User:SafariScribe/Nnamdi Azikiwe

Nnamdi Benjamin Azikiwe PC (16 November 1904 – 11 May 1996), usually referred to as Zik, was a Nigerian politician, author, statesman, and revolutionary leader who served as the 3rd and first black governor-general of Nigeria from 1960 to 1963 and the first president of Nigeria during the First Nigerian Republic (1963–1966). He was widely regarded as the father of Nigerian nationalism for driving force behind the nation's independence in 1960.

Born in Zungeru, Colonial Nigeria in the present-day Niger State to Igbo parents from Onitsha, Anambra State, Azikiwe learned to speak Hausa which was the main indigenous language of the Northern Region, Nigeria. He was later sent to live with his aunt and grandmother in his hometown Onitsha, where he learnt Igbo language and the culture. After he had joined his father in Lagos, he was also exposed to Yoruba culture, and by the time he was in college, had incorporated the three major languages of Nigeria and cultures.

Azikiwe moved to the United States after his father's willingness to train him abroad. He attended Storer College and after two years left for Howard University. He later transferred to the University of Pennsylvania and Lincoln University where he obtained his masters degree in philosophy and religion and in anthropology respectively. He also has his doctorate at Columbia University. Azikiwe founded the ZAC, a football playing team following the segregation given to athletes and the incident that after he had contacted the colonial authorities with a request to represent Nigeria at the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics, he was rejected since Nigeria cannot participate. He returned to Africa in 1934, where he started working as a journalist in Gold Coast (now called Ghana). Azikiwe's writing career included journalism and he advocated in politics which would later lead to the Independence of Nigeria.

Family and background and youth (1904–1924)
Nnamdi Azikiwe was born on 16 November 1904 in Zungeru, Northern Nigeria, as the first son to Rachel Chinwe (neé Aghadiuno) and Obededom Chukwuemeka Azikiwe. His father was born in November 1879 to Chukwude Azikiwe from the Onitsha family of Molokwu and Mbidokwu, both belonging to the Ogbeobu quarter. He went to school in Onitsha and Asaba on the Onitsha River, and in 1902 moved to the north as a civil servant, serving as a governmental clerk to the army in the Nigerian regiment during the British Administration in Nigeria. His mother was the third daughter of Aghadiuno, a cabinet member of Obi Okosi and the great-granddaughter of Ugogwu Anazenwu, a former Obi of Onitsha. Obededom married Rachel who bore three children but one of them, a boy died at infancy leaving Azikiwe and his sister Cecilia Arinze.

Azikiwe's father with the aid of a tutor, taught him simple basic arithmetics. He learnt to speak Hausa fluently that when he walked a street, people called him "a Hausa boy". His father concerned about his son's education sent him to Onitsha to learn the Igbo culture and attend a missionary school. Azikiwe lived with his grandmother in Onitsha. He enrolled into Holy Trinity School, a Roman Catholic Church mission school for his primary education. Azikiwe's father, an Anglican insisted his son be transferred to Christ Church School, handled by the Church Missionary Society (CMS), where he attended regular and Sunday classes, and was made the student prefect of the school. Azikiwe was bitten by a dog, and after his father was transferred from Zungeru to Lagos, he joined his father by boat. He continued his elementary education from 1915 to 1918, and leant the Yoruba language. After his father was transferred to Calabar in Cross River State in 1918, Azikiwe went back to Onitsha in same year, continuing his primary education until his graduation. He served as the pupil teacher until March 1920. Azikiwe joined his father in Calabar, where he enrolled into Hope Waddell Training Institute for his secondary education from April to August 1920. Because his father was sent back to Lagos again, Azikiwe followed him, and continued his education at Wesleyan Boys' High School (now called Methodist Boys' High School). Azikiwe became eager to study abroad after listening to the speech of James Aggrey (1875–1927)), a teacher, scholar, and preacher from the Gold Coast, which he delivered in 1920 at Lagos. Hé Was also awarded a book which can help him learn about universities in the United States. Azikiwe excelled in academics and won prizes including from Lord Lugard, the Governor general. By the time he was done with high school, he has learnt the three major languages of Nigeria. After graduation he worked in the colonial civil service as an employed clerk in the Nigerian Treasury, Lagos. It was at that point he experienced the Nigerian government, and with frustration, resigned developing full desire of studying in the United States.

University education and early career (1924–1934)
Azikiwe applied for admission at Storer College, a black institution in Harper's Ferry in West Virginia. After revisiting those book given to him, Azikiwe selected Howard University in Washington D.C., whom he wrote to the President of the University (now called vice chancellor). In the letter he wrote, President J. Stanley Durkee replied to him and S. N Adibuah stating, " [sic] I have no available funds [at Howard] with which to help you. I can however put this up as a challenge." Azikiwe, with the response of Durkee to help with Storer college admission wrote to the president of Storer college Dr. Henry T. McDonald, who gave him good reply. Azikiwe, along Sidney Brown and John Anyaso, who desired to study in America met at Marina, Lagos in June 1924. They had small money as well as upkeep items with them, and boarded a canoe. They moved to Accra in Ghana, and then to Sekondi, where the three disembarked following Sidney's request. It was Azikiwe quitting going to America. After about three weeks, neither did he work or allowed to, since he was out of the three, the only one that went to junior secondary education. After Azikiwe's mother had found him, he returned home, and then, to Calabar to join his father. He persuaded his father of his intentions to study abroad citing his discussions with the presidents of the American colleges. Obededom, who wasn't conversant with oversees and lack of conviction, made effort to get Azikiwe work in the civil service under the Scottish legal professional Mr. G. Graham Paul in Calabar; those he had made up to study law in America.

