A Squalid End to Empire: British Retreat from Africa

Colonial history, seen from the side of the colonists, can be summarised as follows:

I came, I saw, I conquered. Then I lied about it.

The BBC radio 4 website has a story called Rigging Nigeria. I have not actually listened to the documentary, but I was intrigued, as you might imagine, by the title. The website claims that the British rigged the elections in Nigeria in 1960 to counter the threat of communism. You will have heard the recent outcry about the Nigerian elections and how deeply flawed they allegedly were. I decided to do a bit of digging, and came up with a mother lode of corroboration of this tale of British duplicity in dealing with its colony. All things are revealed in the fullness of time, in spite of official secret acts, hundred-year gagging orders and that sort of thing.

I have been struck, in writing this, about just how little I really know about what went on in colonial times. I think this is dangerous ignorance on my part, and I have resolved to do something about it…starting with force-feeding you the results of my peregrinations in the ether.

To return to the mother lode of information, I went to this website and found an online book by a man called Harold Smith, who reveals how he saw the rigging of the elections in Nigeria in 1960. I shall not spoil Mr Smith’s tale by commenting on it; I shall just give you excerpts so that you will want to read it for yourselves.

As far as I am concerned, for the purposes of this article, this is the most interesting thing Mr. Smith has to say:

My main qualification for demolishing the myth that the British created viable democracies out of savage tribes only to see the ungrateful and greedy natives quickly revert to their tribalistic ways was my personal involvement in these events.

This is the story of evil committed by kind, nice, decent British politicians. They sought to keep Britain from bankruptcy and found a solution in the mineral-rich Empire on the point of independence. It was necessary to bend the rules and, sadly, in due course the rules were totally forgotten. Those who got in the way were innocent like the colonial peoples, but both had to be dealt with quite harshly.

Then in Chapter 1, he goes on to make what I think is a very interesting statement, especially from a former colonial officer;

Not only is Africa denigrated by the carefully nurtured fairy tale fashioned for the most part in Oxford, but with skill and cunning the British image is carefully burnished and enhanced. When did Britain itself become a democracy, if it has yet achieved that state? With universal male suffrage in 1884 or when all women got the vote in 1928? Britain's democratic traditions are of more recent origin than most are aware. When the British removed themselves from Nigeria in 1960 (though in truth they did not really surrender power to the African people) there was not even universal suffrage, as only a minority of the country's women - those in the South - were entitled to vote. As for tribalism, that well-worn cliché of colonial histories, the pre-colonial societies found in Nigeria were quite sophisticated and could be seen as city states or nations. And it is the British who have been at war with rebellious Irish tribes for centuries. Can any savagery in Africa equal the Belsens of civilised Western Europe? And the tribal skirmishes, often quoted as an excuse for the British armed occupation, pale to insignificance beside the massive bloody conflicts between the European powers. I refer of course to the two Great Wars of 1914-1918 and 1939-1945.

Then he comes to the heart of the matter:

When I suggest that the British Government meddled with the democratic elections in Nigeria, I write as an authority. I was chosen by his Excellency the Governor General, Sir James Robertson, to spearhead a covert operation to interfere with the elections. The laws of Nigeria were a sham and largely window-dressing to conceal, not mirror, the reality of where power lay. I drafted some of those laws.

I look at that in the light of the recent outcry about Nigeria’s allegedly rigged elections, and I think cheating and dishonesty are a question of perspective, and that in this regard, while I do not wish to be seen as excusing corruption in any way, our greatest critics live in enormous glass mansions. Mr. Smith continues:

Unfortunately most of the early scholarly works on Nigeria did not choose to raise the curtain to see what was happening backstage, so that all too often the analysis is curiously superficial and lacking in bite or significance. Of course, academics or others who were seeking to teach or work in Nigeria, not only before but after Independence, would need to be very careful not to bite the hand of their colonial masters if they were not to be branded unreliable or unsound.

This next one is as revealing to me as the story I read in King Leopold’s Ghost about how, to impress upon Congolese chiefs their superior powers, some white people used to conceal a live wire in their hand when shaking hands with the chiefs so that the chiefs would receive a jolt of electricity when they took the white people’s hands.

