1. In your own words, explain what indirect rule means. [2]
2. Why did the British colonialist adopt indirect rule system in Nigeria? [3]
3. Compare the success of Indirect rule in Northern Nigeria with that of Southern Nigeria [East or West] [5]
Answers
Answer:
Some British colonies were ruled directly by the Colonial Office in London, while others were ruled indirectly through local rulers who are supervised behind the scenes by British advisors. In 1890 Zanzibar became a protectorate (not a colony) of Britain. Prime minister Salisbury explained his position:
The condition of a protected dependency is more acceptable to the half civilized races, and more suitable for them than direct dominion. It is cheaper, simpler, less wounding to their self-esteem, gives them more career as public officials, and spares of unnecessary contact with white men.[2]
The Princely States of India were ruled indirectly.[3] So too was much of the West African holdings.[4]
In Africa
The ideological underpinnings, as well as the practical application, of indirect rule in Uganda and Nigeria is usually traced to the work of Frederick Lugard, the High Commissioner of the Protectorate of Northern Nigeria from 1899 to 1906. Indirect rule was by no means a new idea at the time, for it had been in use in ruling empires throughout history. For instance, in addition to India and Uganda, it had been practiced in the Songhai and Ashanti empires.
In the lands of the Sokoto Caliphate, conquered by the British Empire at the turn of the century, Lugard instituted a system whereby external, military, and tax control was operated by the British, while most every other aspect of life was left to local pre-British aristocracies who may have sided with the British during or after their conquest. The theory behind this solution to a very practical problem (a problem referred to as 'The Native Problem' by Mahmood Mamdani in his work Citizen and Subject) of domination by a tiny group of foreigners of huge populations is laid out in Lugard's influential work, The Dual Mandate in British Tropical Africa. Lugard copied the numerous empires before his time who had created and developed the indirect rule system. he is only noted for the ruling system because he first published a book about this system of administration called “The Dual Mandate in Tropical Africa,”
According to the British, Indirect Rule was a political doctrine which held that the Europeans and Africans were culturally different to this extent, Africans had to be ruled through the Africans own institution. To achieve this objective:
Chiefs continued to exercise their traditional powers over their subjects;
Chiefs were appointed for areas with no chiefs; and
Aspects of traditional government repugnant to “European ideas of what constituted government were modified.” e.g. the abolition of human sacrifice. But the truth and fact is that African scholars have recently refuted the British reasons adduced to explain the underlying reason for the introduction of indirect rule. Contrary to the British conception, it has been contended that the main reason was economic and not differences in culture.
It has been pointed out that the British were not prepared to pay for colonial administration, though interested in exploiting the colonies; neither had got enough resources to finance it. This economic question coupled with the shortage of or lack of White personnel in Africa at the time convinced the British that it would be cheaper to use the traditional institutions to achieve the same objective. The nature and operation of Indirect rule in Northern Nigerian, amply confirm these contentions. When Lord Lugard conquered the Sokoto Caliphate of Northern Nigeria, in early twentieth century, his limited resources in terms of men and money, made it impracticable for him to rule that vast territory. Fortunately for him, however, the Sokoto Caliphate already possessed a highly developed and efficient system of administration headed by emirs, with the Sultan of Sokoto as the supreme head. The hierarchical nature of the political structure was ideal for Indirect Rule because the British could control the emirs and the emirs in turn could control their people.[5]
Explanation: