Documents debunk north’s claim that it was the economic heart of Nigeria [Part 2]

In part one of this series, an economic and financial expert, as well as historian, responded to the claim by a group, Northern Consensus Movement, that north is the economic heart of Nigeria and not parasites.

In a video gone viral, the President of the group, Awwal Abdullahi Aliyu, said that the Northern Nigeria could not be considered a parasite, rather, that it was the economic heart of Nigeria.

Aliyu claimed that the North, through cash crop products like groundnut and cotton, generated the money used to build the refineries in the Southern parts of the country.

In a viral video, Aliyu said:

In this part, Part Two, ElombahNews obtained documents which categorically proved that Northern Nigeria was actually a parasite which depended on Southern Nigeria for survival.

The documents showed that Northern Nigeria was run on deficits which has to be augmented with proceeds from the economy of Southern Nigeria.

Below are few examples:

In this document obtained from “Core AC UK”, Cotton Lint, Hides/Skin and Groundnuts, Tin, Tin Ore, which are basic northern major export products, generated a gross total of £1,103,723 in 1913, and £1,448,958 in 1914.

However, only palm oil from the south, not to mention palm kernel, generated £1,854,384 in 1913 and £1,571,691 in 1914.

See table below:

The following Colonial Report — Annual, shows that the Northern Protectorate, first, existed on contributions from Southern Nigeria consecutively from 1902 to 1912, up till Amalgamation in 1914.

Secondly, the Northern Protectorate was run on deficit consecutively before Amalgamation. See table below:

Further, the Colonial Reports Annual, No. 785, Northern Nigeria, Report for 1912, shows that the north had a Total Aggregate Expenditure of £827,939 in 1911-1912 First Quarter, and £710,531 in rest part of 1912.

However, same Northern Nigeria had Total Local Revenue of £545,291 and £476,493 respectively. That indicates a deficit of £282,648 and £234,038 respectively.

It also shows consecutive contributions from Southern Nigeria in same period of £70,000 and £52,500 respectively but also admitted a “steady progress that has been made in the finances of the Protectorate.

See the attached document:

Retrospectively, Southern Nigeria, with exceptions of 1905 and 1909, instead of deficit, was living on surplus, thus had contributions to make to their northern counterparts which was perpetually living on deficit.

See the attached document obtained from the International Political Economy of Nigerian Amalgamation Since 1914 published by Usman Mohammed of Department Of Political Science And International Studies, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria:

Read also:

Experts respond to Awwal Aliyu’s claim that north is economic heart of Nigeria [Part 1]