour for secession prevail. I, therefore, counsel Northern leaders to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of secession before embarking upon this dangerous course.

B) CONTINUED.


As one who was born in the North, I have a deep spiritual attachment to that part of the country, but it would be a capital political blunder if the North should break away from the South. The latter is in a better position to make rapid constitutional advance, so that if the North should become truncated from the South, it would benefit both Southerners and Northerners who are domiciled in the South more than their kith and kin who are domiciled in the North


There are seven reasons for my holding to this view. Secession by the North may lead to internal political convulsion there when it is realized that militant nationalists and their organizations, like the NLPU, the Askianist Movement, and the Middle Zone League, have aspirations for self-government in 1956 identical with those of their Southern compatriots. It may lead to justifiable demands for the right of self-determination by non-Muslims, who form the majority of the population in the so-called ‘Pagan’ provinces, like Benue, Ilorin, Kabba, Niger and Plateau, not to mention the claims of non-Muslims who are domiciled in Adamawa and Bauchi Provinces.

It may lead to economic nationalism in the Eastern Region, which can pursue a policy of blockade of the North, by refusing it access to the sea, over and under the River Niger, except upon payment of tolls. It may lead to economic warfare between the North on the one hand, and the Eastern or Western regions on the other, should they decide to fix protective tariffs which will make the use of the ports of the East and West uneconomic for the North.

The North may be rich in mineral resources and certain cash crops, but that is no guarantee that it would be capable of growing sufficient food crops to enable it to feed its teeming millions, unlike the East and the West. Secession may create hardship for Easterners and Westerners who are domiciled in the North, since the price of food crops to be imported into the North from the South is bound to be very high and to cause an increase in the cost of living. Lastly, it will endanger the relations with their neighbours of millions of Northerners who are domiciled in the East and West and Easterners and Westerners who reside in the North.

You may ask me whether there would be a prospect of civil war, if the North decided to secede? My answer would be that it is a hypothetical question which only time can answer. In any case, the plausible cause of a civil war might be a dispute as to the right of passage on the River Niger, or the right of flight over the territory of the Eastern or Western Region; but such disputes can be settled diplomatically, instead of by force.

C) CONTINUED.

Nevertheless, if civil war should become inevitable at this stage of our progress as a nation, then security considerations must be borne in mind by those who are charged with the responsibility of government of the North and the South. Military forces and installations are fairly distributed in all the three regions; if that is not the case, any of the regions can obtain military aid from certain interested Powers. It means that we cannot preclude the possibility of alliance with certain countries.

You may ask me to agree that if the British left Nigeria to its fate, the Northerners would continue their uninterrupted march to the sea, as was prophesied six years ago? My reply is that such an empty threat is devoid of historical substance and that so far as I know, the Eastern Region has never been subjugated by any indigenous African invader. At the price of being accused of overconfidence, I will risk a prophecy and say that, other things being equal, the Easterners will defend themselves gallantly, if and when they are invaded.

D) CONCLUDED.


Let me take this opportunity to warn those who are making a mountain out of the molehill of the constitutional crisis to be more restrained and constructive. The dissemination of lies abroad; the publishing of flamboyant headlines about secessionist plans, and the goading of empty-headed careerists with gaseous ideas about their own importance in tile scheme of things in the North is being overdone in certain quarters. I feel that these quarters must be held responsible for any breach between the North and South, which nature had indissolubly united in a political, social and economic marriage of convenience. In my personal opinion, there is no sense in the North breaking away or the East or the West breaking away; it would be better if all the regions would address themselves to the task of crystallizing common nationality, irrespective of the extraneous influences at work. What history has joined together let no man put asunder. But history is a strange mistress which can cause strange things to happen!

SIGNED.
NNAMDI AZIKIWE.

Nigeria has been a monumental disaster and a total waste of time. The best thing for this present generation to do is urge the Nigerian state to hold a referendum to determine who wants to carry on with Nigeria, and who wants to opt out

We have over 300 ethnic groups in Nigeria, they can decide their fate via referendum

The alternative is to keep fighting and destroying each other inside the failed state of Nigeria

gidgiddy:
Nigeria has been a monumental disaster and a total waste of time. The best thing for this present generation to do is urge the Nigerian state to hold a referendum to determine who wants to carry on with Nigeria, and who wants to opt out

We have over 300 ethnic groups in Nigeria, they can decide their fate via referendum

The alternative is to keep fighting and destroying each other inside the failed state of Nigeria

Oga,
Calm down and allow me to finish posting the speech. Then you can tell us who are the Unity beggars in Nigeria....

