Nigerian postcolonial thought and peace process In Northern Nigeria

Nigerian postcolonial thought has emerged as an important resource in addressing the conflicts in Northern Nigeria. It offers perspectives on the cultural articulations of people who were ravaged and transformed by the accounts of the colonial legacy of domination and distortion, in addition to religion, education and language. The emergence of postcolonialism as a creative literature became a resistance discourse that challenged the views held or constructed by the colonisers about the colonised. Through postcolonial literature, theorists and practitioners began rereading some canonical Western works that had misrepresented facts about Africa and African literature. They drew attention to the way the colonial powers had constructed an African narrative and then acted as if that narrative existed. They questioned and challenged colonial discourses and, in the same vein, mounted a strong defence of African identity. The aim of post-colonialism is to fight the lingering effects of colonialism on cultures and identity. It is also concerned with how we can move beyond colonial judgement and move towards a platform of mutual respect. However, critics of post-colonialism know that many of the assumptions that reinforced the concept of colonialism are still alive today as the new crop of leaders that emerged from anti-colonialism are now oppressors. This thesis explores Nigerian postcolonial thought and the peace process in Northern Nigeria and argues that Nigerian postcolonial writers provide the opportunity to dissect the causes of the dilemmas and provide a way forward. Northern Nigeria has been at the centre of ethno-religious violence and has seen an upsurge in religious fanaticism. Given the threat posed by religious extremism and its capacity to carry out violence across the Northern region, this research employs an interdisciplinary, postcolonial methodology which predominantly draws upon Nigerian postcolonial thinkers