POLAC HISTORICAL REVIEW (PHR) Vol. 4 No 1 January – June 2020 Pages 21 - 31 ISSN: 2476-8049 Website: www.npaw-jhss.com.ng

Social Movements and Rights Claims: The Case of Movement in Benue-Plateau since 1949

Nathan A. Yakubu, Department of History, Adamawa State University, Mubi, Adamawa State, . E-mail: [email protected]. GSM: 07068400734

Nathaniel B. Gimba, Luka, Department of History, Adamawa State University, Mubi, Adamawa State, Nigeria. E-mail: [email protected]. GSM: 08037462359.

Johnson H. Pongri, PhD, Department of History, Adamawa State University, Mubi Adamawa State, Nigeria. E-mail: [email protected] GSM: 08068170901.

Abstract The Nigerian state is in a dire quagmire. It is in a state of confusion and contradictions especially in her effort towards nation building. One of the major challenges is the cry of marginalization which cut across numerous minority groups from the colonial era to date. The Middle Belt Movement started during the colonial era as a group whose aim was to pressure the colonial government to establish a fourth administrative region to go along with Western, Eastern, and Northern administrative regions created by the Richards committee in 1948. The movement started with the name non- Muslim League (NML) in 1949, it then changed to Middle Zone League (MZL) in 1950 and finally to United Middle Belt Congress (UMBC) in 1955. This paper examines the challenges confronting nation building in Nigeria especially the middle belt struggle. As a social movement the Middle Belt Movement had led an organized and sustained campaign in support of a social goal which was the creation of an administrative region for the middle belt groups. The creation of Benue- as a result of its agitation changed Nigeria's political and social structure. The study relies on primary

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Vol .4 No. 1 January -June 2020 evidences and also sourced information from secondary sources of data. The paper, however, discovered a growing demand for more attention on the middle belt region as they are considered to be and continuously treated as 'second class' citizens by the northern political establishment. The paper finally argues that, though ideological difference are inevitable among two or more groups or religious faithful but ethno-religious motivated political marginalization can be curbed through an effective sensitization and people oriented programmes unbridled in a policy ofinclusiveness. Key Words: Ethno-religion, Marginalisation, Middle Belt Movement, Nation- building, Nigeria, Social movement.

Introduction It is often argued that establishing a vital definition of the Middle Belt is a difficult task. To properly capture the very essence of the true meaning of Middle Belt, it is imperative to identify and appreciate the geographical location, the population and the people of the area and the history of the people.1 The Middle Belt, include Benue, Plateau, Kwara, Kogi, Southern Kaduna, FCT, Niger, Adamawa and Taraba. According to Suleiman states like Kebbi, Gombe, Bauchi, Borno and even and Katsina contain pockets of non-Hausa, on Muslim population that may qualify as Middle Belters in the political sense of the word, since Middle Belt identity is often politically constructed against Hausa-Fulani, Sokoto Caliphate Muslim 2 identity. What do we actually mean by Middle Belt of Nigeria? This seems to be a very simple question but a difficult one in reality. In connection to this; Agaba argued that there is some difficulty finding sound criteria for this area and agreeing on its geographical and cultural limit.3 In a similar vein, Jonah has attempted to capture the meaning of Middle Belt. To him “The Middle Belt comprises people that existed in Nigeria with a consciousness, identity and culture that is different from the Hausa-Fulani and the Kanuri of the 4 North. A deliberate departure from the contemporary definition of the Middle Belt identity is necessary here because of the controversy associated with the term. The general definition based on ethnicity and religion is sentimental and exclusive, hence Ayaode has argued that the Middle Belt is an ideological entity rather than a concise geographical unit.5 The ideological conception of the Middle Belt was conceived and developed on the ideals of self-determination of the minorities in former Northern region of Nigeria

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Vol .4 No. 1 January -June 2020 appreciating their right to make political and socio-cultural choices. The Movement was built on the idea of a collective pursuit of common goals 6 distinct from those of the Islamic North. There is no consensus among scholars on what constitutes the Middle Belt region, while some scholars perceived the Middle Belt in the context of religion that is Northern Christians as against their Muslim counterparts; others perceive it to include all non-Hausa/Fulani speaking people of the North. Whatever definition one gives to the Middle Belt, one fact remains that this area has suffered serious political and religious manipulations by the Hausa/Fulani who are predominantly found in the 7 North East and North West geo-political zones of Nigeria. The aim of this paper is to look at the Middle Belt movement as a social movement vis-a-vis the deprivation the people of the Middle Belt have suffered and how it has served as a catalyst in propelling the people of the region to agitate for social justice, equality and emancipation from the Hausa-Fulani domination by demanding for the creation of an administrative region distinct from the Northern region.

