AFRICAN POLITICS

Discuss fully the impact of colonialism on Africa

Answer:

Colonialism is the direct and overall domination of one country by another on the basis of state power being in the hands of a foreign power. For example, the direct and overall domination of Nigeria by Britain between 1900-160.

Impact of Colonialism in Africa

The Major impact of colonialism in African is that it brought about the under-development of African territories in many different ways. The colonial education was not rooted in African culture and therefore could not foster any meaningful development within the African environment because it had no organic linkage. Colonial education essentially aimed at training clerks, interpreters, produce inspectors, artisans etc. which would help them in the exploitation of the Africa’s rich resources. It did not aim at industrialization of African territories nor at stimulating technological development within the African environment.

Another impact of colonialism in African is the disarticulation of their economy. Colonialism distorted African pattern of economic development in many different ways.

Identify and discuss the factors that influenced the decolonization processes in Africa

Answer:

Factors which influence Decolonization:

The advent of colonialism which most Africans regarded as chief cause of oppression and backwardness of their continent did develop its own contradictions that formed the seed of its own destruction.

There are several factors remote and immediate which gathered a head and set aflame the momentum that precipitated the emergence of decolonization and these include the following:

- The decline of European imperialism

The decline of European imperialism can partly be attributed to perhaps an advance in moral conscience which condemned domination and exploitation and also to the ego of the colonized coming out of imperialism with new found strength with their ability to persuade the world of the rightness of their cause.

Another very important fact is that imperialism has been drawing to a close precisely because it has been fulfilling the historic function of spreading abroad the dynamism inherent in the great western revolution of modern times.

The Africans, - the colonized, who were driven into the modern world by the so-called alien matters had learnt enough of a lesson to insist that, henceforth, they would themselves take control of their further advances into modernity.

- The wind of change in the global system

After the end of World War II especially in the 1960s the process which gave birth to the nation states of Europe were repeated all over the world. The global system witnessed the awakening of national consciousness in peoples of Africa, Asia etc who have for centuries lived in dependence upon some other power. Many countries of different races, creed, colour and civilizations pressed their claims to an independent national life. Such sweeping awakening of national consciousness was conspicuously felt in Africa culminating in their demand for self governments and independence. Thus a very strong wind of change blowing all over the globe blew also through the African continent giving rise to the high growth of national consciousness.

Others are:

- The demand for independence

- The United Nations and decolonization

Identify and discuss the general characteristics of a politically independent country

Answer:

There are certain general characteristics of politically independent countries. These are:

i. Political Sovereignty

This means that a politically independent state exercises ultimate political rights on the citizenry. Such states no longer take political orders from outside authorities and powers.

ii. National symbols

Independent states usually display their own national symbols. These range from national flag, national anthem, coat of arms, to lingua franca, that is, official language and even dress embedded in culture and tradition.

iii. Economy

Every independent state usually pursue specific forms of economic system and fiscal policy. This includes capitalist, socialist, and/or mixed economic formations or structures.

iv. Social reorganization and reordering

If the state is also usually pursued by a newly independent state. This also include, the educational. Health, transport and communications sectors of the people.

Examine the reason for military intervention in politics

Answer;

The 1960’s could be said to be the decade of African independence. Unfortunately, it was also the decade of military coups in Africa. For not long after independence these emergent states and their citizens were held hostage by a new tradition of military rule. Military coups terminated the new democracies in Africa before they took root.

Military in Politics

There are a number of theoretical explanations on the causes of military involvement in African Politics. The first could be referred to as the HISTORIC MISSIONARY THEORY OR APPROACH. In this approach, the military sees itself as the ultimate king having a missionary responsibility of ensuring the advancement of the nation, forging economic growth as well pursuing technological and humanistic advancement of the society.

Custodian Theory of military involvement in Politics. Commenting on this theory Ocran observes that some armies regard themselves as the Custodians of the state or the constitution, whose duty is to stand guard over parliament and see to it that those who conduct government affairs for the people do so in a manner that is in the interest of the state and in conformity with the constitution. The military therefore intervenes when the affairs of the state is not conducted according to the provisions of the constitution.

Apart from these theories of military involvement in African Politics, and drawing from it, are what could be referred to as the practical, immediate and, if you like, ‘mundane’ reasons for military involvement in politics. These will include corruption among the political class, ethnicity, unreliability of the electoral process as a result of rigging and thuggery etc.

However, the most important of these reason would be those that clearly and directly affect the interest and welfare of the military. These reasons may not be so apparent because of the often altruistic pretentious of the military. Some of these reason include:

a. Interference by government in military administration including promotions appointments and transfers.

b. Over attempts by government to indoctrinate the military with an alien ideology

c. Creation of rival organizations or armies, be they the presidential body guard.

The military in many cases ensure unity and stability by preventing the disintegration of their societies. Besides, the military has also been credited with having actually led some of the countries to higher levels of national development.

Identify and discuss the major problems associated with the study of African Politics

Answer:

African Studies and Problems

The tragic story of Africa and its nature propel is that for centuries before the arrival of Europeans and even during the period of the unfortunate rule of the continent by the colonial powers, no attempt was made to set up programmes of African studies to even educate both the citizens and the colonialists about Africa.

To the Europeans, it didn’t matter so long as they had a definite/defined goals of colonization; they knew the purpose of their mission and their ignorance about the African people did not matter to them because they saw nothing good about Africa hence it was not worth setting up such studies in schools and colleges, and even the higher institutions. It was not surprising therefore that they had a distorted notion of the content and its people.

It was not until 1948 when the United States of America set up the first African studies at North Western University during a period when most African countries were still the colonies of one European imperial powers or the other.

Prior to 1948, teaching about Africa was limited to particular courses at institutions such as the North Western University, Howard. Columbia, and few other schools involved in missionary work. This neglect of such an important area of studies can be attributed to the fact that African history itself was considered as an appendage to European colonial history.

Generally, the global linage of Africa and its people was shaped by their news media and the vast store house of distortions and ignorance inherited from uninformed past. Hence, Africa was for centuries regarded as inhabited by savages and barbariens and uncivilised people. The whole world then saw Africa through the eyes of Europeans who colonised it. It is important to note that in the United States from 1950’s and later, the growth of African studies units in Universities became noticeable as it grew from 1 in 1951 to over 40 in 1960.

The factors which change the situation – that is awakened world interest in Africa were:

i. The rush of African countries to independence in the late 1950s and early 1960s.

ii. The rapid growth of African Studies units in the Universities of the United States

iii. The Black American demands for attention to Afro-American people. It was the beginning of a new American challenge.

Discuss generally the activities of imperialism in Africa.

Answer:

What is imperialism?

Imperialism has been seen as the subordination of one country either militarily, economically, culturally or politically or the combination of these factors by another country.

The activities of the imperialist are as discussed below:

i. Direct colonization, either through force or by diplomatic/peaceful measure. Direct colonization, as we all know is a situation where a stronger power exercises direct political control, economic domination and exploitation of another peoples and territories for the material benefits of the exploiters.

ii. Technology transfer from the advanced and industrialised capitalist countries as being pursued by many African countries, including Nigeria is inadvertently accompanied by the transfer of imperialist values and patterns or orientation towards development into African states. This also applies to educational systems in African which have systematically followed the pattern set by the former colonial powers.

iii. Multinational Capitalist Agencies have been listed as constituting financial instruments of imperialism. Such agencies as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF). London and Paris Clubs are substantially controlled by the United States of America and its Western capitalist allies for the promotion and protection of international capitalist economy.

Pan Africanism is instrumental to the formation of the Organization of African Unity (Now African Union) Discuss.

Answer:

Before we go into the political origin or the historical origin of Pan – Africanism let us take a definition of the concept. Earlier Pan – Africanists define the concept of Pan-Africanism to mean essentially, that a set of political ideas asserting that Africa is a single entity which must unite. All the peoples of the continent are fundamentally similar. They all bore the yoke of colonialism. The peoples of Africa have a common struggle a common enemy which dominates and exploits them all:

Pan –African movement was first initiated by peoples of African decent in the Diaspora. The movement later enkindled the political zeal and anti-colonial vision of the emergent of emerging African educated elites and nationalist leaders from within the continent.

From the definition earlier given, one sees that Pan-Africanist movement was basically aimed at the emergence of a continental nationalist agitation. Pan-Africanism in this perspective views Africa as a single geo-political entity that must unite to constitute a continental anti-colonial force.

