DEVELOPMENT OF PRIMARY EDUCATION IN NIGERIA: THE MILITARY AND CIVILIAN REGIMES COMPARED (1966-1983)

Udochukwu Ogbaji Lecturer, Department of Political Science,

Nwafor Orizu College of Education,Nsugbe, Anambra State.

E-mail: udojoel77@yahoo.ca. Tel: +234(0) 8033486531, +234(0) 7082729455

ABSTRACT

Education has been a means of transmitting one’s culture from one generation to another. It is a process of bringing about a relatively permanent change in human behavior. As the oldest industry, it is the main instrument used by society to preserve, maintain and upgrade its social equilibrium. This paper draws a comparative analysis of the military and civilian regimes in Nigeria as regards to primary education development during the period 1966-1983. The study is based on the political economy framework which provides us the use of holistic approach and permits us to look at primary education development in both the military and the civilian regimes in Nigeria in its entirety. It was found that the multi-variant approach of the military which requires and involves the contribution of force plus persuasions, pressure plus consultation and diplomacy enabled the military to record the achievement of the period. Another lesson from the period under study has to do with leadership style provided by the military at that time. The military demonstrated that hard work and commitment to a cause they believed in was bound to yield positive results. They did not waiver in their policy that Nigeria was capable of development up to the same level as non-Africans. The Nigerian leadership and political experience under the military-civilian eras taught the country that multi-variant strategies are crucial to rapid educational development. The paper finally stated that responsible leadership facilitates educational process while bad leadership ruins education. In conclusion therefore, for sustainable and substantial educational growth in Nigeria, only the right leadership can save the system from retrogression and absolute dwindling.

1

INTRODUCTION

In all human societies, education is meant to pass on to the new generations the

existing knowledge of their physical environment, to introduce individuals to the

organization of society, give them skills for performing their daily jobs and enjoying their

leisure, as well as inculcate sound morals in them for their own benefit and that of the

society. In other words, education is a process by which the society assists the younger

generation to understand the heritage of their past, participate productively in the

society of the present as well as contribute to the future (Esu and Junaid, 2010). Based

on these reasons, education draws inspiration and nourishment from a society but in

turn, it contributes to the growth, renewal and development of that society.

The period, 1966-1969 were initially years of crisis in Nigeria, followed from 1970

by years of reconciliation, reconstruction and rehabilitation. In these years, the military,

in seeking a way out of the complexities of interethnic rivalries and geopolitical

disequilibrium, set its eyes firmly on educational diffusion throughout Nigeria (Jorre,

1972). The immediate post-independence period was marked by the problem of fear.

The South was afraid of political domination by the North, the North was afraid of

educational and economic domination by the South. The military came into solving

these problems by breaking up the country into small units which no one entity was in a

position to threaten the corporate existence of the nation. The military therefore, within

this period, placed education at the forefront as a major tool in bringing about

reconciliation in the nation (International Labor Office, 1980).

However, the period preceding the era under study was the traditional education

system. Educational systems existed in African Societies prior to the coming of the

Europeans. Such education was for the induction of members of the society into

activities and mode of thoughts that were considered worthwhile. African societies were

noted for their rich culture heritage which was preserved and transmitted from

generation to generation through a system of traditional education (Esu and Junaid,

2010).

2

STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

From history we infer that development, economic growth, youth empowerment

and stability of Nigeria have been largely determined by two pre-dominant factors.

These are the military and the civilian regimes which incessantly influenced the politics

of Nigeria especially as it relates to education and educational development. Both the

military and the civilian regimes have made far-reaching attempts at revolutionalizing

educational system in Nigeria. Several educational policies and reforms have been

introduced by different administrations and regimes; all aimed at properly structuring the

educational sector and place it at a balance.

This paper therefore seeks to look into the various activities of both regimes

(military and civilian) towards the development of education in Nigeria from 1966-1983,

in comparative perspective. From the foregoing, the following research questions are

advanced to guide the discussions of this study.

1. To what extent have the military and the civilian regimes gone towards the

development of education in Nigeria?

2. Is there any relationship between the pattern of leadership or policy formulation

between the military and the civilian regime that accounts for the success or

failure of the educational sector?

THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVE

This study is based on the political economy framework. This is because an

analytical and comparative approach to social problem is often seen as a solution to the

study of the phenomenon. As a theory, political economy focuses attention on not only

the production and management of society’s material wealth but also its distribution

among the various segments or classes and conflict which arises from these processes.

