Nigerian First Republic

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The First Republic was the republican government of Nigeria between 1963 and 1966 governed by the first republican constitution.

1 The founding of the First Republic (1963)
2 Presidents
3 Prime Ministers
4 Political Parties
5 Politics of the First Republic
6 Abortion
7 See also
8 References

[edit] The founding of the First Republic (1963)

Nigeria gained independence from Britain on October 1, 1960, and declared itself a republic three years later on October 1, 1963. The constitution and Westminster system of government were inherited from the British colonialists.

[edit] Presidents

Ceremonial Presidents during the Nigerian First Republic
President	Term	Party
Nnamdi Azikiwe	October 1, 1963 - January 16, 1966	NCNC

[edit] Prime Ministers

Prime Ministers during the Nigerian First Republic
Prime Minister	Term	Party
Abubakar Tafawa Balewa	October 1, 1963 - January 16, 1966	NPC

[edit] Political Parties

Action Group (AG)
Borno Youth Movement (BYM)
Democratic Party of Nigeria and Cameroon (DPNC)
Dynamic Party (DP)
Igala Union (IU)
Igbira Tribal Union (ITU)
Midwest Democratic Front (MDF)
National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons/National Council of Nigerian Citizens (NCNC)
Niger Delta Congress (NDC)
Nigerian National Democratic Party (NNDP)
Northern Elements Progressive Union (NEPU)
Northern People's Congress (NPC)
Northern Progressive Front (NPF)
Republican Party (RP)
United Middle Belt Congress (UMBC)
United National Independence Party (UNIP)
Zamfara Commoners Party (ZCP)

[edit] Politics of the First Republic

The country was split into three geopolitical regions — Western Region, Eastern Region and Northern Region — and its political parties took on the identities and ideologies of each region. The Northern People's Party (NPC) represented the interests of the predominantly Hausa/Fulani Northern Region, the National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons (NCNC) (later renamed to National Council of Nigerian Citizens) represented the predominantly Igbo Eastern Region, and the Action Group (AG) dominated theYoruba Western Region. The NPC took control of the federal parliament, and formed a coalition government with the NCNC. Ahmadu Bello, leader of the NPC, was poised to become the Prime Minister, but instead he chose to become the Premier of the Northern Region, and supported his deputy Tafawa Balewa's candidacy for Prime Minister. This raised suspicions amongst the southern politicians, who resented the idea of a federal government controlled by a regional leader through his designated proxy. In the end, Tafawa Balewa of NPC was named Prime Minister and Head of Government, and Nnamdi Azikiwe of NCNC was named President. At Nigeria's independence, the Northern Region gained more seats in parliarment than both Eastern and Western regions combined—this would cement Northern dominance in Nigerian politics for years to come. Resentment amongst southern politicians precipitated into political chaos in the country. Obafemi Awolowo, Premier of Western Region, was charged with sedition and convicted in a controversial trial. With incarceration of Awolowo, Samuel Akintola was elected as the Premier of Western Region. Akintola was widely seen as a tool of the North, and he presided over the most chaotic era in Western Region—one which earned it the nickname "the Wild-Wild West". This forced the Balewa government to crack-down on lawlessness in the West using military might.

[edit] Abortion

The political unrest during the mid-sixties culminated into Nigeria's first military coup d'état. On January 15th 1966, Major Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu and his fellow rebel soldiers (mostly of southern extraction) in the Nigerian Army, executed a bloody takeover of all institutions of government. Prime Minister Tafawa Balewa, was assassinated along with the premier of Northern Nigeria, Ahmadu Bello, and the Finance Minister, Festus Okotie-Eboh [1]. President Azikiwe's life was was spared — possibly because he was out of the country at the time. Major-General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi took control as the first Head of the Federal Military Government of Nigeria on January 16, 1966.