From this speech it was obvious that at this point in time Azikiwe felt that the East was in a prominent and promising position to assume leadership in Nigeria and as such the Ibos were selfishly opposed to sucession and referendum,however the question is why are they now the main proponents of division?

gidgiddy:
Nigeria has been a monumental disaster and a total waste of time. The best thing for this present generation to do is urge the Nigerian state to hold a referendum to determine who wants to carry on with Nigeria, and who wants to opt out

We have over 300 ethnic groups in Nigeria, they can decide their fate via referendum

The alternative is to keep fighting and destroying each other inside the failed state of Nigeria

Sharap and face the topic


You should be condemning that Marxist pig, Zik for welding Nigeria together .


What Awo saw in 1951, Zik is yet to see in hell where he is .

confusedlady:


Oga,
Calm down and allow me to finish posting the speech. Then you can tell us who are the Unity beggars in Nigeria....

That guy reminds me of Quagmire from Family Guy

AntiMarxist:


Sharap and face the topic


You should be condemning that Marxist pig, Zik for welding Nigeria together .


What Awo saw in 1951, Zik is yet to see in hell where he is .

The point I am raising is that the Ibo were against referendum and seccession in the beginning because they felt that they had a very good chance to be the leaders in an emerging country. It was when they failed to achieve that leadership politically that their military wing decided to execute the coup of January 1966 and when they were checkmated by the counter coup of July 1966 they now decided to secede in 1967 and create Biafra. I wonder what coldie,Giddygiddy and LOVEALAIGBO have to say on this?

confusedlady:


The point I am raising is that the Ibo were against referendum and seccession in the beginning because they felt that they had a very good chance to be the leaders in an emerging country. It was when they failed to achieve that leadership politically that their military wing decided to execute the coup of January 1966 and when they were checkmated by the counter coup of July 1966 they now decided to secede in 1967 and create Biafra. I wonder what coldie,Giddygiddy and LOVEALAIGBO have to say on this?

They have been sore losers since the day God rejected their fathers offering and chose Abel's instead.

FIRSTLY NNAMDI AZIKIWE HAS NO IDENTITY. NO HOUSE,NO TRACE. THE ONLY THING HE IS REMEMBERED TODAY OF IS HE BELONGS TO ROADS.
2NDLY..NATURE WORKS WITH TIME.. NOTHING REMAINS FOREVER THE SAME.CHANGE IS CONSTANT...
3RDLY.. ITS TIME FOR SEPERATION. EVERYONE MUST ANSWER THE HOME CALL OF NATURE GOD. TIME WILL TELL ABOUT THIS PROPHESY.
THIS IS THE MESSAGE OF THE RISING SUN.

The real definition of "betrayer"

Fast forward to present day, his ignorant kiths and their offsprings are busy blaming Awolowo and Yorubas for not allowing them secede when Azikiwe and the Igbos in 60s' made the laws that criminalized secession.

They want to change rules of the game after match has started.. cunning bunch.

confusedlady:


The point I am raising is that the Ibo were against referendum and seccession in the beginning because they felt that they had a very good chance to be the leaders in an emerging country. It was when they failed to achieve that leadership politically that their military wing decided to execute the coup of January 1966 and when they were checkmated by the counter coup of July 1966 they now decided to secede in 1967 and create Biafra. I wonder what coldie,Giddygiddy and LOVEALAIGBO have to say on this?

In addition to eyeing the Oil which was only discovered in the Coastal regions three years after he made that speech.

Adaka Boro proclaimed the Republic of Niger Delta in February 1966 shortly after the 1st coup. He was incarcerated and sentenced to death by the same individuals who declared Biafra a year later and attempted to drag the Oil-rich Niger Delta along.

ComrDaprince:
FIRSTLY NNAMDI AZIKIWE HAS NO IDENTITY. NO HOUSE,NO TRACE. THE ONLY THING HE IS REMEMBERED TODAY OF IS HE BELONGS TO ROADS.
2NDLY..NATURE WORKS WITH TIME.. NOTHING REMAINS FOREVER THE SAME.CHANGE IS CONSTANT...
3RDLY.. ITS TIME FOR SEPERATION. EVERYONE MUST ANSWER THE HOME CALL OF NATURE GOD. TIME WILL TELL ABOUT THIS PROPHESY.
THIS IS THE MESSAGE OF THE RISING SUN.