Theoretical Framework The Middle Belt movement which started before independence was a reaction to colonial relationships and domination by culturally different groups. The reaction took the form of activating tribal support for creation of a Middle Belt region. This was meant to separate the Middle Belt from the Northern region which was purely dominated by the Hausa- Fulani. The existence of a plural society is an essential condition for the analysis of political problems with conflict models. This is specifically with the theory of internal colonialism which suggests that a situation of plurality exist with inequalities among the group members of the societies. This in turn produces potential and sometimes actual unequal socio-economic and political relationships between the different political groups, it also generate conflicts. The conflict is essentially between dominant groups and 8 the minorities.

Factors that led to the Middle Belt Agitation in Northern Nigeria Historical evidence suggests that a period between, 1804-1900 was part of the causes that led to the organization of the Middle Belt Movement and the activated political identities it used to gain support. The socio-economic and political experiences in the relationships between the

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Middle Belt groups and the Islamic societies (notably the Sokoto Caliphate) in the territories that came to be defined as the Northern Nigeria might best be described and explained in terms of imperialism and colonialism. These experiences were later recollected and they reinforced social and political support for the Middle Belt movement and the religious political identityin 9 organization in the demand for the creation of a Middle Belt Region. The exploitative and marginalised policies of the Islamic society on the Middle Belt groups contributed to activating minorities' identities and the organization of the Middle Belt movement in the north. This served as the roots of the colonial system which the British incorporated in 1900. Before 1940, the British colonial administration subordinated many Middle Belt groups to Islamic leadership through the indirect rule system. As such the Middle Belt Movement was a reaction to colonial relationships with the caliphate and domination of the non-Islamic societies in northern Nigeria. The reaction took the form of activating tribal support for the creation ofa Middle Belt Region. This was meant to separate the Middle Belt from the Islamic society into different units of the Federation. These conditions of subordination created a premise for the Middle Belt groups to exist as internal colonies in relation to the Islamic society. The years between 1950 and 1967 contained many political complexities. It was characterized by measures of political skills that were meant to reduce the spread of political consciousness by carefully building a patron-client relationship in the recruitment of leaders from the Middle Belt areas. This continuing relationship, often contractual, was in a manner where the Islamic society of the North provided rewards and services for willing collaborators among the Middle Belt groups in return for their loyalty 10 and support. More so, the relationship was described as one in which there was internal colonialism, with the Middle Belt groups existing in a dependent and subordinate position in relation to the Islamic society. To put it succinctly, the Middle Belt groups were considered to be and treated as 'second class' citizens by the northern Islamic society. It is such relationship that led to an unequal development of some sections of the North with concomitant consequences of the failure of social and political incorporation of some of the Middle Belt groups into the Islamic society and culture, despite the 11 success of territorial incorporation. It was in this situation that the Middle Belt groups found themselves as malcontents and their grievances subsequently became articulated by Christian leadership in the Middle Belt movement in the

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Vol .4 No. 1 January -June 2020 demands for the creation of a Middle Belt Region to adjust for their 12 inequalities.