As Ake (1981) has observed,

“When we understand what the material assets and constraints of

a society are, how the society produces goods and meet its

3

material needs, how the goods are distributed and what type of

social relations arise from the organization of production, then we

are trying to understand the culture of that society and its politics”.

This theory provides us the use of holistic approach which permits us to look at

Educational Development in both the military and the civilian regimes in Nigeria in their

entirety looking at the problems, consequences and prospects.

Above all, this approach grants us the leverage to delve into social dynamics

such as hegemony of power on the polity, ideology of the various regimes, the

leadership patterns as well as the essence of law which Marx said is for the protection

of private property.

STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF NIGERIAN EDUCATIONAL PICTURE

The following statistical data demonstrate the commitment of the military in

addressing the dichotomy and diffusion of education nationwide.

TABLE I: Estimate of Primary School Enrolment in Nigeria 1965-1974

YEARS NORTH SOUTH NIGERIAN

1965 492510 2418913 2191423

1966 578864 2507117 3025981

1967 506818 Nil Nil

1968 545237 Nil Nil

1969 601032 1722732 2345764

1970 669637 2846190 3525827

1971 768666 312 5873 3894539

1972 854466 3536731 3894539

1973-74 1024602 3865251 4889853

Source: Statistics of Education in Nigeria in www.unilorinedu.ng/unilorinjournals/education/ijeee/deo2002/military%20and

%20civilian%20civilian%20Regimes%20IN%Nigeria%201966%20to1983.

4

As can be seen in table I, the total aggregate primary school enrolment in Nigeria

in 1966 stood at 3,025,981. Four years later, the figure had risen to 3,525,827 by 1973,

this figure later further jumped to 4,889,853. Even more significant were the enrolments

in the period 1975/76 and 1979/80 during the military administration of Murtala and

Obasanjo.

Table II. Number of Primary Schools by State:1975-1984

1975/76 1977/78 1979/80 1981/82 1983/84

Anambra 1,708 1,900 1,931 2,054 2,084

Bauchi 1,086 2,235 1,869 1,805 1,830

Bendel 1,562 1,594 1,665 1,754 1,736

Benue 1,200 2,667 2,688 2,703 2,700

Borno 1,526 1,854 1,886 2,088 2,090

Cross Rivers 1,505 1,620 1,478 1,690 1,660

Akwa –Ibom - - - - -

Gongola 1,564 1,868 1,849 1,864 1,857

Imo 1,880 1,925 1,939 1,958 2,011

Kaduna 859 2,821 2,857 2,875 2,885

Katsina - - - - -

Kano 679 3,028 3,050 3,063 3,063

Kwara 539 1,123 1,215 1,487 1,365

Lagos 244 1,033 725 863 962

Niger 245 1,033 1,033 1,067 1.164

Ogun 1,161 1,203 1,222 1,262 1,288

Ondo 1,159 1,389 1,471 1,595 1,627

Oyo 1,955 2,318 2,445 2,701 2,907

Plateau 685 2,422 2,455 1,661 16,687

Rivers 595 870 946 1,001 1,119

Sokoto 732 2,692 2,865 3,939 4,038

5

Abuja - - - 184 198

Source: (1) Statistics of Education in Nigeria 1980-84(2) National School Statistics 1987 (3) Report on Primary Education in Nigeria 1991

TABLE III: PRIMARY SCHOL ENROLMENT BY STATE 1975-1984/85

1975/76 1977/78 1979/80 1981.82 1984/85

Anambra 641,725 902,252 961,503 1,019,718 1,008327

Bauchi 126,300 329,611 399,092 538,118 310,038

Bendel 606,115 751,243 835,740 921,403 1,057,516

Benue 256,747 629,243 866,400 921,801 1,015,150

Borno 136,964 369,052 693,294 769,226 829,135

Cross River 597,182 768,292 850,884 892,567 962,083

Akwa-Ibom - - - - -

Gongola 158,200 322,313 473,092 592,560 585,494

Imo 739,031 1,003,824 1,025,110 1,151,718 1,269,762

Kaduna 218,204 613,0091 845,125 1,025,747 1,105,636

Katsina - - - - -

Kano 160,340 472,340 842,928 1,025,910 1,549,966

Kwara 181,050 394,030 588,388 701,888 834,170

Lagos 355,645 400,405 465,140 524,803 628,950

Niger 55,377 181,781 319,755 424,570 491,500

Ogun 240,701 299,015 350,423 408,088 439,872

Ondo 332,611 428,119 478,154 576,985 667,700

Plateau 147,873 365,554 536,546 626,652 712,593

Rivers 275,591 430,388 510,488 601,070 710,390

Sokoto 138,138 301,542 423,592 642,680 930,030

Sources: (1) Fourth National Development Plan 1981-1985.(2) National School Statistics 1987.(3) Report on Primary Education in Nigeria.

