Oil Politics And Violence Nigerias Military Coup Culture 1966-1976 Max Siollun

When Nigeria gained independence from the UK in 1960, hopes were high that, with mineral wealth and the most educated workforce in Africa, Nigeria would become Africa’s first superpower and a stabilizing democratic influence in the region. However, these lofty hopes were soon dashed and the country lumbered from crisis to crisis, with the democratic government eventually being overthrown in a violent military coup in January 1966. From 1966 until 1999, the army held onto power almost uninterrupted (except for a short-lived return to democracy between 1979 and 1983) under a succession of increasingly authoritarian and corrupt military governments and army coups. Military coups and military rule (which began as an emergency aberration) became a seemingly permanent feature of Nigerian politics.