Sometimes a Labour Officer would awake from a nap himself and creep up on his sleeping messenger and roar in his ear giving the poor man a fit.
"Wake up, you lazy bastard," he would shout.
Or they did in 1955. As Independence approached in 1960 African staff began to be treated more politely, and 'wog', 'coon', 'black monkey', and other racist language went underground.

There are days when I think that such language should never have gone underground. It makes it that much clearer when you know what people really think. This was made very clear in a comment on one my articles about Zimbabwe, in which the commenter, quite likely one of the white farmers (or possibly his brain dead offspring) who were divested of what they thought was their land referred to Africans variously as Zamboons, etc. It does suggest that this sort of language might have been common about white Zimbabweans talking about black people. It makes me even gladder that Mugabe, for all his myriad other faults, kicked those people out.

Here’s a bit of honesty for a change:

Yet we were acutely aware of how privileged we were to live so well, while the many thousands of people in Lagos, who were paying for Ikoyi, our flat and our salaries out of their miserable wages, were living in mud huts for the most part, without running water and proper sanitation. When the rains came they would be flooded. In no way would we minimise the discomfort or suffering of people living in such difficult circumstances. Yet in spite of these privations, the people from these shacks were all clean and neatly dressed. Their children too, were clearly well taken care of and loved. When we think of the nauseating racism which permeates white societies and compare it with the tolerance, kindness, good manners and hospitality which we received without exception during our five years in Nigeria, we feel ashamed of our compatriots. The Nigerian people may have been poor in those years, yet they had qualities any civilised society could envy. We Europeans would drive out from Ikoyi in our posh cars, grim faced and tense, and see those proud erect people full of gaiety and laughter. I often felt that we had forgotten how to live naturally but they still had that secret.

Now, this is startling:

It was fashionable for some expatriates in those days to taunt the Nigerian elite with being too clever by half. This was the reaction of people who knew themselves to be inferior or inadequate. Often dogged by injustice, poverty and by lack of opportunity, considerable numbers of Nigerians - often aided by dedicated Christian missionaries - had gained an education and become leaders of considerable stature. And if one thought Nigerian men were often brilliant, one only had to meet some Nigerian women to be stunned by their high intelligence, perception and wit. It would not surprise me if West Africans proved to be of a higher intelligence than many people in Western Europe.

On the much-touted merits of British indirect rule:

The politics of the colonial regime are employed in the selection, destruction and manipulation of the leaders of the native people. Although the idea of indirect rule has become closely identified with Nigeria, it is not a new idea as every conquering power exercises its authority using existing power structures in the community. To this end in Nigeria a highly efficient intelligence service operated both through the administration who routinely completed intelligence reports and through the army, police and special branch. The Labour Department also played a key role. The major aim of all this is to encourage friends of the colonial regime, people who are 'sound,' that is prepared to betray their own people's interests for personal advancement, and to put down irresponsible elements, that is to say nationalist politicians who act in their people's interests and cannot be bribed.

On the choice of Nigeria's post-independence leaders:

A major proportion of the politicians who made Nigeria notorious for corruption after Independence were selected by the British before Independence. The politicians and leaders and men of eminence not chosen were often honest, trustworthy and responsible people. Why were these people not brought in by the British? The answer is that the British needed people they could control. They sometimes selected crooks whom they knew they could control after Independence.

On the origins of corruption in Nigeria

Ronald Wraith, in a fascinating study of corruption in Nigeria, fails to mention the involvement of the British at all. (Although he does demonstrate that corruption was rife in Britain up to the middle of the nineteenth century.) It does seem a little unfair. After all, although corruption undoubtedly got worse after the British left, it was clearly much in evidence while the British were in charge. I shall demonstrate later an even more sensational fact. The British not only tolerated and indulged corruption. They actively took part at the highest possible levels and instigated it and encouraged it in Nigerian politicians, the better to control or blackmail them.

