Give six reasons for political instability in any one West African country after independence.

Answer Details

Taking Nigeria as the example, several factors combined to produce political instability after independence in 1960:

1. Ethnicity and tribalism: strong loyalty to ethnic groups rather than to the nation created deep divisions, mutual suspicion and conflict among the major groups.
2. Rigged and disputed elections: massive electoral malpractices, such as those in the 1964 federal election and the 1965 Western Region election, led to violence, loss of confidence in the system and a breakdown of order.
3. Corruption and misrule: widespread corruption, nepotism and misuse of public funds by politicians bred public discontent and undermined the legitimacy of the government.
4. Military intervention in politics: frequent military coups and counter-coups, beginning with the coup of January 1966, repeatedly overthrew governments and disrupted constitutional rule.
5. Census and revenue controversies: disputes over the population census figures and over the sharing of national revenue heightened rivalry and distrust among the regions.
6. Weak national unity and the colonial legacy: the amalgamation of diverse peoples into one state by the colonial power, without a genuine sense of nationhood, left the country divided and prone to conflict, which eventually contributed to the civil war of 1967-1970.