6

ANALYSIS

PRIMARY EDUCATION IN NIGERIA: 1975-1983

1976 constitutes a high water mark in primary education in Nigeria. It signaled

the first direct Federal Government involvement in primary education in the country.

This was of course, the fulfillment of a promise made by General Yakubu Gowon, the

then Head of State in 1974 (Kosemani & Orubite, 1995). On a visit to Sokoto, the then

Head of State had promised to start the Universal Primary Education scheme in the

nation in 1976. Despite the changes of government and in spite of the advice of experts,

the Murtala/Obasanjo regime went ahead and launched the programme on September

6, 1976. Thus, a dream which was hazy in 1952 in the Western House of Assembly was

actualized nationally in 1976 by the military regime.

To many, the announcement of the scheme in Sokoto was unplanned,

unprecedented and targeted at securing political legitimacy. However, as Bray (1981)

indicates, Gowon maintained that he initiated the UPE principally as a welfare scheme

and in recognition of the dangers regional educational inequality constituted to national

stability. The choice of Sokoto for the announcement was to encourage educational

backward areas and not a political strategy. That notwithstanding, one of the most

important aims of the UPE was the reduction of educational disparities in the country.

The Third National Development Plan (p.246) was emphatic on that point when it states:

Universal Primary Education is a pre-requisite for equalization

of opportunities for education across the country in all its known

facets. Since equalization is a major governmental objective

one of the most far-reaching policy decisions in the plan is

therefore the introduction of a free universal and compulsory

primary education throughout the federation. This scheme will

start in September, 1976 at the beginning of the 1976/77 school

year. From that date, primary Education will be free and

universal throughout the country while from 1979, it will become

compulsory. Under the scheme primary schools will admit

7

children aged six or who will be six before the end of the

calendar year.

To achieve this objective of equalization of educational opportunities all over the

country, primary education following the provisions of the third National Development

Plan, was technically transferred from the residual to the concurrent legislative list. This

is reflected in the fact that the Federal Government assumed full financial

responsibilities for primary education in all aspects. First, the federal government

became responsible for the expansion and renovation of existing school buildings.

Second, the construction of new schools and the provision of infrastructure became sole

federal government concern.

In tables II and III, it shows that Nigeria has recorded massive increases in the

number of primary education institutions nation-wide. Taking the entire nation into focus,

it is indicated that in terms of expansion and even enrolment, it increased at an average

of 11% immediately after the civil war, for the year statistics were available, only to

skyrocket by 38% in the 1975-76 school year with the launching of the federal

government sponsored Universal Primary Education Scheme. There was a decline in

expansion in the following four years to an average of 14% per annum. This fall was

reasonably consistent throughout the period 1977/79-1979/80.

THE POSITION IN NORTHERN NIGERIA

The tables II & III clearly show that enrolment figures for the North increased at a

very fast consistent rate up to the first half of the 1970s, only to experience a fantastic

leap forward of about 85% in the 1975-76 academic year. Somewhat consistent with the

national trend, the Northern expansion rate dropped sharply to an average of 33.6% in

the following two years. This rate of progress declined further to an average of 11% in

the North in the dying years of the military regime.

The Northern quota of children enrolled in all Nigerian schools rose from 17% about

1966 to an average of 22% in the early 70s. This record was sharply improved upon as

from 1976-77 with an average enrolment of nearly 36%.

8

THE POSITION IN SOUTHERN NIGERIA

The position in Southern Nigeria was as follows: enrolments which were at

2,507,117 in 1966 had risen to 3,865,251 in the 1973-74 academic year (table I). This

trend was dramatic after the year 1975-76, in contest to the overall average rate of

expansion in enrolment which stood at 4,373,109 (73.49%), in the North, same period,

recorded 1,577,188 (26.51%) pupils (table II & III). During the period under review, the

1975 figures for educationally advanced states stood at 3,144,690 (52.85%) while the

educationally less developed states recorded 2,805,607 (47.15%) (tables II & III). This

rate fell to an average of 8% per annum during the last four years of the military. The

years, 1975-76 was a milestone in the South just as it was in the North, although for

different reasons which will be explained shortly. The Southern quota began to

experience a down slide from 73% that year to an average of 58% during last four years

of the military.