In 1925, Azikiwe took some of his father's saved funds to travel to the United States to further his education. He didn't finish his college education in Nigeria. So, he enrolled into Storer College, a small schoolin Harpers Ferry, West Virginia for a two-year preparatory school. Azikiwe left Storer in the summer of 1927, and proceeded to the north city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Following hunger and lack of funds, Azikiwe at a time wanted to commit suicide after being knocked out of a game, where he was a spare partnering to professional boxers. Azikiwe washed      plates in restaurants, and for six weeks worked in a coal mine, where he mined anthracite coal which earns him twenty dollars.

Following the 1924 United States Immigration Act, a foreign student had either to be attending a full or regular course during the academic year inorder to avoid being deported in the next january. So Azikiwe started a car-washing course that he worked in garages. The work he did along his friend Bankole Wright from Africa too. They were expected to drive about, in and out of the garage; those they bribe their irish colleague to do when necessary. The Irish colleague got drunk one day that the boss of the garage noticed. However, he sacked Azikiwe and later Azikiwe's two alone proteges after knowing they never drive or knew what a gear was.

The economy kept diminishing that Azikiwe proceeded to Tuskegee Institute in Alabama to learn trade printing. He paused in Washington D.C., where he re-united with an old friend Cyril Olivierre. After Cyril had heard Azikiwe's condition, he helped him got employed as a part time private secretary of Professor and scholar Alain Locke. For the first time, under Locke, Azikiwe identified the issue staying in America.

Azikiwe started studying in Howard University from 1928 to 1929. He decided to transfer to a third institution Lincoln University in Chester County, Pennsylvania, into the junior this year class. He took the decision since he can't continue to afford the rate of Howard. Lincoln University was a small institution that took in African students from both the east and the west, offering scholarship, help, and opportunities when Africa is still emerging. Azikiwe was admitted during the 1929-30 academic year. He completed the first phase of his academic studies graduating with BA cum laude in June 1931. He further got his masters in anthropology from the University of Pennsylvania in 1933, and became a graduate-student instructor in the history and political science departments at Lincoln University. He also created courses in African history, and started his doctoral degree at Columbia University which focused on Liberia in world politics and was published by A. H. Stockwell in 1934 before he returned to Nigeria that same year.

Athletics and writing career
Azikiwe was good in sports and games while studying at Storer college. When football was brought into Nigeria during the Colonial Nigeria, local leagues were segregated. In 1934, Azikiwe who was denied playing founded his own club, 'Zik's Athletic Club'. In 1942, the club won the Lagos League for the War Memorial Cup, and in 1949, participated in a tour at England. While returning, the players stopped in Freetown, Sierra Leone, where they played in local leagues. The success followed the birth of football in Nigeria as well as the formation of the Nigeria National Football Team, which joined FIFA on 22 August 1960.

Azikiwe applied as a foreign-service official but was rejected because he was not a native of Liberia. By 1934, when he returned to Lagos, he was already well-known and viewed as a notable figure by the residents and the rest of the Igbo community, with regards to his writings in America which they heard. Azikiwe, through his education started teaching at King's College in Lagos. He accepted from Alfred Ocansey, a Ghanaian and became the founding editor of the African Morning Post, a newspaper based in Accra, Ghana. He run the newspaper as well as recruited workers and staff. During that period, he wrote "The Inside Stuff by Zik", a column where he wrote on nationalism and black pride. As the editor, Azikiwe promoted African culture and movement of nationalism. During Azikiwe's stay in Accra, he advanced his New Africa philosophy later Incorporated in his book, Renascent Africa (1937). Azikiwe returned to Lagos in same year, and founded the West African Pilot. The newspaper uses Dante Alighieri's "Show the light and the people will find the way" as motto. In that time, the media were established including the Southern Nigeria Defender in Warri, Delta State, the Eastern Guardian in Port Harcourt, and the Nigerian Spokesman in Onitsha. Azikiwe's newspaper venture was a business, and also served as his tool for politics and advocacy, Many of Azikiwe's newspapers emphasized sensationalism and human-interest stories; the Pilot covers sports and women and an increasing coverage of Nigerian events compared with the competing news source Daily Times. Azikiwe founded other business ventures such as the African Continental Bank and the Penny Restaurant, which he used his newspapers to advertise them.