Political Growth and Development of the Middle Belt Movement It has been argued that the Middle Belt movement was fostered by missionaries. More so, that the movement was sparked by adverse reactions to moves on the part of the colonial government. There is contention, however, as to what this spark ignited. The most influential version of the movement's inception was put forward by Richard Sklar. He presented the movement as reaction against perceived religious persecution. Sklar traces the origin of the Middle Belt movement back to the formation of the Birom Progressive Union (BPU) in 1945 by Patrick Dokotri, a former Catholic seminary student.13 According to Sklar, the original aim of the BPU was to agitate before the colonial government for improvement in the Birom's political and economic situation. The focus on a Middle Belt state only emerged in 1949 in the aftermath of a motion before the Northern House of Assembly to restrict Christian missionizing in the North. At that point Dokotri decided to join with a number of other Christian leaders to create the Northern Non-Muslim League, which quickly morphed into the 14 Middle ZoneLeague. The Middle Belt movement is most simply described as a concerted push by groups of Northern Christians across the 1950S to found a political organization of sufficient strength to pressure the colonial government to establish a fourth administrative region to go along with Western, Eastern and Northern administrative regions created by the Richards committee in 1948.15 The Western and Eastern regions were created out of the old Southern Province. They were both understood to be centres of Christianity. The Northern region was unfortunately taken for granted as a Muslim territory. Most of these provinces were officially listed as populated by traditionalists. However, there were significant Christian minorities, and there was some expectation at least by Christians that over time these minorities would eventually become majorities.16 The case for a fourth administrative region then was a case for a regional home for Northern Christians.17 Groups of Northern Christians first came together in 1949 over the issue. Significantly, the organization they established was known as the Non-Muslim League (NML), a reflection of the shared perception on the part of the participants that what they had in common was a desire to be free of Muslim political control that was to be

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Vol .4 No. 1 January -June 2020 implemented throughout the Northern region as a prelude to 18 decolonization. By 1950, the name of the organization was changed to the Middle Zone League (MZL) to signal the commitment of their members to the idea that their political concern would be best addressed by the creation of the aforementioned fourth region. Three years later (1953), the MZL, split into two over the issue of finding common ground with the Northern ruling elites. One of the groups that continued the agitation for a separate administrative region renamed itself the Middle Belt Peoples Party (MBPP). After some years of struggle, the two groups resolved their differences and came back to form the United Middle Belt Congress (UMBC) in 1955, which later in 1958, went into an alliance with the Action Group (AG). The UMBC embraced the political platform of the AG, which proposed a decentralised constitution that will allow ethnic groups in Nigeria have real say in the 19 determination of local affairs. The preferential treatment given to the Muslims by the colonial government provoked strong reactions by Middle Belt societies. This led to increased agitations for a demand for the creation of a separate region for the various minority groups. It was this development that necessitated the setting up of the Henry Willink Commission of 1957.20 The Willink Commission clearly saw the justification for the creation of Middle Belt as a separate region. It was noted among other things that “it is sections of the population which the Northern system has touched little, round which rather than over which, it has flowed, which has never been absorbed into the system but merely enclosed within”.21 Despite admitting this reality, the commission could not recommend the creation of the Middle Belt State. Following the granting of self-rule in 1959, it was discouraging that most of the leaders of the Middle Belt struggle were subsequently co-opted into the Northern Peoples' Congress (NPC) establishment.22 Despite this, the movement was kept alive until after independence was granted in 1960. Among the most prominent founding fathers that kept the Middle Belt movement and strengthen it in the post independent period were Joseph Tarka, David Lot, Jonah Asadugu, Patrick Dokotri, Moses Rwang, and Jonathan A. Achimugu 23 among others.

Impact of the Middle Belt Movement in Nigeria The events of 15thJanuary and July 29th1966 marked a watershed in the Middle Belt struggle. The July 29 coup seemingly returned power to the southern section of the northern region (Middle Belt). The coup, which was