NATIONAL ASSESSMENT

From the foregoing, it is clear that throughout Nigeria, there was an upsurge in

enrolments during the period 1966-83. This trend was particularly more pronounced in

the North when compared to the South. The South, having experienced its own

Universal Primary Education (UPE) some twenty years back, had relatively less backlog

of children of school age to cater for. The military in other words, moved nearer

achieving the goals of redressing the problem of education imbalance between the two

Nigerian geo-political zones. Of relevance is the National Primary School aggregate

total which was only 19%, a figure that had swung up to as high as 47% in 1979-80

(tables II & III). Indeed, the gap had not been narrowed down to the extent that for the

first time in several years, the North appeared set to run the educational race neck to

neck with the South (Tables II & III).

FACTORS ACCOUNTED FOR THE EDUCATIONAL GROWTH 1966-1979/80

Several factors were responsible for educational transformation of the 1966-1979-

80 years. The most important, probably was the nature of government in power. Military

rule by nature is characterized by single command structure where authority flows from

9

the top to the other ranks, without question. Based on this, policies could be formulated

and implemented without delay or acrimony (Ogunlade, 2002).

It should also be noted that the military operated a diachical system by which non-

military, highly influential and credible civilian leaders and the intelligentsia, formed the

advance guard of the rule of “the men of Khaki”. This made it possible to implement

educational plans of the regime, combining power from “the barrel of the gun” with

diplomacy and concern for the delivery of social Welfare (Ogunlade, 2002). Though the

regime decreed and ensured that schools were planted in nooks and crannies of

Nigeria.

However, other factors may be summarized as follows: Traditional rulers ranging

from the highest to the lowest not the least among who are the Sultan of Sokoto, the

Emirs of Nupe, the Emir of Ilorin and the Attah of lgbira and that of Igalla, joined forces

in propagating the ideas of educational development in their respective areas.

Particularly, in the Muslim North, the involvement of these notables paved the way for

the integration of the Koranic school system into the “Makaranta Bokko” (foreign or

white man’s school). In this set-up, secular subjects like English and Social Studies

were injected into the curriculum, though they were administered essentially by the

Mallamai (New Nigerian, 1966-1969).

Moreover, a factor that should not be overlooked is the political and administrative

reforms which led to the creation of six states initially out of the “giant” North in 1967

(Ogunlade, 2002). The number of states in the North further increased to ten in 1976.

Corresponding with this was the creation of Local Government Areas and Districts. All

these entities put education as a top priority issue in order to produce the necessary

manpower for the services of those areas (Panter-Brick, 1978, Oyediran, 1979).

Finally, whichever rationale used the fundamental question of availability of funds

and the prudent management of such funds was a sine qua non to the programmes of

the massive expansion of education during the period. In this case, the sharp increase

in the oil revenue made it possible for Government to confidently embark upon such a

revolutionary and gigantic enterprise (Panter-Brick, 1978).

10

THE CIVILIAN ERA: 1979-80/1983-84

The second republic spanned the period 1979-1983. This era, under the leadership

of Alhaji Shehu Shagari is used to represent development. In the first place, the

revenues accruing to the Federal Government as a result of the “petro-naira” were more

than those available in the first civilian government of 1960-1965. Secondly, by 1979,

not only had the Federal Government become more centralized than it was in the days

of the West minister-type parliament system, the constituent units had become relatively

more dependent on the largesse from the federal coffers. It is against this background

that a comparative analysis of the performance record in educational development of

the civilian administration of 1979 to 1983 is examined.

NATIONAL ASSESSMENT

A careful look at the table II and III at the commencement of the civilian

administration in 1979-1980, the total national enrolments stood at 12,749,403, a

pattern that did not appreciably increase for the rest of the period, when enrolment in

1983-1984 stood only at 14,383,487 (Ogunlade, 2002). At the inception of the civilian

administration, the rate of expansion nation-wide in enrolments stood at 7.9%, dropping

precipitously for the next two years until enrolments began to slump or diminish.

The Northern enrolment pattern in this period was similar to the national pattern

whereby the initial increase at the onset of the civilian regime in 1979-80 slumped at the

end in 1983-84 to the 1981-82 level (see tables). The rate of expansion witnessed a

similar grounding in the pace of growth from 7.5% in 1982-1983 year, rounding up with

a negative growth rate of -3.5% (see tables).

However, it was in these circumstances that one finds the Northern quota of the

national total enrolment oscillating between 47% in 1979-80 and 46.9% in 1983-84 (see

tables). Primary school enrolments were obviously going through a period of near-

stagnation.