Before World War II, the West African Pilot`s editorials and political coverage focused on injustice to Africans, criticism of the colonial administration and support for the ideas of the educated elites in Lagos. However, by 1940, a gradual change occurred. As he did in the African Morning Post, Azikiwe began writing a column entitled "Inside Stuff", which he sometimes tried to raise political consciousness. The paper's editorials called for African independence, particularly after the rise of the Indian independence movement. Although the paper supported Great Britain during the war, it criticized austerity measures such as price controls and wage ceilings. In 1943 the British Council sponsored eight West African editors including Azikiwe, who signed a memorandum calling for gradual socio-political reforms, including abrogation of the crown colony system, regional representation and independence for British West African colonies by 1958 or 1960. The memorandum was ignored by the colonial office, hence increasing Azikiwe's militancy.

Azikiwe had a controlling interest in over 12 daily, African-run newspapers. His articles on African nationalism, black pride and empowerment dismayed many colonialist politicians. East African newspapers generally published in Swahili, with the exception of newsletters such as the East African Standard. Azikiwe revolutionized the West African newspaper industry, demonstrating that English-language journalism could be successful. By 1950, the five leading African-run newspapers in the Eastern Region including the Nigerian Daily Times were outsold by the Pilot. On 8 July 1945, the Nigerian government banned Azikiwe's West African Pilot and Daily Comet for misrepresenting information about a general strike. Although Azikiwe acknowledged this, he is continued publishing articles about the strike in the Guardian (his Port Harcourt newsletter). He led a 1945 general strike, and was the premier of East Nigeria from 1954 to 1959. By the 1960s, after Nigerian independence, the national West African Pilot was particularly influential in the east. Azikiwe took particular aim at political groups which advocated exclusion. He was criticized by a Yoruba faction for using his newspaper to suppress opposition to his views. At Azikiwe's death, The New York Times said that he "towered over the affairs of Africa's most populous nation, attaining the rare status of a truly national hero who came to be admired across the regional and ethnic lines dividing his country."

Political career
Azikiwe became active in the Nigerian Youth Movement (NYM), the country's first nationalist organization. While Azikiwe supported Samuel Akisanya as the NYM candidate for a vacant seat in the Legislative Council in 1941, the executive council selected Ernest Ikoli, and thus, Azikiwe resigned from the party accusing the majority of the Yoruba leaders of discriminating against the Ijebu-Yoruba members and the Igbo people. Some of the Ijebu members supported him, thus, splitted the movement. Azikiwe became a full-time politician, and co-founded the National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons in 1944 along with Herbert Macaulay. He became the council's secretary-general in 1946. The party included notable members such as Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, Michael Okpara, J.O. Fadahunsi, Eyo Ita, Margaret Ekpo, Raymond Njoku, F.S. McEwen, Festus Okotie-Eboh, A.K. Blankson, Dennis Osadebay, and T.O.S. Benson.

Premier of Eastern region
Azikiwe became the premier of the Eastern Region in 1954 after a new constitution was put into effect. Azikiwe's Eastern region economic commission collaborated with Europe and North America in order promote investment for developments in textile, vegetable oil refineries, steel and chemicals in the region. He built the famous Nigeria Cement Company at Nkalagu in today's Ebonyi State, and it was commissioned on January 1, 1955. He built Niger gas. He also established Nigeria's first steel company, Niger Steel. He established Nigeria's first indigenous bank, African Continental Bank (ACB). The ACB's emergence caused the Western Nigerian government to set up the National Bank of Nigeria and the northern government to establish the Bank of the North. The ACB was instrumental to the emergence of a big entrepreneurial class in the East from the 1950s. The bank also played a critical part in the rise of the former Biafrans at the cessation of hostilities in 1970. He instituted education program that enabled Nigeria becoming the leading exporter of study abroad in Africa.



Azikiwe set up the Eastern Nigerian Development Corporation, which played a critical role in the building of the University of Nigeria at Nsukka, the country's first indigenous, full fledged university, in 1960. The University of Nigeria was founded on May 18, 1955, after a law to establish the University was passed under the joint auspices of the Inter-University Council for Higher Education and Overseas and the International Co-operation Administration (now USAID), J.W. Cook (VC of University of Exeter), Dr John A. Hannah (President of Michigan State University), and Dr Glen L. Taggart, Dean of International Programmes (MSU), came to Nigeria in 1958. The team surveyed the site at Nsukka, and extensively investigated a great variety of factors pertinent to the establishment of a new university. The foundation stone was laid during the celebration of Nigeria's independence by HRH, Princess Alexandra of Kent, who represented Queen Elizabeth II. Classes began on 17 October 1960 with an enrollment of 220 students and 13 members of the academic staff. It became the first University in Nigeria, the first university established by a Nigerian Regional Government, and in 1963, the first University to award Nigerian degrees.

In 1957, Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe addressed British and Nigerian delegates at the 1957 Lancaster House Conference, where the federal constitution for an independent Nigeria was prepared. The meeting which was chaired by the British Colonial Secretary had some Nigerian delegates represented. The delegation was led by Abubakar Tafawa Balewa of Northern People's Congress, Obafemi Awolowo of the Action group, Eyo Ita of National Independent Party and Ahmadu Bello of Northern People's Congress. On 28 October 1959, Governor general Robertson announced the dissolution of 184-member Federal House of Representatives with effect from November 1, 1959, so that independence election will be held. On 12 December, 1959, parliamentary elections were held in Nigeria to contest for 312 seats in the House of Representatives. Azikiwe's National Council of Nigeria and Cameroon (NCNC) came first with 2,594,577 votes and 89 seats. Awolowo’s Action Group (AG), came 2nd with 1,992, 364 votes and 75 seats. Tafawa Balewa’s Northern People’s Congress (NPC) came 3rd with 1,922,179 and 148 of the 312 seats in the House of Representatives. The three major political parties in the election could not get enough seats to form a government. Governor General Robertson called on Tafawa Balewa to form a government. On 16 December, Ahmadu Bello and Tafawa Balewa tried to reach a compromise on a possible coalition government between NPC and NCNC. Governor General was informed about the partnership, hence he approved a sixteen-member cabinet proposed by Balewa.

Nigeria Independence
On July 29, 1960, the United Kingdom parliament passed the Nigerian Independence Act in 1960. It provided for move for the independence of Nigeria. At the night of September 30, 1960 the Union Jack was lowered in a celebration ceremony attended by dignitaries. On 3 October 1960, Princess Alexandra who represented the Queen, opened the country's first Parliament, where a new constitution establishing a federal system with an elected prime minister and a ceremonial head of state was created. The coalition government of National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons (NCNC) and Northern People's Congress (NPC) was in power when Nigeria attained independence in 1960 with Abubakar Tafawa Balewa as Prime Minister and Azikiwe as the Senate President. Azikiwe succeeded James Robertson as the first 'indigenous' Governor-General of Nigeria. While the governor-general was only the ceremonial head of state, the position and membership of the Privy Council placed Azikiwe above party politics.

Governor General of Nigeria
Azikiwe was recommended as the successor to Sir James Robertson, by the British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan, during his visit to Lagos in early 1960. The post of Governor-General of the federation in titular terms made him the representative of the British Queen in Nigeria. Azikiwe's inauguration in November 1960, witnessed some of his colleagues in the Black Atlantic, some of them which includes Langston Hughes, Nina Simone, Dr. Horace Mann Bond, Ralph Bunche, W.E.B. Du Bois, Shirley Graham Du Bois, Amy Jacques Garvey, and George S. Schuyler. In his inauguration speech, Zik commented on "the need to revive the stature of man in Africa and restore the dignity of man in the world." Towards the end of his address, Zik said, "those of us, who may be rightly described as the makers of contemporary Nigeria, have ushered freedom into our country and preserved our unity as a nation," which "history has assigned to me an important part to play in order that this unity may have lasting effects and to bring home to our people the need to maintain it religiously." He also said "I shall not have consideration for personal comforts or even safety or even life itself, if these are the price I must pay for leadership in order to preserve the freedom and unity of my country."

Azikiwe attended the First International Labour Organization (ILO) African Regional Conference, that was held in Lagos, Nigeria on December 1960. In attendance were: Mr. Johnson, Labour Minister of Nigeria and Chairperson of the Conference, Mr. Demby, Labour Minister of Sierra Leone, and David A Morse, ILO Director-General. In December 1961 the American Society of African Culture (AMSAC) organised a large music festival in Lagos, Nigeria. American celebrities such as Nina Simone, Langston Hughes, and Lionel Hampton went on AMSAC's fully sponsored trip to strengthen African-American/African connections. They were welcomed by Azikiwe in Lagos.

On 17 November 1961, in a speech at the University of Nigeria in Nsukka, Zik made public his proposal for Nigeria to adopt a republican constitution while remaining a member of the Commonwealth. In 1962, Azikiwe urged African leaders in a Lagos conference, to create an organization of African states. The Lagos Conference drafted a proposed charter for an "Inter-African and Malagasy Organization" under Azikiwe's chairmanship. It was later adopted in May 1963 by the Organisation of African Unity.

In 1963, Azikiwe commissioned the first brewery plant built by Guinness outside of Ireland and Great Britain in Lagos.

Presidency (1963-1966)
The Federal Republic of Nigeria was established on October 1, 1963, with Abubakar Tafawa Balewa as prime minister (head of government) and Benjamin Nnamdi Azikiwe as president (head of state) and commander in chief of Armed forces. Prime Minister Tafawa Balewa proposed an amendment of the 1960 independence constitution to transform Azikiwe from Governor-General and redesignate his title as a ceremonial President. Balewa suggested that Azikiwe be named President in the 1963 constitution because Nigeria can never adequately reward Dr. Azikiwe for his nationalist activities and service to the nation. Therefore section 157 of Nigeria's 1963 constitution was titled Nnamdi Azikiwe to be President, and read "Nnamdi Azikiwe shall be deemed to be elected President of the Republic on the date of the commencement of this Constitution."

On December 30, 1964, Nigeria's first federal election since independence was held. The election was postponed for several weeks because of discrepancies between the number of names on voting rolls and on census returns. Six months after the election, an estimated 2,000 people died in violence that erupted in the Western Region.

