Ganduje blames British colonial administrators for Nigeria’s challenges

The Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, on Saturday blamed the challenges of nation-building in Nigeria on the faulty foundation laid by the British colonial administrators.

Ganduje, who stated at the launching of N250 million Lecture Theatre at the University of Ibadan, said the colonial administrators laid the faulty foundation for Nigeria to actualise their selfish interests and not for any genuine development of the country.

He said: “The challenges of nation building in Nigeria are attributable to the very faulty foundation laid by the European colonial masters.

“These were purely done to actualise their interests and not for any genuine development of the country.

“The colonial administrators divided Nigeria into North and South protectorates without much concern for the peculiarities of the two regions.

“The division was without concern for the difference in land tenure systems, local government administration, education and judicial systems.”

The governor said the challenges of nation-building should be a matter of concern to all and stressed the need for Nigerians to reflect on the journey so far to build and leave a better legacy for the future.

Ganduje added: “From this historical legacy, therefore, regionalism has been a major challenge to nation-building in Nigeria. Under these conditions, it was easy for prejudice and fear to thrive.

“Nation-building is about building a common sense of purpose, sense of shared destiny and collective imagination of belonging.

“Nation-building is about building the tangible and intangible threads that hold a political entity together and gives it a sense of purpose.”