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Vol .4 No. 1 January -June 2020 a product of the “Northern” patriotic alliance between politicians and the military class gave J.S. Tarka the opportunity influence decision of the new military regime to create new states. The decision was convenient for the military regime as Gowon saw state creation as a strategy to undercut Ojukwu's plan for secession. Gowon partitioned the country into twelve states on 27th May, 1967. This represented the highest point of achievement for Middle Belt struggle as Benue-Plateau State was created along eleven 24 others. However, the newly created Benue-Plateau State excluded some Middle Belt areas in Southern , the Sayawa and Tangale in the present day Southern Bauchi and Gombe states respectively. In spite of this, the creation of Benue-Plateau state was seen as a fulfilment of the aspiration for independence from the Hausa-Fulani oligarchy.25 Little wonder Governor J.D. Gomwalk, embarked on life-changing infrastructural development in the new state to make up for the infrastructural deficit the region had suffered. His burning passion for the emancipation of not only Benue- Plateau, but the entire Middle Belt from the shackles of the core Northern Oligarchy, pushed him to embark on enduring human capital resource development, especially those that have to do with enlightenment and emancipation of the Middle Belt people. He established the University of , the Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH), the former Benue-Plateau Television operating with coloured television-the first in West Africa (now NTA, Jos). He also established the Nigerian Standard News Paper, Plateau State Secretariat, Government Teachers College (now Government Colleges Jos), Jingre, Amper, Dengi, and Garkawa and a host of others.26 The Middle Belt movement has decidedly had a lustrous outlook, however, when looked at from the cultural perspective the political conferences and campaigns the movement engendered may not have produced the desired administrative region, but they did provide Northern Christians with a shared political consciousness that reinforced those Christians' sense of faith. As a result, Nigerians today can identify the Middle Belt, and even point it on a map. Many can also identify the people who live there as Christians. In summary, participants in the Middle Belt movement got their own space 27 even if they did not get their administrative region. The Movement's ideology was carried into the Second republic and beyond and it influenced the way politicians like allied themselves politically and the way their followers voted. Soon after the ban on political parties was lifted by the General led military regime in September 1978, Lar hit the political scene running as one of the

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Vol .4 No. 1 January -June 2020 top promoters of 'Club 19'. This was a political association he formed together with Mr. Paul Unongo in an effort to revive the United Middle Belt Congress (UMBC) after Chief Joseph Tarka, had made a complete political U- turn when he teamed up with his old NPC opponents in the National Party of Nigeria, NPN. While Lar made political headway in Plateau, Unongo could not make any impact in Benue, which led to NPNs in the area during the 1979 general elections.28 Although both worked assiduously between the period ban on political parties was lifted in September and the registration of new ones by the Federal Electoral Commission (FEDECO) in November 1978, they faced great challenges. At first they teamed up with Alhaji Waziri Ibrahim to form the Nigeria Peoples Party (NPP). They and other old NCNC chieftains in NPP, afterwards, invited Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe to join the party against Waziri's wish. Alhaji Waziri was given an option to either choose to become NPP's national chairman or its presidential candidate.29 Meanwhile, Waziri wanted to retain both positions, pointing to the examples of Chief Obafemi Awolowo's UPN and Malam 's PRP. This led to a split at NPP's first national convention in where Waziri and his men walked out and formed the Great Nigeria Peoples Party (GNPP). Chief Olu Akinfosile then became NPP's chairman (later replaced by Chief Adeniran Ogunsanya) and Zik ultimately became its presidential candidate; while Lar became its Plateau State governorship candidate. In a closely fought contest, Lar defeated NPN's candidate (former First Republic regional minister and close Sardauna confidant) Michael Audu Buba, Wazirin Shendam in the 1979 30 gubernatorial election. It must be noted here that Lar did not join the mainstream NPN where majority of the northern political elites pitched their political tent, probably to spite them and later use it as a bargaining chip to extract political mileage for his Middle Belt struggle from the NPN government at centre by entering in to coalition with them. Lar became the champion of what he called “The Emancipation Program” and earned him respect among the political class and the masses at large. This was widely believed to mean liberating the Northern Christian minorities from Hausa-Fulani domination, which made politics to have a very religious and communal colour in old Plateau State.31 The axis of three wise men- , and Lar stabilized the second republic by the wisdom they exhibited to enter the accord with NPN to form the government of Shehu Shagari. Matters were however complicated by the fact that Lar's NPP was a junior partner in the

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Federal Government through the NPP-NPN Accord, under which Plateau NPP's John Wash Pam became Deputy Senate President. When the accord collapsed in 1982, Lar accommodated some of the NPP ministers, including Mrs. Janet Akinrinade, as commissioners in his cabinet. In 1982, Lar forged a lasting political friendship with the then Governor, Mohamed . By this time Rimi had been forced out of his party as a result of PRP's factionalization and eventually took his Santsi faction to NPP. Unfortunately Rimi contested for governor on NPP's platform in 1983 but lost to PRP's Alhaji .32 The influx of the Santsi men into NPP softened Lar's Emancipation politics, at least in public rhetoric. This effort continued during the Babangida and Abacha transitions; their unregistered Peoples Solidarity Party (PSP) in 1989 became one of the component parts of Babangida's “a little to the left” SDP. Both men also served as ministers in Abacha's first cabinet, 1999-95.33 His alliance with Rimi continued right into the early years of the fourth Republic as they were among the founders of the People's Democratic Party(PDP). In between politics, Chief Solomon Lar was a leader of the Middle Belt Movement in its various manifestations. He had nothing to do with major pan-Northern groups such as and Northern Elders Forum. The Middle Belt movement has, no doubt, continued to inspire politicians in North-Central Nigeria as we have seen offshoots of the movement. One of such offshoot is the once headed by the likes of Professor Jerry Gana, Bala Takaya and now Dr. Pogu Bitrus. The Forum has also waded into the debate for Nigerian restructuring and how the Middle Beltans would want it done.