1964 Crisis and Coup

Nigerian Daily Express reported on 3 March 1964,

"On attainment of Independence in 1960, our first attempt to ascertain the population of Nigeria was the census exercise in 1962. The then Chairman of the Census Commission was J. J. Warren. The result of the census showed that Northern Nigeria was half a million less in population than the South. The Prime Minister, Alhaji Abubakar Tafawa Balewa rejected the result sacked Mr. Warren and had him deported. The Prime Minister proceeded to order a recount in 1963. After due manipulation, the result of the census showed that the North was under counted by 8.5 million during the 1962 exercise which put the national population at 60.5million. The federal government under the Prime Minister scaled above the figure to 65.66 million. They scaled down the population of the North from 31 million to 29.8 million and allotted 28.8 million. The then Premiers, Samuel Ladoke Akintola, Dr. Michael Okpara and Dennis Osadebe of the West, East and Mid Western Region protested." The controversial federal election of December 1964 caused a massive crisis and ruptured the coalition government of the NPC and the NCNC. The elections were marred by widespread boycotts, rigging, intimidation, arson and violence which left Azikiwe so aghast that he refused to call Prime Minister Balewa to form a new government. For a few days, apocalyptic tension hung over the country until Azikiwe's sense of constitutional propriety prevailed.

Zikist movement
After Azikiwe had supported the general strike in June 1945, and his opposition to the colonial government which included activism, public speaking and his publication on West African Pilot, though was suspended on the 8th July of that year. Azikiwe accused the colonial government of exploiting the working class Africans, and in August, resumed the newspaper publication. During the strike, Azikiwe raised the alarm about an assassination plot by unknown individuals working on behalf of the colonial government. His basis for the allegation was a wireless message intercepted by a Pilot reporter. After receiving the intercepted message, Azikiwe went into hiding in Onitsha. The Pilot published sympathetic editorials during his absence, and many Nigerians believed the assassination story. Azikiwe's popularity, and his newspaper circulation, increased during this period. The allegations were doubted by some Nigerians, who believed that he made them up to raise his profile. The skeptics were primarily Yoruba politicians from the Nigerian Youth Movement, creating a rift between the factions and a press war between Azikiwe's Pilot and the NYM's Daily Service.

The youth united with enthusiasm and purpose, filled with zealous ideas about how to build a glorious sovereignty outside the controlling arms of the British hegemony. One such group of young people were the Zikists. A non violent youth movement, led by Kolawole Balogun, Raji Abdallah, Osita Agwuna, M. C. K. Ajuluchukwu and Abiodun Aloba, was established in 1946 to defend Azikiwe's life and his ideals of self-government.Kola Balogun was the first president of the Zikist Movement. In February 1946, Balogun sent invitations to about 20 young men in Lagos, inquiring of their opinion on the national issues. Out of the twenty, twelve of them responded, leading to the creation of the Zikist Movement, as those men became its founding members. Nwafor Orizu coined the term 'Zikism' from Azikiwe which became the movement's name. He was a non member of the movement but a close associate and admirer of Azikiwe, and one of the several youths Azikiwe inspired to study in the USA, alongside Eyo Ita and KO Mbadiwe. Raji Abdallah became the second president of the Zikist Movement, following Balogun's departure to London, serving from 1948 to 1949. He was instrumental in getting northern support and membership for the movement. Abdallah and Osita Agwuna (his deputy) had just formed the Anti-Colour Bar Movement (ACBM) in Kano, which was opposed to racial discrimination segregating whites and blacks in Nigeria. The ACBM later dissolved into the larger Zikist Movement. Similar to Balogun, in 1948, Abdallah was dismissed from his job with the Kano Rediffusion Service, a radio broadcasting service. The dismissal led him to get more involved with the Zikist Movement. He was fired because his involvement in the Zikist Movement was considered too overtly political for a civil servant. Abdallah was later arraigned on November 7, 1948 at the Lagos High Court, where he gave a speech, thus saying, "This is an important day indeed. The most important, perhaps in the history of our country. I call it the most-important because it is today that we have to decide, whether we are to be free or remain hereditary bondsmen, who knows not that they must be free?" "I hate the Union Jack with all my heart. Because save in Britain, wherever it goes; far from uniting, it divides the people. I have nothing against King George VI of England. But hate the Crown of Britain with all my heart. Because to me and my countrymen, it is a symbol of oppression, a symbol of persecution and in short, a material manifestation of iniquity. We have passed the age of petition. We have passed the age of resolution. We have passed the age of diplomacy. This is the age of action. Plain, blunt and positive action. Therefore, I am here this evening, to call a spade a spade, an axe an axe, and a machete, a machete." "Today, I, Habibu Raji Abdallah, by the grace of God, President General of the Zikist Movement and Field Secretary of the NCNC, do hereby, declare myself a free and independent citizen of Nigeria. I owe no allegiance to any foreign Government, and in the absence of any' government of the people by the people and for the people of Nigeria'; I am henceforth, not bound to obey any law, other than the Nigerian Native Laws, Customs and International Laws. Therefore, I shall pay no more tax to this Government.Because if you pay, they will use that money to perpetuate their domination over you." Upon his sentence, he reacted in mitigation to the presiding judge, Justice Gregg, saying, "if you sincerely believe that it is a crime to fight for freedom, then by all means, condemn me to death. Were I to be set free today, I cannot give assurance to muzzle my tongue. As for me, my conscience being clear, I shall be satisfied to leave the final verdict to God and His unfathomable river of time. So, proceed to fulfill the pleasure of those who put you here. I shall leave the final verdict to God." His famous phrases travelled beyond the borders of Nigeria and was adopted by Kwame Nkrumah's Convention Peoples Party (CPP) of the Gold Coast (now Ghana). The Colonial Government did not take kindly to the revolutionary undertones of Abdallah's message. As a result, Abdallah along with nine other leaders of the Zikist Movement were arrested and charged with sedition. This crackdown on Zikist leadership led to another round of reorganization within the Zikist Movement, allowing Nduka Eze to emerge as president, after Abdallah's imprisonment, and Mokwugo Okoye as secretary-general. Zikists, in time, outgrew the NCNC, becoming more nationalist than their parent organization. Colonial officers deemed the Zikist movement an unlawful society and promulgated an Order-in-Council, outrightly banning the Zikist Movement on April 12, 1950. The group later dismantled and its members transitioned to politics, business, and traditional rulership.