As far as the South was concerned, enrolments in the years of civilian

administration had evidently come to a plateau, with the figure standing at an average of

11

about seven million (see tables). The rate of expansion has practically also come to a

halt at the end of 1982-83 when it began to suffer a slight but similar negative growth

trend, as in the North (see tables II and III). This stagnation is reflected in the Southern

proportion of the national total enrolment, which stood almost unwaveringly at 53%.

EDUCATION IN CIVILIAN ERA: AN ASSESSMENT

In contrast to the military era, educational expansion at the primary school sector

had come to the doldrums during the civilian era, not only for the overall national

picture, but at the level of the two, geo-political zones. It is pertinent to note the fact that

unlike in the military era, the expansion rate in the North had experienced a relatively

complete reversal during the civilian years (Ogunlade, 2002).

However, it is unnecessary to repeat the reasons advanced above in relation to the

expansionist trend during the military era. But it is relevant to highlight some factors

impacting upon the development during the civilian era. Reference had already been

made to the nature of government, the availability of funds and careful management of

the funds. In this case, the civilian regime was characterized by one, different political

party with different philosophies and outlook, controlled different state. Two, the central

government did not completely enjoy an overwhelming support of the electorates and,

therefore, was weak in articulating policy positions and implementation strategies when

compared to the one-shot command structure of the military. The party or parties set

individual priorities and targets from the funds available (William, 1982).

The federal government for instance, rationalized its inertia in the educational

sector in the following ways: firstly, emphasis was placed on Agriculture as evidenced in

its Operation Feed the Nation programme (OFN). Secondly, it projected the ideals of

qualitative as opposed to quantitative education, which tended to de-emphasize radical

expansion. Perhaps, this posture may have been due to not being seen or being

accused to have adopted policies and programmes of its major rivals, which tended to

exhibit a disposition to mass education (Tijanni and William, 1981).

Another possible explanation for the slow-down in enrolments in the North was due

to the federal government withdrawal of subsidies to the primary education sector, a

12

decision that had more far-reaching implication in the North, where reliance on

Government services in the North, had been a tradition in contrast to the Southern

pattern of self-reliance and community-based development. A further observation was

that in the South, in the civilian era, educational expansion seemed to have reached a

saturation point at the primary level which was not, really, the case (Ogunlade, 2002).

What seem to have happened is that the South, having built up its educational base

for the upward of thirty year was now focusing on secondary and tertiary education. This

did not mean an abandonment of the primary education sub-sector. Government

energies were directed more to producing high-level man power, leaving the lower

levels of the system more-or-less, to parents and the respective communities. The

government, however, continued to pay teachers’ salaries (Abernethy, 1969).

IMPLICATIONS OF THE MILITARY-CIVILIAN EFFORTS IN EDUCATION FOR THE NIGERIAN EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM.

The paper is a comparative analysis of the Nigerian education situation over a time

scale. It is undertaken with a view to drawing an interconnection between the past and

the present and to indicate areas where the present and the future can profitably learn

from the past.

In this respect, therefore, what deductions can be made from the Nigerian political

and leadership experience under the military and civilian regimes for present day

Nigerian education system? Are there lessons for Nigerian education?

Taken as a whole, what happened in Nigeria between 1966 and 1983 offers some

valuable lessons from which the present and the future can profitably draw. Take the

case of centralized control under the military. Top among the determinants of rapid

educational advance was not a unitary affair but multi-variant enterprise, requiring and

involving the contribution of force plus persuasions, pressure plus consultation and

diplomacy. It was the delicate balancing of these influences that enable the military to

record the achievement of the period. The Nigerian leadership and political experience

under the military-civilian eras taught the country that multi-variant strategies are crucial

to rapid educational development.

13

Another lesson from the 1975-76 period in particular has to do with leadership style

provided by the military at that time. The military demonstrated that hard work and

commitment to a cause they believed in was bound to yield positive results. They did

not waiver in their policy that Nigeria was capable of development up to the same level

as non-Africans. The military, who were in helms of affairs at the time, were achievers

who surrounded themselves with assistants such as Chief Obafemi Awolowo, Alhaji

Aminu Kano, Chief Anthony Enahoro, and Dr. Okoi Arikpo etc. These prominent men

believed in the ideals of the military in the education sphere and were prepared to work

for their achievement. Responsible leadership facilitates educational process while bad

leadership ruins education. This is an important lesson the present day and future

Nigerian educational system can learn. In conclusion therefore, for sustainable and

substantial educational growth in Nigeria, only the right leadership can save the system

from retrogression and absolute dwindling.

14

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