You can't reject Azikiwe and at the same time make excuses for the Zikist coup plotters who were inspired by Azikiwe's pseuodo-marxist one invoilable Nigeria yoked together on the handed down colonial template ruled under a centrist system .

The same Zikist that saw Ironsi into power also saw Ironsi pass Decree 34 that had Azikiwe's hand writing all over it. Even Azikiwe, who was conviniently in Haiti, welcomed Decree 34 when it was passed by his disciples in Ironsi's cabinet. Ojukwu himself was the only military governor to even applaud it but will later call for a return to the status quo.

The same Zikists in Ironsi's military govt will later join their fellow Zikist in Enugu to declare "independence" from Nigeria . This independence from Nigeria in the form of Biafra declaration was only a ruse to buy time for the Zikist to regroup and attempt to retake Nigeria by force as we can see from the annexation of the then neutral Midwest and the offensive towards retaking Lagos and the Midwest.

Biafra has always been fake because Ibo nationalism doesn't exist and can't exist for a myriad of cultural, social, historical and economic reasons that space and time will not allow me to divulge into .

He’s thought was for a better Nigeria where there is no tribalism and religious bigotry but unfortunately for him, he was joking

A big joker!

Interesting

flokii:
The real definition of "betrayer"

Fast forward to present day, his ignorant kiths and their offsprings are busy blaming Awolowo and Yorubas for not allowing them secede when Azikowe and the Igbos in 60s' made the laws that criminalized secession.

They want to change rules of the game after matxh has started.. cunning bunch.

Biafra was not in anyway a seccesionist movement but rather a time-out for the Zikists in Enugu to regroup and restrategize towards reclaiming power at the centre.

They have never and will never ever be serious about leaving Nigeria as their goal has always and will always be to dominate at the centre.

How can one explain the 180 they did from IPOB to Obidient over their ethnic champion running for the presidency?

Ttipsy:
He’s thought was for a better Nigeria where there is no tribalism and religious bigotry but unfortunately for him, he was joking

A big joker!

It's a classic communist revolutionary trope to first dangle universal equality and have the diverse people united under one umbrella to use to achieve power.

The Islamic Revolution in the north saw to Fulani hegemony


The so-called Russian Revolution saw to the Jewish Bolsheviks

Every Marxist revolution has at its core an ethnic/racial agenda.

confusedlady:


The point I am raising is that the Ibo were against referendum and seccession in the beginning because they felt that they had a very good chance to be the leaders in an emerging country. It was when they failed to achieve that leadership politically that their military wing decided to execute the coup of January 1966 and when they were checkmated by the counter coup of July 1966 they now decided to secede in 1967 and create Biafra. I wonder what coldie,Giddygiddy and LOVEALAIGBO have to say on this?

Didn't Ojukwu contest to be President of the same Nigeria after leading his fathers, mothers, sisters, brothers, children to wanton slaughter and miserable kwashiorkor in the name of Biafra?!

Didn't Nnamdi Kanu supporters of Biafra and example giddygiddy become supporters of Peter Obi to become the president of same Nigeria they call a 'zoo'?

Don't they always refer to Good luck Jonathan's government because they government suit them?

It's all about their SELFISH INTEREST. They keep swinging like a pendulum to where ever their selfish interest lies.

To be honest. If it's in my powers, I will let Igbos go in a twinkle of and eye.

Hehehe

They were granted Biafra but that wasn't enough for them.

They still wanted to grab lands which was what led to the civil war.

We once gave them but they misused that opportunity.

We won't give them until we feel it's the right time and they won't dictate to us when to give them because a slave does not dictate to his master.

AntiMarxist:


Sharap and face the topic


You should be condemning that Marxist pig, Zik for welding Nigeria together .


What Awo saw in 1951, Zik is yet to see in hell where he is .

The one Nigerianists have arrived to analyse a speech of over 70 years ago, so as to protect their useless 'one Nigeria'

NaMe4:


In addition to eyeing the Oil which was only discovered in the Coastal regions three years after he made that speech.

Adaka Boro proclaimed the Republic of Niger Delta in February 1966 shortly after the 1st coup. He was incarcerated and sentenced to death by the same individuals who declared Biafra a year later and attempted to drag the Oil-rich Niger Delta along.

This is one part of history Igbos wish could be erased but unfortunately for them, they can't erase it.

Adaka Boro declared Republic of Niger Delta for his own people to exit the union, Aguiyi Ironsi and Ojukwu especially went all out to crush Adaka Boro and his soldiers (they killed many of the soldiers from that part), only for him (Ojukwu) to declare biafra and commit the same crime Boro committed months later after Aguiyi Ironsi's dictatorship got toppled by the North.

