Youth: education and background

Azikiwe was born on 16 November, 1904 in Zungeru, Northern Nigeria. His first name, "Nnamdi", given to him by his parents is an Igbo name which literally means "my father is alive". His father, Obed-Edom Chukwuemeka Azikiwe (1879–3 March 1958), a native of Onitsha, was a clerk in the British Administration of Nigeria.^[11] His mother Rachel Chinwe Ogbenyeanu Azikiwe (neé Aghadiuno) (1883 – January 1958), who was sometimes called "Nwanonaku"^[12][13] was the third daughter of Aghadiuno Ajie^[14] and a descendant of a royal family in Onitsha; her paternal great-grandfather Ugogwu Anazenwu, was the Obi of Onitsha.^[14] Azikiwe had one sibling, a sister, named Cecilia Eziamaka Arinze.^[14]

As a young boy, Azikiwe spoke Hausa, the regional language.^[15] His father, concerned about his son's fluency in Igbo and not Hausa, sent him to Onitsha in 1912 to live with his paternal grandmother and aunt to learn the Igbo language and culture.^[16] In Onitsha, Azikiwe attended Holy Trinity School (a Roman Catholic mission school) and Christ Church School (an Anglican primary school).^[17] In 1914, while his father was working in Lagos, Azikiwe was bitten by a dog; this prompted his worried father to send him to Lagos, that he may heal and continue school in the city.^[18] He then attended Wesleyan Boys' High School, now known as Methodist Boys' High School, Lagos.^[19] His father was sent to Kaduna two years later, and Azikiwe briefly lived with a relative who was married to a Muslim from Sierra Leone.^[20] In 1918, he was back to Onitsha and finished his secondary education at CMS Central School.^[21] Azikiwe then worked at the school as a student-teacher,^[18] supporting his mother with his earnings.^[20] In 1920, his father was posted back to Southern Nigeria Protectorate , in the city of Calabar. Azikiwe joined his father in Calabar, beginning tertiary education at the Hope Waddell Training College.^[22] He was introduced to the teachings of Marcus Garvey,^[23] Garveyism, which became an important part of his nationalistic rhetoric.

After attending Hope Waddell,^[24] Azikiwe was transferred to Methodist Boys' High School in Lagos, and he made friends with classmates from old Lagos families such as George Shyngle, Francis Cole and Ade Williams (a son of the Akarigbo of Remo). These connections were later beneficial to his political career in Lagos.^[18] While at Wesley Boys High school he excelled in his studies and gifted a book titled "from Log Cabin to the White House", a biography of James. A. Garfield, former president of the United States, who rose from grass to grace. The book inspired him to be determined to succeed in life. Azikiwe heard a lecture by James Aggrey, an educator who believed that Africans should receive a college education abroad and return to effect change.^[25] After the lecture, Aggrey gave the young Azikiwe a list of schools accepting black students in America.^[20] After completing his secondary education, Azikiwe applied to the colonial service and was accepted as a clerk in the' treasury department. His time in the colonial service exposed him to racial bias in the colonial government.^[26] Azikiwe's choice to study in the United States instead of Great Britain were due to influences of Dr. James Kwegyir Aggrey, the biographies of President A. Garfield and Abraham Lincoln, the Marcus Garvey Pan Africanism and the existence of assistances for indigent students which is not offered in Britain. Determined to travel abroad for further education, Azikiwe applied to universities in the U.S. He was admitted by Storer College, contingent on his finding a way to America.^[27] To reach America, he contacted a seaman and made a deal with him to become a stowaway.^[28] However, one of his friends on the ship became ill and they were advised to disembark in Sekondi. In Ghana, Azikiwe worked as a police officer; his mother visited, and asked him to return to Nigeria. He returned, and his father was willing to sponsor his trip to America.^[29]