Origin of the Organization of African Unity (OAU)

The history of the OAU dates back to the Pan-African sentiments about African unity and solidarity, originating in the west indies and north America. Notable among the Pan-African nationalists included Marcus Garvey and Dubois. These were later jointed by the new African elites such as Kwame Nkurmah of Ghana and Sekou Toure of Guinea who brought the aspirations of the Pan-African movement home. The movement was based on the following general principles;

1. African for Africans; 2. African Federalism; 3. The African Personality

4. A new communalism 5. Gandhi’s non-violence coupled with Nkrumah’s positive action as a means towards independence for all Africa (Ejiofor, 1981:25).

The Roles of the Early Pan Africanists

In the year 1900, Mr. Sylvester Williams called the first Pan-African conference which was held in London hereafter referred to as the 1900 London Pan –African Congress. The ideas discussed at this first conference served as: a beacon light in the struggle for self-determination, the prerequisite to regional federations of self governing African communities which may one day evolve into a Pan-African federation of United State.

The phase of federations of self-governing African communities which was emphasised at the 1900 London Conference provided the background for the development of micro nationalism in Africa. In part, as Pan-African movement developed, micro nationalist movements appeared to have assumed first-place political priority even a hitherto envisaged continental/macro nationalist revolutionary force in Africa.

Pan –Africanism produced three forms of anti-colonial movement in broad terms. The first was the armed liberation struggle embarked upon by those subjected to settler colonialism. The second one was the form that took place in the French Colonial Territories which saw these colonies basically as departments of the metropolitan France. And the third could be found in the British colonies particularly the ones that went through the British colonial policy of indirect rule system.

The two ideas of Marcus Garvey and Due Bois continued to serve as the basis for an evolution or emergence and development of organized anti colonial movements in the African continent. The first of the two ideas was the provision of justification for the use of arms to overthrow colonial rule in Africa. The second idea was the expectation of an emergence of a United States of Africa after the liberation of the entire continent from the yolk of colonialism. Although this second idea failed to become real, it did provide the consciousness and impetus for African regional unity which was later attained in the form of the formation of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) in 1963.

Kwame Nkrumah and Pan-Africanism

He was regarded as the greatest African advocate and theoretician of Pan-Africanism. He was one of the active participants at the 1945 Manchester fifth Pan-African Conference. In fact he was the most outstanding radical Pan-Africanist to emerge from within the African continent to join with the founding fathers of Pan-Africanism at the Diaspora.

At the Manchester conference, Nkrumah was able to build upon Bois Socialist interpretation of Pan-Africanism. He advocated for Marxist-socialist strategy of anti-colonial movements in African in favour of armed liberation struggle. Tow main currents of thoughts became a little bit clear in the minds of anti-colonialist leaders in Africa after the Manchester Conference. The first one was the liberal-non-violent gradual approach to anti-colonial struggle and the second one was the violent armed struggle within the context of socialist – Marxist strategy. The 1945 March and October Pan-African congresses endorsed the Marxist-Socialist approach, thereby moving Pan Africanism not only away out of its infancy but also form its hitherto petty bourgeois political reformist stage.

Describe the stereotype belief about the African continent prior to the European expedition.

Answer:

Stereotype beliefs held concerning Africa prior to the European expedition:

i. Africa – The Dark Continent – Western World’s knowledge of Africa was (by 1960) most inadequate and ignorant. And also isolation of Europe from Africa for centuries was another factor.

ii. Information on Africa by 1960 were still scattered and disorganized.

iii. The missionaries, the business and industrial representatives and scholars etc have not systematically harmonized their date and information on Africa.

iv. The oldest myths about the whole of Africa being a jungle with lions (note that lions don’t even live in the jungles as they live in the grassland. This gives an idea of the European mentality then). Besides only 5% of African continent can be called a jungle.

v. There was also the myth of the African Race. The Africans are to the European/West supposed to be Negroes. On the contrary, many Africans are not. There are Caucasians colored people.

vi. Another myth was that African was “savage”. This myth began in the 17^th and 18^th Centuries when savages became a philosophical necessity for the emergence of Europe. The missionaries kept this myth alive in order to perpetuate their objective as agents of colonialism.

Explain the Scope and nature of colonialism in Africa.

Answer:

The Scope of Colonialism – Colonialism in Africa, stated with the arrival of the Europeans in Africa on exploratory mission which eventually led to the emergence of the trading companies. The European trading companies which stated to spread their tentacles outside the shores of Europe did so to counter the contradictions created by capitalism in Europe. The Industrial revolution led to the massive production of goods, the urgent need for market, cheap raw materials and labour. The need to satisfy the above factors necessitated the struggle for the control of African territories among the European nations.