Conclusion The paper have shown that the Middle Belt movement has led an organized and sustained campaign in support of a social goal which was the creation of an administrative region for the Middle Belt groups. Through the collective action of its leader, Benue-Plateau State was created in 1967, which gave the region its religious identity that still remain powerful in Nigerian politics thereby bringing the desired change in Nigeria's social structure. As part of its impact, the movement's ideology has continued to inspire politicians in North-Central Nigeria as we have seen offshoots of the movement bearing different names. This in a long run has reduced tremendously the earlier political dominance ofthe northern oligarchy.

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Endnotes 1 Jonah C. and Vahyala T. “The Myth and Reality of Middle Belt Geo-Politics in Nigeria: A Discourse”, Journal of Culture, Society and Development Vol. 10, (2015). 2Suleiman S. as quoted by Jonah and Vahyala. 3Agaba O. as quoted by Jonah and Vahyala. 4Jonah and Vahyala “The Myth and Reality of Middle Belt”, Journal of Culture, Societyand Development. 5 J.A. Ayode as quoted by Lar. 6 Lar J. T. “A Dream Still Born: Historical Analysis of the Middle Belt Struggle in Post-”, Journal of Central Nigerian Studies, (2010). 7Jonah and Vahyala “The Myth and Reality of Middle Belt”, Journal of Culture, Societyand Development. 8 Logams P. C.as quoted by Jonah and Vahyala. 9 Logams P. C. The Middle Belt Movement in Nigerian Political Development: A Study in Political Identity 1949-1967, (Published by Centre for Middle Belt Studies, Abuja, Nigeria, 2002). 10 Logams, The Middle Belt Movement. 11 Logams, The Middle Belt Movement. 12 Logams, The Middle Belt Movement. 13 Richard L. S. Nigerian Political Parties: Power in an Emergent African Nation. (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1964). 14 Richard, Nigerian Political Parties. 15 Andrew E. B., “The Middle Belt Movement and the Formation of Christian Consciousness in Colonial Northern Nigeria” Journal of Church History Vol. 76, No. 3 (2007). 16 Andrew, “The Middle Belt Movement”, Journal of Church History. 17 Andrew, “The Middle Belt Movement”, Journal of Church History. 18 Andrew, “The Middle Belt Movement”, Journal of Church History. 19 Andrew, “The Middle Belt Movement”, Journalof Church History. 20 Ibrahim J., Central Nigeria: What We Do Know, What We Ought to Know, What We Do Not Know, University of Jos, 9th Inaugural Lecture, June 2000. 21 Report of the Willinks Commission as quoted by Lar in “A Dream Still Born...” 22 Report of the Willinks Commission as quoted by Lar in “A Dream Still Born...” 23 Lar, “A Dream Still Born”, Journal of Central Nigerian Studies.

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24 Lar, “A Dream Still Born”, Journal of Central Nigerian Studies. 25 Lar, “A Dream Still Born”, Journal of Central Nigerian Studies. 26 Lar,“A Dream Still Born”, Journal of Central Nigerian Studies. 27 Andrew, “The Middle Belt Movement”, Journalof Church History. 28Mahmud J.“Solomon Lar: The Emancipator Goes Home”, Daily Trust Newspaper, October 10, 2013. 29Mahmud, “Solomon Lar: The Emancipator.” 30Mahmud, “Solomon Lar: The Emancipator.” 31Mahmud, “Solomon Lar: The Emancipator.” 32Mahmud, “Solomon Lar: The Emancipator.” 33Mahmud, “Solomon Lar: The Emancipator.”

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