Boris Bursać

POSTCOLONIAL SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT AS THE BASIS OF CONFLICT IN NIGERIA

Nigeria is a very complex society with over 300 different ethnic groups, about 500 different languages ​​and extremely fast population growth with over 210 million inhabitants in 2021. The merging of these different groups and identities into one common entity has been a serious problem since the creation of the modern state in 1914., which colonial rulers have largely solved by force. When we analyze and observe Nigeria and its postcolonial period, we can say that it is at least turbulent and debatable, and at the same time imbued with problems of ethnic minorities, unequal income distribution formulas, asymmetric state structures, lack of real federalism, inability to publish accurate census figures, ethno-religious crises and so on. What is worrying is that these challenges are re-emerging in the daily lives of Nigerians as a threat to Nigeria’s existence. All this points to the visible complexities and contradictions of postcolonial Nigeria in five decades of political independence and almost two decades of democracy. What began with the annexation of Lagos and later the destruction of various kingdoms, ended with the creation of a new entity that included more than two hundred groups of people of different histories, cultures and orientations who are almost in constant conflict. The aim of this paper will be a detailed analysis of the postcolonial system of government and its impact on the emergence and escalation of conflicts in Nigeria.