Opposition to Richards constitution
In 1945, British governor Arthur Richards presented proposals for a revision of the Clifford constitution of 1922. Included in the proposal was an increase in the number of nominated African members to the Legislative Council. However, the changes were opposed by nationalists such as Azikiwe. NCNC politicians opposed unilateral decisions made by Arthur Richards and a constitutional provision allowing only four elected African members; the rest would be nominated candidates. The nominated African candidates were loyal to the colonial government, and would not aggressively seek self-government. Another basis of opposition was little input for the advancement of Africans to senior civil-service positions. The NCNC prepared to argue its case to the new Labour government of Clement Attlee in Britain. A tour of the country was begun to raise awareness of the party's concerns and to raise money for the UK protest. NCNC president Herbert Macaulay died during the tour, and Azikiwe assumed leadership of the party. He led the delegation to London and, in preparation for the trip, traveled to the US to seek sympathy for the party's case. Azikiwe met Eleanor Roosevelt at Hyde Park, and spoke about the "emancipation of Nigeria from political thralldom, economic insecurity and social disabilities". The UK delegation included Azikiwe, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, Zanna Dipcharima, Abubakar Olorunimbe, P. M. Kale, Adeleke Adedoyin and Nyong Essien. They visited the Fabian Society's Colonial Bureau, the Labor Imperial Committee and the West African Students' Union to raise awareness of its proposals for amendments to the 1922 constitution. Included in the NCNC proposals was consultation with Africans about changes to the Nigerian constitution, more power to the regional House of Assemblies and limiting the powers of the central Legislative Council to defense, currency and foreign affairs. The delegation submitted its proposals to the colonial secretary, but little was done to change to Richards' proposals. The Richards constitution took effect in 1947, and Azikiwe contested one of the Lagos seats to delay its implementation.

1950–1953
Under the Richards constitution, Azikiwe was elected to the Legislative Council in a Lagos municipal election from the National Democratic Party (an NCNC subsidiary). He and the party representative did not attend the first session of the council, and agitation for changes to the Richards constitution led to the Macpherson constitution. The Macpherson constitution took effect in 1951 and, like the Richards constitution, called for elections to the regional House of Assembly. Azikiwe opposed the changes, and contested for the chance to change the new constitution. Staggered elections were held from August to December 1951. In the Western Region (where Azikiwe stood), two parties were dominant: Azikiwe's NCNC and the Action Group. Elections for the Western Regional Assembly were held in September and December 1951 because the constitution allowed an electoral college to choose members of the national legislature; an Action Group majority in the house might prevent Azikiwe from going to the House of Representatives. He won a regional assembly seat from Lagos, but the opposition party claimed a majority in the House of Assembly and Azikiwe did not represent Lagos in the federal House of Representatives. In 1951, he became leader of the Opposition to the government of Obafemi Awolowo in the Western Region's House of Assembly. Azikiwe's non-selection to the national assembly caused chaos in the west. An agreement by elected NCNC members from Lagos to step down for Azikiwe if he was not nominated broke down. Azikiwe blamed the constitution, and wanted changes made. The NCNC (which dominated the Eastern Region) agreed, and committed to amending the constitution.

Azikiwe moved to the Eastern Region in 1952, and the NCNC-dominated regional assembly made proposals to accommodate him. Although the party's regional and central ministers were asked to resign in a cabinet reshuffle, most ignored the request. The regional assembly then passed a vote of no confidence on the ministers, and appropriation bills sent to the ministry were rejected. This created an impasse in the region, and the lieutenant governor dissolved the regional house. A new election returned Azikiwe as a member of the Eastern Assembly. He was selected as Chief Minister, and became premier of Nigeria's Eastern Region in 1954 when it became a federating unit.

