Constitutional Development and Inter-Group Relations in Nigeria: The Unending Dilemma

Awolowo's conceptualization of Nigeria as a mere geographical contraction occasioned to serve the interest of our erstwhile British colonialists and the postcolonial state collaborators clearly underscores her existentiality and the ensuing social and inter-group relations that has permeated the diverse groupings since 1914. Since independence in 1960, the leadership of the Nigerian nation-state for the umpteenth time with little or no results have engaged, dissipated energy and scarce resources as well as employed diversionary tactics/antics of constitutional development, reforms and amendment for enforcing the nation's continuity. The latent manifestation of this forced togetherness is exacerbated by various crises of marginalization, deprivation, self-secession agitation, Ethnoregional competition for state power and resource control etc. This paper critically examines the underlying dynamics and contradiction that characterized Nigeria 's constitutional development process that is meant to serve as the foundational basis upon which the essence of our collectivity is anchored. This paper concludes that until there is an all inclusiveness of the various diverse nationalities (whether majority or minority) that make up the Nigerian nation-state in altruistically having defined stakes in the nation-state, the present razz mantas that constitute the crux and modus operandi of our inter-group relations and interactions is nothing but a futile exercise that will not advance our national aspirations