On colonialism

I suppose the most corrupt act of all is colonialism itself. What could be more corrupt than to steal someone else's country?

Echoes of our world today:

Our world was in a state of chaos. The seventeen stone Governor General of the most populous British colony in Africa, in his white uniform and plumed hat, while posing as a liberal to visiting VIP's, was secretly rigging elections and destroying the very foundations of democracy in the new state which outwardly would be the fifth largest democracy in the world. Sir James Robertson, not content with that, was urging his newly elected Ministers to loot and pillage the State and make Nigeria's first great nationalist political party, the National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons (NCNC) almost totally dependent for funds on levies and bribes from British and other multinational firms which already had a powerful grip on Nigeria's economy.

The truly funny:

"You will be expecting me on this long awaited day," said the Chief Clerk, "to regale you with platitudes expressing my gratitude for having been able to work with such a splendid body of officials serving Her Britannic Majesty here in Nigeria. The truth is that I, as an educated person, have been forced to work under generations of stupid, often illiterate expatriates, who were lazy, uneducated, patronising, selfish and of no use to anybody." At this some of the expatriates began to rise, but the Chief Clerk waved them down. "I have waited a long time to tell you these truths," he went on. "Sit down and listen and learn something from my heart which may yet be of service to you..."

I leave you now so you can go and download Mr. Smith’s absolutely riveting book by yourself. I am surprised that I have never heard of it before. Any guesses why?

Comments

[Ma Mary]

You did not title this article, dear Rosemary. Please, put a title, so it does not look like a headless person

Since you want to educate yourself about these matters, I would like to point you to your own country, then known as the British Southern Cameroons, which was dismembered and manipulated into annexation by the British.

Please, check out this document. The cunning of the British colonialists knew no bounds:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/191676/British-Cameroons-Independence-Mismanaged

[Frederick]

Your article covers that sordid part of history that is unfortunately the story of colonialism everywhere. Mr. Smith's book is simply that – Mr. Smith's. (I personally would throw it in the trash can).
What is a concern is the seeming addition of Mr. Smith's junk to your article, to negatively agitate emotions.
The issue of 'race' clearly factors large in your article; you should therefore keep in mind that Europeans similarly, have experienced the bitter end-effects of 'colonialism'.
Sure, history refers to these periods as 'annexation' etc but it comes down to the same things you referred to: indentured/slave labor, hate-speak, removal of any rights, torture, abuses, genocide and so forth.
In fact you should easily find ample examples of this, in the (Western) country that is currently providing you with a means of livelihood and maintaining your rights as a minority group individual.
Do a bit of research and you may be surprised at what you learn about European suffering, in your host country.
Europeans have generally learnt to get-over this tragic part of their history and move forward.

Seeing as you quote history are you aware that in the USA, about 4 million black slaves were freed in 1865? To achieve this victory, 'white' governments fought each other to bring about justice. This (Civil) war produced about 970,000 casualties (3% of the population) resulting in about 620 000 soldiers deaths.
In Africa there are ample factual, historical accounts of whites being raped, tortured and murdered at the hands of the blacks.

So what to do…incite further racial hate or …mindlessly continue to debate the superiority of different ethnic groups or … learn from the past in a positive manner and then move forward?
In this regard, your words will clearly speak volumes.

Regarding your comments on Zimbabwe: I cannot understand how a person, who says they care about their fellow human; can even comprehend saying anything positive about its current leadership.
Official (Zimbabwe) statistics recently released state that it has 80% unemployment and an official inflation rate of 7,600%. This works out as 250 Zimbabwe dollars to US$1.
As a result, the average citizens of that once thriving country are suffering and starving. Ironically it is the European aid agencies (NGO's) that are attempting to feed tens of thousands of critical needy there.
Are these the very same Europeans that are referred to with disdain and distaste, in your article?