Later life and death
When the opposition leader, Obafemi Awolowo was charged with treason by Balewa’s government, it led to a lot of criticism by Balewa’s supporters. Violence broke out in the region after elections took place in 1965; as many were not pleased with the outcome. The tension and violence in the area eventually led to the coup in 1966. Balewa was assassinated on January 15, 1966 in a military coup led by rebellion junior soldiers in Lagos. Premier Samuel Akintola of the Western Region, Finance Minister, Festus Okotie-Eboh, Premier Ahmadu Bello of the Northern Region were also deposed and killed too. According to Max Silloun, he stated “In the aftermath of the coup, Nzeogwu rattled off a list of names that were on the Majors hit list. He mentioned the usual unsurprising suspects such as Bello, Azikiwe, and Akintola. Balewa's name was conspicuously absent. Balewa was not killed until it was clear that the coup was doomed to fail. It was clear that not all arrested persons were to be killed. Some politicians such as Sir Kashim Ibrahim and Michael Okpara were arrested but released unharmed.” The Supreme Military Council (SMC) headed by General Johnson Aguyi-Ironsi, as the most senior officer, took control of the government and suspended the constitution on January 16, 1966. Some 3,000 Nigerians fled as refugees to Dahomey.

The Nigerian government abolished the four federal regions on May 24, 1966. Some eastern ethnic groups about 115 individuals were killed in political violence on May 28-June 2, 1966. Major General Aguyi-Ironsi was deposed and killed in a military coup led by Lt. Colonel Murtala Muhammed on July 29, 1966. Some 30 individuals were killed in political violence in Lagos on July 29-August 1, 1966, and some 250,000 eastern ethnic groups fled from the Northern Region to the Eastern Region following the military coup. Lt. Colonel Yakubu Gowon was sworn in as the head of the federal military government following the military coup, and he restored the four federal regions on August 31, 1966. Some 2,000 ethnic Igbos were killed in political violence in the Northern Region from September 29 to October 4, 1966. Lt. Colonel Odumegwu Ojukwu, military governor of the Eastern Region of Nigeria, declared that the region would no longer recognize Lt. Colonel Yakubu Gowon as head of the federal military government on March 2, 1967. Lt. Colonel Gowon assumed full powers as commander-in-chief of the armed forces and head of the military government on May 27, 1967. Lt. Colonel Gowon proclaimed a state-of-emergency on May 28, 1967. Lt. Colonel Odumegwu Ojukwu, military governor of the Eastern Region, declared the independence of the Republic of Biafra in southern Nigeria on May 30, 1967 after the federal government did not honor the Aburi Accord.

Azikiwe initially supported Biafra and its international recognition. He used his political influence to lead Biafra delegation abroad for recognition of the independent state. By 1968, having seen the consequences the war will have, he appealed unsuccessfully to Biafra’s leader, Emeka Ojukwu, to finally negotiate with Nigerian leader, Yakubu Gowon. Azikiwe stayed away from politics after the war. He was chancellor of the University of Lagos from 1972 to 1976. Cessation of the military rule and ceding of power to democratic rule in 1979 gave Azikiwe a chance for a political comeback. He joined the Nigerian People's Party in 1978, making unsuccessful bids for the presidency in 1979 and 1983. He left politics permanently after the 31 December 1983 military coup led by Muhammadu Buhari.

Final years
On November 8, 1989, news media falsely announced Azikiwe’s death as a result of enquiries from a BBC correspondent about his condition. He eventually resurfaced saying “I am not in a hurry to leave this world, because it is the only planet I know." In 1991, Azikiwe went to the launching of Nnamdi Azikiwe Centre in Zungeru, his place of birth, by President Ibrahim Babangida. In the summer of 1995, he granted an interview at Lincoln university, Pennsylvania with the Director of Public Relations of the University.

Azikiwe eventually died on 11 May 1996, at the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital in Enugu after a prolonged illness. He was 91. Azikiwe was given a state funeral by the government of Sani Abacha, following nearly two weeks of national ceremonies. His body taken to various important cities in the country for mourning and tributes. He was finally buried in his native Onitsha on November 16, 1996, on what would have become his 92nd birthday. At Azikiwe's death, The New York Times said that, "'He towered over the affairs of Africa's most populous nation, attaining the rare status of a truly national hero who came to be admired across the regional and ethnic lines dividing his country.'" In 2019, the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari undertook the completion of Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe Mausoluem and was declared a National monument.

Legacy
During the 19th century, the scramble for Africa witnessed European powers having Africa divided, human and natural resources exploited. The development of African political ideology emerged with the intent to search for an ideological project of self- affirmation and assertive cultural nationalism. Among the proponents of Pan Africanism were Nnamdi Azikiwe, the Pilot of Nigerian Independence. Azikiwe's place in Nigeria's cosmology goes far beyond the positions he held. He gave nationalism and the independence struggle a new meaning. Zik, then in Hope Waddel Institute, was conversant with the ideas of Marcus Garvey on Pan Africanism, emphasizing the empowerment of Africans, and the redemption of Africa by Africans. This made Zik question the legitimacy of Colonialism in Africa, and was inspired by Garvey's call for the liberation of Africa from the colonial governments. At a time when Nigeria was still a collection of disparate regions, identities and local units, Zik started canvassing for Nigerian independence and for the creation of a de-ethnicised, de-tribalised sense of Nigerian nationalism and patriotism. Azikiwe went to the USA where he studied and taught at various segregated universities in the South, experiencing the atmosphere of discrimination and the upsurge of radical `Negro' resistance. He was also inspired by the 19th century USA president, James A Garfield on grass to grace political ascendancy. On returning to West Africa, his primary concern was, therefore, not a territorial, nationalist struggle, but a universal, world-wide struggle for the black race. As editor of the African Morning Post in Accra, from 1935 to 1937, Azikiwe immediately established a reputation because of his direct `American style' journalism and bold criticism of the colonial system, of colonial officials as well as of local African leaders. His influence extended throughout British colonial territories and he was the motivating force of some African leaders like Kwame Nkrumah, Julius Nyerere, Dauda Jawara, Kenneth Kaunda and Milton Obote among others. Azikiwe's combative and provocative journalism was the principal source of his fame and power, and the most crucial single precipitant of Nigerian awakening. Azikiwe founded a media outfit called Zik Group, under which he established and edited West African Pilot, which was referred to as "a fire-eating and aggressive nationalist paper of the highest order." Under Zik Group he revolutionised the West African newspaper industry, demonstrating that English-language journalism could be successful, and expanded his controlling interest to over 12 daily, African-run newspapers. West African Pilot grew exponentially from an initial run of 6 000 copies daily, to printing over 20,000 copies at its peak in 1950s.