We all know the story of how the minorities in the creeks backed the Federal troops to invade and crush biafra.. even Adaka Boro after his release fought on the Nigerian side against Ojukwu out of hunger for revenge over the inhumane treatment he got from the Igbos.

If he encouraged secession, problem, if he discouraged secession, problem. What exactly do this descendants of Ham want.

Assuming he encouraged it ,they would have used it to fight his political career to a dead end , now he has discouraged it they are still using I to fight him. The problem is not Nnamdi Azikiwe but a mindset issue from people from certain parts of present-day Nigeria.

If he discouraged it and Southern Cameroon seceded then you have your self to blame

AntiMarxist:


It's a classic communist revolutionary trope to first dangle universal equality and have the diverse people united under one umbrella to use to achieve power.

The Islamic Revolution in the north saw to Fulani hegemony


The so-called Russian Revolution saw to the Jewish Bolsheviks

Every Marxist revolution has at its core an ethnic/racial agenda.

The point Is that we have a huge gap on the way we reason. Travel From North to south and west !
We have ideological differences.

Zik was actually a joker, he never knew it can’t be sustainable

gidgiddy:


The one Nigerianists have arrived to analyse a speech of over 70 years ago, so as to protect their useless 'one Nigeria'

See this one.

I am a Nigeria but one who believes in return to regionalism. I am pragmatic enough to understand that dividing Nigeria will not be possible without first ensuring adequate weaning process so that you Leachers in the SE can stand on your own two feet and see your region as your boundary.


The real one Nigerianists are the Zikist that used Biafra declaration to buy time and will later attempt a putsch to retake Lagos and the western region after invading and occupying Midwest .

You guys are the real original one Nijeriya peeps that you are scattered all over the place and still decieving yourselves shouting "Biafla".

Do us a favour and show us you mean what you are ranting about and relocate back to your SE.

AntiMarxist:


Biafra was not in anyway a seccesionist movement but rather a time-out for the Zikists in Enugu to regroup and restrategize towards reclaiming power at the centre.

They have never and will never ever be serious about leaving Nigeria as their goal has always and will always be to dominate at the centre.

How can one explain the 180 they did from IPOB to Obidient over their ethnic champion running for the presidency?

No one tribe will dominate Nigeria.. it will never ever happen.

That's even the more reason we are pushing for return to regional system of governance so we can kill any evil agenda nurtured in any part of the country for good.

After PBAT's 8 years, power will go back to the North, preferrably North Central this time.

kettykin:
If he encouraged secession, problem, if he discouraged secession, problem. What exactly do this descendants of Ham want.

Assuming he encouraged it ,they would have used it to fight his political career to a dead end , now he has discouraged it they are still using I to fight him. The problem is not Nnamdi Azikiwe but a mindset issue from people from certain parts of present-day Nigeria.

If he discouraged it and Southern Cameroon seceded then you have your self to blame

The western Cameroun issue was never in the hands of Zik to decide .

Rather the people of western Cameroun pettitoned the British Governor-General to have a plebescite to leave Nigeria citing marginalisation by the Ibo dominated House in Enugu.

The plebiscite was conducted by the British during colonial era few months to independence.

Stop spewing half truths

The igbos have invested too much in one Nigeria

AntiMarxist:


See this one.

I am a Nigeria but one who believes in return to regionalism. I am pragmatic enough to understand that dividing Nigeria will not be possible without first ensuring adequate weaning process so that you Leachers in the SE can stand on your own two feet and see your region as your boundary.


The real one Nigerianists are the Zikist that used Biafra declaration to buy time and will later attempt a putsch to retake Lagos and the western region after invading and occupying Midwest .

You guys are the real original one Nijeriya peeps that you are scattered all over the place and still decieving yourselves shouting "Biafla".

Do us a favour and show us you mean what you are ranting about and relocate back to your SE.

The one Nigerianists make me laugh, clutching at straws that have long gone, talking about Zik who has been dead 30 years, talking about relocation when referendum is yet to be held, wanting a country that can never be a nation. Anything to keep their long failed Nigeria going as one 😆 🤣 😂

Ikembeku:
The igbos have invested too much in one Nigeria

And by investment ,you mean seeing Nigeria as their inheritance after due dilligent servitude to the British colonilists.

AntiMarxist:


And by investment ,you mean seeing Nigeria as their inheritance after due dilligent servitude to the British colonilists.

I don’t respond to monkeys