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Secessions, Majimboism and the Federalist Debate in Africa: a Comparative Study of South Sudan, Kenya and Nigeria

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Secessions, Majimboism and the Federalist Debate in Africa: a Comparative Study of South Sudan, Kenya and Nigeria UNIVERSITY OF NAIROBI INSTITUTE OF DIPLOMACY AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES SECESSIONS, MAJIMBOISM AND THE FEDERALIST DEBATE IN AFRICA: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF SOUTH SUDAN, KENYA AND NIGERIA KEVIN KARANGI KARIUKI R52/80323/2012 A RESEARCH PROJECT SUBMITTED IN THE PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE DEGREE OF MASTERS IN INTERNATIONAL CONFLICT MANAGEMENT, INSTITUTE OF DIPLOMACY AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES, (IDIS), UNIVERSITY OF NAIROBI SEPTEMBER 2014 Declaration This project is my original work and has not been submitted for degree to any other University. Signature.................................................... Date..................................................... Kevin Karangi Kariuki This project has been submitted for examination with our approval as University supervisors. Signature.................................................... Date..................................................... Dr. Ibrahim Farah ii Acknowledgments First and foremost, ALL Glory goes to God for seeing me this far. I am forever grateful to the following persons; Dr.Ibrahim Farah, the project supervisor, for his assistance, encouragement and guidance in making the project a success. I also thank all the lecturers who in one way or another have made this work a success and also for the knowledge they have imparted to me since I joined UON in 2012. I would like to acknowledge my parents, Mr. and Mrs. Karangi who have been loving and caring parents and supported me whole heartedly. I truly thank you for all the support you have given me. I also extend my sincere thanks to my brothers Ian Kimani, Martin Robi and David Kinuthia for their encouragement. I would also like to thank Mercy Gathoni for her words of encouragement and prayers. Gen. J W Karangi¸ Chief of The Kenya Defense Forces, for the assistance he gave me by providing research material and for sharing his priceless thoughts on the topic at hand which has led to a successful project. Thithi Karanja, for her love, positive criticism, endless support and prayers during the duration of this project. Lastly I would like to thank Sekou Toure for his positive critique of my work, which has made the Project such a thought provoking piece. GOD bless you All. iii Abstract The study sought to critically analyze the contribution of secessions, majimboism and the federalism debates to the ethnic conflicts as well as possible solutions to the conflicts in Africa with a focus Kenya, South Sudan and Nigeria. The study objectives were to establish the views, roles, and extent in which secessions, majimboism and the federalism provided solutions to the ethnic conflicts in African countries. This study was grounded on ethno nationalist approach which emerged in reaction to the modernist position which dominated the study of nationalism. Descriptive research design was used in the study where both primary and secondary sources were used to collect data. Interviews were conducted and data was analyzed qualitatively using content analysis. The study found out that secession could be reconsidered as a solution to ethnic conflict. The misunderstanding of pluralism and majimboism was a source of ethnic conflicts in Kenya resulting to the eruption of ethnic clashes in Western, Rift Valley, Nyanza and Coast provinces. The study also found out that in Nigeria, the federal structure was defective and had promoted bitter struggles between interests groups to capture the state and its attendant wealth; and facilitated the emergence of violent ethnic militias. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Declaration .................................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgments ........................................................................................................................ iii CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION OF THE STUDY 1.0 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Background of the Study ....................................................................................................... 2 1.2 Statement of Research Problem ............................................................................................ 4 1.4 Objectives of the Study ......................................................................................................... 6 1.5 Literature Review .................................................................................................................. 7 1.5.1 Federal Systems of Government..................................................................................... 7 1.5.3 Secessions ....................................................................................................................... 9 1.5.4 Majimboism .................................................................................................................. 15 1.5.5 Literature Gap ............................................................................................................... 17 1.6 Justification of the Study ..................................................................................................... 18 1.7 Hypotheses .......................................................................................................................... 19 1.8 Theoretical Framework ....................................................................................................... 20 1.9 Research Methodology ........................................................................................................ 21 1.10 Chapter Outline ................................................................................................................. 23 CHAPTER TWO:AN OVERVIEW OF SECESSIONS, MAJIMBOISM AND THE FEDERALIST DEBATE IN AFRICA 2.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 24 2.2 Definitions and Debates ...................................................................................................... 24 2.3 Secessions and the Logic Behind ........................................................................................ 26 2.4 Majimboism ......................................................................................................................... 34 2.5 Devolution of Power ........................................................................................................... 37 2.6 Federalism ........................................................................................................................... 38 2.7 Federalist Debate in Africa ................................................................................................. 41 2.8 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................... 47 v CHAPTER THREE: SECESSIONS, MAJIMBOISM AND THE FEDERALIST DEBATE IN AFRICA: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF SOUTH SUDAN, KENYA AND NIGERIA 3.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 49 3.2 Secession in South Sudan .................................................................................................... 49 3.2.1 South Sudan: Nation-building derailed ........................................................................ 51 3.2.2 South Sudan’s state-formation in a comparative perspective ....................................... 52 3.2.3 The Addis Ababa peace-negotiations ........................................................................... 55 3.2.4 Reconsidering state partition as a solution to ethnic conflict ....................................... 57 3.3 Majimboism in Kenya ......................................................................................................... 58 3.4 Federalism in Nigeria .......................................................................................................... 64 3.4.1 Overview of the Evolution of Nigerian Federalism ..................................................... 65 3.4.2 Contending Issues in Nigerian Federalism ................................................................... 67 3.5 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................... 77 CHAPTER FOUR: A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF EMERGING ISSUES IN SECESSIONS, MAJIMBOISM AND THE FEDERALIST DEBATE IN SOUTH SUDAN, KENYA AND NIGERIA 4.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 78 4.2 Emerging Issues .................................................................................................................. 78 i. Secession Debate in South Sudan ..................................................................................... 78 ii. Majimboism in Kenya ....................................................................................................... 91 iii. Ethnic Conflict and Federalism in Nigeria ....................................................................... 96 4.3 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................... 108 CHAPTER FIVE: CONCLUSION 5.1 Summary ........................................................................................................................... 109 5.2 Key Findings ....................................................................................................................
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