I understand that there is an element amongst Africans who love Mugabe's' anti-white hate speech. It is this same errant group who love the ideal he had to eject that countries white citizenry and steal their title deeds (issued by that countries' land regulator no less).
This group espouses that: “Its objective was to redress the fact of colonial injustice, empower the majority, and proceed to improve agricultural sector performance by increasing the numbers of our farmers.”
In reality, the resultant violent farm occupations not only affected white farm owners but also black farm workers who were often brutally forced to leave the farms and seek shelter in makeshift camps or in the urban areas. While accurate figures are not available, it was estimated that between 150,000 and 300,000 farm workers and their dependents (a total farm worker population of 1–1.5m people) had become homeless following the eviction of nearly 2,900 of the country’s 3,500 white farmers.

So I would suggest that before articulating populist POLITICAL statements; first consider TRUTH and look into the eyes of the people your views may be affecting.
I make the assumption that you don't live in Zimbabwe? In that case you are not regarded as being "close to the people", so therefore should not presume to speak for them – especially from your platform of Western safety and orderliness.

However, if you should ever decide to visit Zimbabwe, take a good look around at the suffering - and I'm sure you will reconsider your views.

[femi]

Good write-up - profound and revealing. Only those in denial of the negative contributions of neo-colonialism would consider this article to be bias.

[Cheech]

Rigging Nigeria is part of the Nigerian story that was never told and was swept under the carpet. Mr Smith's book lends support to the BBC story. They are one of a piece. We now understand how such criminals as Okotieboh and others got into power in Nigeria against the true will of the people and precipitated a cascade of events that led to a horrendous civil war.

Frederick, how dare you minimise what happened in Nigeria and elevate your own suffering as a white Rhodesian? Land titles indeed! The thing that your culture used to turn something sacred, land into a commodity to be hoarded and then used as a tool of oppression.

[Themba]

Land that is sacred - huh?
Have you asked the starving mothers, who bury their kids in southern Zimbabwe if they think "the land is sacred"?

You argue about cotton subsidy and a drop in buying price. Yet you live in the white man's land, take his job & salary. Maybe you also buy up some of his 'sacred land'.

What do you really do for the people suffering in AfriKa muna?? Especially here in the South? Why do you think thousands of brothers flee across the big waters to Europe each month? Because AfriKa is an Eden? Haai Cheech - Wake up and get rid of the chip-on-the-shoulder. DO something constructive.

Serious, it is embarassing for me as an AfriKan to see your type always running down the Europeans - because of historical facts this & that. Meanwhile it is them (and the NGO's) standing shoulder to shoulder next to us and trying to do some good...

[Future]

Dame Anita Roddick, the Body Shop founder who combined success in business with a passion for environmentalism, died on 12/9.

She made quite a profound ststement on activism:
“Campaigning and good business is also about putting forward solutions, NOT just opposing destructive practices or human rights abuses”.

[Veronica Henry]

Hello, I'd like to request reprint permission for this article on our website. It's aimed at providing just this sort of news and information to the entire African Diaspora. Many thanks, Veronica

[Profoessor Hakeem I. Tijani]

Please buy or borrow a copy of Britain, leftist nationalists and the transfer of power in Nigeria, 1945-1965 (Routledge, New York/London, 2006). You will be better informed about issues raised by Mr. Smith. The book is not a congesture or fictional narrative; but it's based on evidence and interviews in British Archives, formerly PRO-London, Cheshire, Oxford, Warwick, US Archives, Nigeria.

[Banji Joseph]

Thanks Rosemary for your write-up.I wrote to Harold Smith too to thank him for the great revelations.
It is a shame that the mess handed down by British have not been cleared and it is getting messy day by day.
Unfortunately,we Nigerians are yet to come together {especially we Southerners who are the victims of British injustice}and put in place a Republic of our own.
The North unto whom the British handed over power have letrally destroyed the country.Their military dictators and few Southern stooges dealt deadly blows on us and today we are hurting so bad.Poor us!

[Jemba]

Mr Smith's experience cannot be diminished by what is in the official records. It is the perspective of one idealistic young man, filled with the emotions of the moment and necessarily different from sanitized official accounts. It is important that African witnesses to events write their memoirs too, because flesh and blood accounts, though biased are more compelling for the general reader.