Nigerian History

Who Controlled the Telephone Lines During Nigerian Coups

Communication has always played a crucial role in determining the success of political power shifts. In Nigeria, military coups from 1966 to 1993 highlighted...

Lagos: The City That Decided Every Military Coup in Nigeria

Between 1966 and 1993, Nigeria experienced multiple military coups, and in each case, control of Lagos was decisive. Lagos was more than the nation’s...

The Airwaves of Power: How Radio Stations Shaped Nigerian Coups

For decades after independence, Nigeria’s political turning points were not announced from parliament buildings or courtrooms. They came through the crackle of radio transmissions....

Why Some Military Coups Succeeded While Others Failed in Nigeria

Nigeria’s post-independence history was marked by a series of military coups that reshaped its political landscape. Between 1966 and 1990, the country witnessed coups...

The Night a Radical Coup Shook Nigeria’s Military Order

In the early hours of April 22, 1990, Nigeria was jolted awake by gunfire, uncertainty, and a radio announcement that questioned the very structure...

Hassan Usman Katsina, Nigerian Army Chief and Northern Governor in a Time of War

Major General Hassan Usman Katsina, later titled Ciroman Katsina, was one of the most influential Nigerian Army officers of the first post independence generation....

The Rise of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie was born in 1977 in Enugu, Nigeria, and spent her formative years in Nsukka, a university town in southeastern Nigeria. She...

Urhobo Otota, Okpo, and Ivwrì, The Power Symbols That Defined Authority and Protection

In the Niger Delta, authority was never silent and it was never invisible. Power was expressed through clearly defined titles, performed through council procedure,...

Chief Amodu Tijani Oluwa and the Lagos Land Case That Reached the Privy Council

Chief Amodu Tijani Oluwa, an Idejo White Cap Chief of Lagos and head of the Oluwa family, entered history through a legal struggle that...

Onigu Otite and the Study of Ethnicity in Nigeria

Onigu Otite, born Kingsley John Onigu Otite on 21 January 1939 and who died on 14 March 2019, was a Nigerian sociologist whose work...