The Northern protectorate was created by the British colonial administration in 1899. Sir Fedrick Lugard was immediately appointed as the first High Commissioner to the region. Lugard was faced with two main problems:
The Muslim rulers in the North had for long successfully resisted the intrusion of western culture and education either through the commercial firms or the missionaries. Lugard, therefore, met with strong resistance from the Northern Emirs. But with the growing political zeal of the colonial government, Lugard was bent on effectively incorporating the North in the colonial administration. He therefore, launched an eight hundred mile pacification campaign of using military forces to subdue the northern emirates like Kano, Katsina and Sokoto that resisted the British administration. Even though Lugard apparently subdued most of the strong emirates, the Muslim rulers made it clear to him that they would not allow their religion to be interfered with.
The British colonial administration (under Lugard) was constrained by preparedness of the Northern leaders to continue to fight in defence of the Islamic religion and culture, and has to introduce a special type of native administration known as Indirect Rule. By the policy of indirect rule, the natives were allowed to operate their various institutions, but were expected to incorporate the colonial policies and regulations within their native administration. This means that the colonial administrators had contact with the natives only through the Emirs or local heads. Hence, the colonial
administrators had agreed with the Emirs that the High commissioner must not allow the Christian Missions and other emigrants to corrupt or infest the North with the religion or education.
Consequently, the British High commissioner was forced to issue frequent notices warning the missionaries against any incursions in the Muslim dominated North. Lugard’s declared educational policy for the North in 1902 was that the Christian Missions should direct their attention to the non-Muslim areas in the North. He was anxious to see that the Muslims did not regard the missionaries and the government officials as fellow agents of administrations or religion (Fafunwa, 1974).
Based on the advise, Lugard proposed the following plans, (in his 1905-6 annual report) for the education of the Northern muslins:
- how to fuse the colonial political administration with the well established Muslim local administration;
- how to introduce western style education in such a region where organized Islamic Education was in full progress.
The Muslim rulers in the North had for long successfully resisted the intrusion of western culture and education either through the commercial firms or the missionaries. Lugard, therefore, met with strong resistance from the Northern Emirs. But with the growing political zeal of the colonial government, Lugard was bent on effectively incorporating the North in the colonial administration. He therefore, launched an eight hundred mile pacification campaign of using military forces to subdue the northern emirates like Kano, Katsina and Sokoto that resisted the British administration. Even though Lugard apparently subdued most of the strong emirates, the Muslim rulers made it clear to him that they would not allow their religion to be interfered with.
The British colonial administration (under Lugard) was constrained by preparedness of the Northern leaders to continue to fight in defence of the Islamic religion and culture, and has to introduce a special type of native administration known as Indirect Rule. By the policy of indirect rule, the natives were allowed to operate their various institutions, but were expected to incorporate the colonial policies and regulations within their native administration. This means that the colonial administrators had contact with the natives only through the Emirs or local heads. Hence, the colonial
administrators had agreed with the Emirs that the High commissioner must not allow the Christian Missions and other emigrants to corrupt or infest the North with the religion or education.
Consequently, the British High commissioner was forced to issue frequent notices warning the missionaries against any incursions in the Muslim dominated North. Lugard’s declared educational policy for the North in 1902 was that the Christian Missions should direct their attention to the non-Muslim areas in the North. He was anxious to see that the Muslims did not regard the missionaries and the government officials as fellow agents of administrations or religion (Fafunwa, 1974).
Exercise 2:
- Unity is strength. Discuss this in relation to the position of the Northern Emirs on western education.
The Contributions of Dr. H. R. S. Miller to the Educational Development in the North
Dr. Miller of the Church Missionary Society was a close friend of Lugard. He suggested a system of education for the sons of the mallams and chiefs in Zaria area. He advised that it would be necessary to emphasise the study of Quranic teachings in such schools, and at the same time, aim at preparing such people from the ruling class for service in the expanding colonial bureaucracy by giving them basic literacy education.Based on the advise, Lugard proposed the following plans, (in his 1905-6 annual report) for the education of the Northern muslins:
- 1. Mallams should be taught the Roman character (for writing Hausa language) Colloquial English, Arithmetic and geography;
- A school for the sons of chiefs should be established where the pupils would be boarders and would receive primary education, and be trained in the virtues of patriotism, honesty loyalty, e.t.c so that they would become enlightened rulers. They should not be imbibed with such western ideas as would cause them to lose the respect of their subjects; nor should they necessarily forgo their religion;
- Secular primary schools should be established through the protectorate;
- Cantonment schools for the education of the children of clerks, and other government official should be set up. That coastal clerks no longer need to send their children far away for education – a practices which deterred clerks from applying for work in the Northern Protectorate.
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