Awards and honours
Azikiwe was a member of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom on 16 November 1960 as well as the Grand Commander of the Federal Republic (GCFR).

He was awarded fourteen honourary degrees from Universities in Nigeria, United States and Liberia such as Doctor of Law from Lincoln University (1946), Doctor of Letters by Storer College (1947), Doctor of Law from Howard University (1959), Michigan State University (1959), University of Nigeria (1961), University of Liberia (1969), University of Pennsylvania (1980), University of Ibadan, University of Lagos, Ahmadu Bello University, Nnamdi Azikiwe University in Awka, and Federal University of Technology Owerri.

Memorials and Monuments
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Currency and Postage Stamps
Azikiwe's portrait appears on Nigeria's ₦500 banknote since 2001. Azikiwe was included in the postage stamps unveiled during the first anniversary of Federal Republic of Nigeria in 1964 and has since appeared in other stamps.



In popular Culture
The first biography of Azikiwe was authored by himself, published in 1970 titled "My Odyssey: An Autobiography. The Federal Government of Nigeria established Zik Prize - annual leadership award, in 1995 in honor of Azikiwe.

In 2006, Ben Obi initiated Zik Annual Lecture Series to immortalize the good works and legacies of Dr Nnamdi azikiwe.

Azikiwe's educational philosophy was portrayed in the University of Nigeria Documentary Film.

In 2023, Duke of Shomolu Foundation produced a play based on the life and times of Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe.

Michigan State University created 'Nnamdi Azikiwe International African Student Fellowship' in 2023, to support MSU international African students to Africa for research. The award was in honor of Azikiwe who partnered with MSU faculty to build a land-grant model university (University of Nigeria) in Eastern Nigeria.

Traditional honor
Azikiwe was inducted into the Agbalanze society of Onitsha as Nnanyelugo in 1946, a recognition for Onitsha men with significant accomplishments. In 1962, he became a second-rank red cap chieftain (Ndichie Okwa) as the Oziziani Obi. Chief Azikiwe was installed as the Owelle-Osowa-Anya of Onitsha in 1972, making him a first-rank hereditary red cap nobleman (Ndichie Ume) in the Igbo branch of the Nigerian chieftaincy system.

Critical reception
Yuri Smertin described his writing as, "passionately denunciatory articles and public statements which censured the existing colonial order: the restrictions on the African's right to express their opinions, and racial discrimination". Yuri also criticized those Africans who belonged to the 'elite' of colonial society and favoured retaining the existing order, as they regarded it as the "basis of their well-being.

Selected works

 * Zik (1961)
 * Renascent Africa (1973)
 * Liberia in World Politics (1931)
 * Political Blueprint for Nigeria (1943)
 * Economic Reconstruction of Nigeria (1943)
 * Zik: A Selection of the Speeches of Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe (1961)
 * Assassination Story: True or False? (1946)
 * Before Us Lies the Open Grave (1947)
 * The Future of Pan-Africanism (1961)
 * The Realities of African Unity (1965)
 * Origins of the Nigerian Civil War (1969)
 * I Believe in One Nigeria (1969)
 * Peace Proposals for Ending the Nigerian Civil War (1969)
 * Dialogue on a New Capital for Nigeria (1974)
 * Creation of More States in Nigeria, A Political Analysis (1974)
 * Democracy with Military Vigilance (1974)
 * Reorientation of Nigerian Ideologies: lecture on 9 December 1976, on the eve of the launching of the UNN Endowment Fund (1976)
 * Our Struggle for Freedom; Onitsha Market Crisis (1976)
 * Let Us Forgive Our Children. An appeal to the leaders and people of Onitsha during the market crisis (1976)
 * A Collection of Poems (1977)
 * Civil War Soliloquies: More Collection of Poems (1977)
 * Themes in African Social and Political Thought (1978)
 * Restoration of Nigerian Democracy (1978)
 * Matchless Past Performance: My Reply to Chief Awolowo's Challenge (1979)
 * A Matter of Conscience (1979)
 * Matchless Past Performance: My Reply to Chief Awolowo's Challenge (1979)
 * A Matter of Conscience (1979)