As Prem Arora (1984:172) rightly noted: The Portuguese and the Spanish were the first to establish their dominions overseas. Soon they were joined by other Europeans powers like Britain, France, Dutch, etc. Soon Britain because of her mastering over the seas and industrial lead emerged as the most powerful colonial power. Britain steadily extended her sway over India, while France made encroachments in Algeria.

In a bid to settle the rivalries among the European nations, John Bismarck organized the 1884-85 so called Berlin West African Conference for the partitioning of Africa on a political table for the eventual control by the European nations. The conference was also called in order to avoid a possible out break of World war among the European nations in their struggle for the control of African Nations. According to Onwubiko (1973:230-231), the conference decided among other things:

i. that any powers claiming territories on any part of the African coast line should formerly notify the other powers taking part in the conference.

ii. That any such claims to territories must be backed by effective occupation, that is, by the establishment of an effective degree of authority or administration in the are concerned, before such claims could be recognized as valid.

iii. That there should be freedom of trade, in the Congo basin and freedom of navigation for the peoples of all nations on the Niger and Congo rivers.

iv. And that free access into the interior of Africa by traders, missionaries and other agents of all countries should be guaranteed by the occupying powers so that the slave trade would be finally eradicated and the materials and moral benefits of European civilization extended to Africans.

The Belgian Policy of Administration

The Belgian Policy of colonial administration was a catastrophe in terms of the evolution of a more advanced system of administration to the indigenous peoples of Africa. The system was at variance with any known colonial system of administration in Africa. While Britain and France engaged in concerted effort to groom Africans in the administration in Africans in the administration of their territory, Belgium neither involved her subjects in local administration nor with the imperial centre.

Belgium adopted a more paternal system of administration in her administration of Congo, her main colonial territory in Africa and this was anchored on racist principles. Ezeayika (1997:76), has outlined three main factors responsible for the paternal system of administration introduced by Belgium in her administration – of Congo to include the following:

i. The influence of the Catholic Church whose doctrines teach a hierarchic structure of society in which the rulers (or those vested with such authority must of necessity provide for the good life the common man.

ii. The man chants conception of life which dictates that workers must be happy to maintain industrial peace and harmony as a result of which, maximum output could be expected from their labour.

iii. The colonial philosophy which stipulated that it was desirable and positive to concentrate upon the efforts to increase the material possession and encourage the prosperity of the Africans in the Belgian territory and to use education as tool to equip them to playa subordination role in transforming their society.

The Portuguese Colonial Policy of Administration

The Portuguese were among the earliest intruders into the African territories. The Portuguese engaged in explorations of new nations. These voyages led to the discovery of India by Vasco da Gama and some African nations. The Portuguese unlike the Belgium did not provide education to the people in her colonies and kept them away from modernity.

The Portuguese were only compelled to introduce reforms following spontaneous riots in the colonies. In 1961, in the wake of Angolan uprising, the Portuguese government introduced a number of reforms and provided the colonial people an equal status within the Portuguese domain. She deliberately encouraged the Portuguese peasants and workers to migrate to Portuguese Africa to solve the problem of poverty and to strengthen-her hold on the African territory. In fact, because of her own backwardness, she had hardly any capacity to secure the advancement of millions of people overseas. This crafty art of the Portuguese to reduce the economic hardship at home by encouraging her citizens to migrate to Africa and engage in the unlimited exploitation of African resources eventually led to the emergence of settler societies.

British, Colonial System of Administration

The British Colonial System of Administration in Africa was the policy of indirect rule. Indirect rule has been defined as a local system of administration that made use of existing indigenous – political institutions. A number of factors contributed to the adoption of this system of administration in Africa. These include: Shortage of fund, staff, fear of opposition if a direct system was introduced, the success of indirect rule in Asia and India among other reason.

Britain in her colonial administration of Africa saw her colonial territories as nations that would one day be granted political independence in that regard, little or no concerted efforts were made by the British imperialist to invest in the African territory. There was the grand design to avoid as much as possible financial commitments in the colonies except measures that would enhance the –siphoning of the available human and material resources.

While avoiding direct from of government, the British colonial administrators encouraged the traditional rulers in the art of governance under supervision of the British officials. They were incorporated into the administration of their territories. Towards the tail end of colonialism, there was a deliberate attempt to groom an elite class (Comprador Bourgeoisie) who would provide a conducive atmosphere for the continuous exploitation of their fatherland even after the granting of political independence.

