THE FALLACY OF ETHNIC DIVERSITY IN NIGERIA: AN APPRAISAL OF THE FAILURE OF THE STATE AS ROOTED IN THE NOTION OF CULTURAL PLURALISM

Abstract

The idea of Nigeria’s ethnic diversity is no doubt fundamental, seeing that both the present geopolitical configuration of the country, as well as the problems that have given birth to the present strident calls for one or another form of restructuring, derive their impetus largely from the fact of Nigeria’s diversity. These essentially anaclitic ties to ethnic groups emerged in the context of artificial scarcity, itself a bye product of the failure of the Nigerian state to provide for its citizens. However, ethnic diversity is not an exclusive preserve of the Nigerian state, albeit Nigeria is adjudged as one of the most diverse countries in Africa. Thus, the country’s poor development is sometimes attributed to its diversity and population where many Nigerians think of themselves first and then their primordial publics, while the nation-state is often accorded the least priority. The problematic of this paper was addressed qualitatively by triangulating secondary sources obtained from textbooks, journals, newspapers, and the internet. The paper argues in line with the theory of cultural pluralism that although the management of Nigeria’s ethnic diversity is a challenging issue, it is not merely the fact of the diversity but the failure of the state to manage the diversity, and the vast natural and human resource that the country is blessed with that essentially transform this diversity into a problem.