What did tafawa balewa do for nigeria

December - January 15, was a Nigerian politician, and the first prime minister of an independent Nigeria. Originally a trained teacher, he became a vocal leader for Northern interest as one of the few educated Nigerians of his time. He was also an international statesman, widely respected across the African continent as one of the leaders who encouraged the formation of the Organization of African Unity OAU later the African Union.

He also encouraged cooperation between the former British and former French colonies. During his period in office, Balewa was faced with competing regional interests, rivalry between different political parties each of which were organized on regional as well as tribal lines representing the Hausa and Fulani north, the Yoruba south-west, and the Igbo or Ibo south-east.

He also had to contend with different visions of how Nigeria should be organized. On the one hand, some wanted union with neighboring states within a larger Federation. On the other hand, some wanted regional autonomy and a weak federal government. The December election was surrounded by controversy and allegations of vote-rigging.

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He was assassinated in an Igno-led military coup in January , the prelude to the Nigerian Civil War and to three decades of non-civilian rule, until the restoration of democracy in Committed to the federal system, Balewa responded to the civil unrest that followed the election by devolving, on an emergency basis, more power to the regions.

From the North, he defended Northern interests but also promoted national unity. However, the reality of the Nigerian situation mitigated against national unity. His assassination was followed by civil war and continued regional rivalry.

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If Nigerians could somehow have wiped the slate clean in , founding new political associations with national unity as the dominant motif, not communitarian and regional interest, a different history may have followed. Balewa's instinct was for unity but he was too entrenched in the communitarian system to nurture this in his young nation.

Nonetheless, his legacy can inspire Nigerians as they seek to knit a common national identity and to order their state so that all citizens are treated equally.