Discuss the factors that contributed to military intervention in African politics.

Answer:

The pre-colonial/Traditional Political System

Due to the ignorance and the inadequacy or lack of knowledge of the Europeans about Africa, they denied that the Africans had indigenous political systems. This negative position taken by the colonialists helped the colonial process and equally helped to justify their often inhuman treatment of Africans and their decedents in the Diaspora. However, it was through the work of two English anthropologists, Fortes and evans-Pritchard, of African Societies which led them to the conclusion that the Africans had political systems. In fact, they identified two categories of political systems in Africa. Namely

i. The political system with government and

ii. The political system without government

Centralized Authority

A concrete example of centralised authority is that of North Africa.

A concrete example of centralised is that of North Africa. Before the arrival of Arabs in the seventh century, the Berber peoples lived in nomadic societies with very decentralized authority based on kingship ties. The Arabs organized a confederation of these groups and attempted to nullify them by conquest. They established a capital at Fez in what is Morocoo today. Their confederation did not last.

Again in the eleventh century, more Arabs moved into Morocco and developed another Kingdom which was highly fragmented A “Sultan” headed the government in Fez and actually ruled through governors of nobles. The Sultan who claimed to be a legitimate ruler because of decent from Mohammed constantly attempted to build centralized authority around himself at the capital Fez. This developing kingdom was characterized by complex hierarchy of loyalty based largely on kingship in spite of the fact that there were developing cities with a measure of municipal government linked with central government, there were also religious organizations and craft guilds which were equally given promise. It was believed that beyond the area of the capital Fez, feuding tribal segments were constantly dividing and uniting outside any control from central government. However, religion, as basis for unity, gave special power and authority to religious leaders who, along with leaders of kingship groups played the most important role in problem solving relating to central control.

It was in the mid-seventeenth century that a single dynamic leader emerged and seriously began to build a unified kingdom. This leader Monlay-er-Rachid founded the Alawite dynasty, and by conquering some local religious and Kingship leaders consolidated his authority. He later built his core Kingdom around Fez that was fairly well under his control and with outlying areas established links and ties of loyalty.

Decentralized Authority

Examples of the decentralized authority brand i.e. that of the Igbo speaking people of Nigeria. The Igbo people for the most part had no centralized government. Before the arrival of the Europeans – the British, there were four viable political divisions among the Igbo and these were:

i. The Extended Family

This unit with at least twenty households had a leader but he was usually summoned by other men of influence and authority, such as those who had distinguished themselves in some way and older men.

ii. The Umunna or Localized Patrilineage

The Umunnas, grouped together and formed a village with a possible population of 2,000. the village leader was the eldest man of the Umunna, which is considered to be senior to the other Umunnas.

iii. The Village

In a single village all men participated in the political system. Age sets, title societies, secret societies and other cooperative organizations within which an egalitarian spirit predominate also had roles to play.

iv. The Town or Group of Village

This is the same as above but with larger units as it involves several units of villages.

Discuss the main features of a neo-colonial state

Answers:

Neo-colonialism is a critical concept in the study and understanding or analysis of African Politics in particular and in its subject matter of political science in general.

Definitions.

According to a dictionary of Political economy, neo-colonialism is taken to mean ‘a system of economic. Political, military and other relations imposed by the imperialist states on the developing countries in order to keep them within the framework of the capitalist economic system (Votkov, 1981).

It is further explained that Neo-colonialism is based on the economic backwardness unequal and dependent state of neo-colonial countries within the scheme of the world capitalist economic and political system.

Origin of the Concept.

Given the above definition and other similar positions on the concept of neo-colonialism, it stands out clearly that neo-colonialism could be traced to the political history of the origin and development of capitalism and imperialism respectively.

Characteristics of Neo-colonialism

i. Survival of colonial structures and value. – in any neo-colonial state, one finds that most of the imperialist structures and institutions continued to be strengthened rather than being decisively dismantled.

ii. Foreign Investment/aid-

iii. Intermittent Political Instability-Economic crisis and social dislocation is yet another feature. Many neo-colonial states display fragile political structures and processes resulting in the political and economic chaos.

iv. Dependency and distorted development – Any form of development that takes place in a neo-colonial country is usually distorted and superficial as a result of the depended nature of a neo-colonial economy.