BUILDING A C O M M O N FRONT OF IGBO
POLITICAL BLOC FOR NATIONAL
RELEVANCE: C H A L L E N G E S AND
P R O S P E C T S
C h e k w a s Okorie
Recorded history informs us that in
1922, a few years after the
amalgamation of the Northern and
Southern Protectorates to form Nigeria,
Dr Herbert Macaulay, a Surveyor from
the present day Lagos assembled his
Yoruba associates to form the Nigerian
National Democratic Party (NNDP). This
party is known as the first political party
in Nigeria. Twenty-two years after the
formation of this party, the founding
f a t h e r s o f N N D P s a w t h e n e e d to
broaden the b a s e of participation in the
activities of the party. Consequently, the
name of the party was changed to the
National Council of Nigeria and
Cameroons (NCNC) in 1944. At this
time, Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, an Igbo man,
had joined the party where he was
elected its General Secretary. Upon the
decision of the English speaking part of
Cameroon to exit from Nigeria through a
plebiscite, the name changed to the
National Council of Nigerian Citizens
with the same acronym, NCNC. In 1946,
the leaders of the NCNC led by Dr.
Herbert Macaulay went on an extensive
campaign tour of Northern Nigeria to
sensitize a n d mobilize their l e a d e r s to
join the agitation of the independence of
Nigeria a s a sovereign nation.
On the 7th of May of the same year, Dr
Herbert Macaulay took ill in Kano while
on a tour and died a few days later.
The mantle of leadership of the NCNC
fell on Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, due mainly
to his political sagacity, education,
charisma, and other leadership qualities
he was endowed with. Naturally, Igbo
people and their socio-cultural
organizations, such as the Igbo State
Union, began to coalesce on the
platform of the NCNC and effectively
took control of the machinery of the
party.
This turn of events probably persuaded
t h e l a t e C h i e f O b a f e m i Aw o l o w o t o
ferret o u t with h i s Yo r u b a a s s o c i a t e s to
form the Action Group, AG, which was
for every intent and purposes a political
party formed with the main aim of
articulating and promoting the Yoruba
political agenda in Nigeria.
At the same time, the people of
Northern Nigeria had formed the
Northern Peoples Congress, NPC, led by
late Alhaji Ahmadu Bello. Not satisfied
with the general orientation of the NPC,
M a l l a m A m i n u K a n o f o u n d e d t h e
Northern Elements Progressive Union,
NEPU, principally to advance the
political interests of the Housa ethnic
nationality.
The agitation for the political self-
determination of the people of the
Middlebelt of Nigeria, led the late Dr. J.
S. Tarka – a Tiv from the present day
Benue State, championed the formation
of the United Middlebelt Congress,
UMBC.
What is clear from this brief historical
account of the evolution of political
parties in Nigeria before and during the
first republic is that Igbo political
leaders did not s e e the need to form any
political party to address their perculiar
political circumstances.
NDIGBO IN THE SECOND REPUBLIC.
If it was not for the political sagacity of
Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, Igbo people would
simply have dispersed into political
parties formed by other people like
sheep without shepherds.
In the second republic, Dr. Nnamdi
Azikiwe was again compelled to come
back from his voluntary retirement from
partisan politics to provide the much
needed leadership to refocus Igbo
political engagement when he entered
the Nigeria Peoples Party, NPP, and
became its presidential candidate for
the 1979 elections.
Prior to the emergence of Dr. Nnamdi
Azikiwe as presidential candidate, Igbo
political leaders had scattered into other
political parties a s running mates to the
presidential candidates of those parties.
Dr Alex Ekwueme was the running mate
of Alhaji Shehu Shagari of the National
Party of Nigeria, NPN. Chief Philip
Umeadi was the running mate of Chief
Obafemi Awolowo of the Unity Party of
Nigeria, UPN. Mazi S.G. Ikoku was the
running m a t e of Mallam Aminu Kano of
the Peoples Redemption Party, PRP, and
Dr. B. U. Nzeribe was the running mate
of Alhaji Waziri Ibrahim of the Great
Nigeria Peoples Party, GNPP.
Igbo people coalesced on the platform
of Zik’s NPP, and the party swept the
polls in the Southeast geopolitical zone
and won Plateau State Governorship
election a s well. After the elections
the NPN approached the NPP for an
a l l i a n c e to b e a b l e to f o r m a s t a b l e
g o v e r n m e n t in w h a t w a s known a s t h e
NPP/NPN Accord. Part of that accord
brought about a situation where Chief
z o n e r e c o r d e d t h e l e a s t n u m b e r o f
registered voters by Nigeria’s six
geopolitical zones with about 11.5
million. The s a m e s o u r c e s h o w s t h a t
only 2.2 million voters were accredited
and voted in the 2023 presidential
election in the Zone. This means that
9.3 million registered voters in the
Southeast did not participate in the
presidential election. We must resolve
not to hurt ourselves again in this
manner, only to turn around to cry
against marginalization. Let us aim to
return at least 20 million registered
voters at the end of the registration of
voters for the 2027 general election. In
the same token, we can achieve the
registration of an aggregate of 15
million registered voters in the rest of
the states of Nigeria. With a voting bloc
of 35 million voters, we will be on our
way to recovering our place of honor,
dignity, and respect in Nigeria’s political
power equation.
Let u s take our destiny into our own
hands and deploy our God-given
numerical strength and geographical
spread to redeem ourselves. The time is
n o w o r n e v e r .
Thank you for your esteemed audience.
God bless Ndigbo.