Azikiwe attended Storer College's two-year preparatory school in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. To fund his living expenses and tuition, he worked a number of menial jobs before enrolling in Howard University in Washington, D.C. in 1927 to obtain a bachelor's degree in political science. In 1929, he transferred from Howard University to Lincoln University to complete his undergraduate studies and graduated in 1930 with a BA in political science. ^[30][31] Azikwe took courses with Alain Locke.^[32] Azikiwe was a member of Phi Beta Sigma.^[33] He then enrolled at Lincoln University in Pennsylvania and in the University of Pennsylvania simultaneously in 1930, receiving a master's degree in religion and philosophy from Lincoln University in 1932 and a master's degree in anthropology from the University of Pennsylvania in 1933.^[34][35] Azikiwe became a graduate-student instructor in the history and political-science departments at Lincoln University, where he created a course in African history.^[36] He was a candidate for a doctoral degree at Columbia University before returning to Nigeria in 1934.^[37] Azikiwe's doctoral research focused on Liberia in world politics, and his research paper was published by A. H. Stockwell in 1934. During his time in America, he was a columnist for the Baltimore Afro-American, Philadelphia Tribune and the Associated Negro Press.^[38] Azikiwe was influenced by the ideals of the African-American press, Garveyism and pan-Africanism.^[39]

Associations & Societies

• Young Men's Christian Association, Storer College (1925-27)
• International Cub of Howard University (1928)
• Stylus Literary Society of Howard University (1923)
• International Club of Columbla University (1930-32)
• Life Fellow, Royal Anthropological Institute (1933)
• Life Fellow, Royal Economic Society (1934)
• Life Member, British Association for the Advancernent of Science (1947)
• American Society of International Law (1933-34)
• American Anthropological Association (1932–1934)
• American Political Science Society (1933-34)
• American Ethnological Society (1933-34)
• Sodalitae Scientiae Civilis of Lincoln University (1934)^[40]

Journalism; newspaper and editing

Azikiwe applied as a foreign-service official for Liberia, but was rejected because he was not a native of the country.^[52] By 1934, when Azikiwe returned to Lagos, he was well-known and viewed as a notable figure by some Lagosians and Igbo community.^[53] He was welcomed by a handful number of people, proving his writings in America evidently reached Nigeria.^[54] In Nigeria, Azikiwe's initial goal was to obtain a position commensurate with his education; after several unsuccessful applications (including for a teaching post at King's College, Lagos), he accepted an offer from Ghanaian businessman Alfred Ocansey to become the founding editor of the African Morning Post, a new daily newspaper in Accra, Ghana.^[28][55] He was given a free hand to run the newspaper, and recruited many of its original staff.^[18] Azikiwe wrote "The Inside Stuff by Zik", a column in which he wrote radical nationalism and black pride which raised some alarm in colonial circles.^[56] As the editor, he promoted pro-African nationalist agendas.^[28] Yuri Smertin described his writing as, "passionately denunciatory articles and public statements which censured the existing colonial order: the restrictions on the African's right to express their opinions, and racial discrimination".^[57] Yuri also criticized those Africans who belonged to the 'elite' of colonial society and favoured retaining the existing order, as they regarded it as the "basis of their well-being.^[58] During Azikiwe's stay in Accra, he advanced his New Africa philosophy later explored in his book, Renascent Africa.^[59] In the philosophic ideal, Azikiwe argued that "it is a state where Africans would be divorced from ethnic affiliations and traditional authorities and transformed by five philosophical pillars: spiritual balance, social regeneration, economic determinism, mental emancipation and risorgimento nationalism". Azikiwe did not shy away from Gold Coast politics, and the paper supported the local Mambii party.^[36] The Post, a local newspaper published a 15 May 1936 article, "Has the African a God?" by I. T. A. Wallace-Johnson, and Azikiwe (as editor) was tried for sedition.^[28] He was originally found guilty and sentenced to six months imprisonment, but his conviction was overturned on appeal.^[60]

Azikiwe returned to Lagos in 1937 and founded the West African Pilot, a newspaper which he used to promote nationalism in Nigeria, while the Zik Group established newspapers treating topics in politics and economy in important cities throughout the country.^[61] The group's flagship newspaper was the West African Pilot, which used Dante Alighieri's "Show the light and the people will find the way" as its motto. Other publications were the Southern Nigeria Defender from Warri (later Ibadan), the Eastern Guardian (founded in 1940 and published in Port Harcourt), and the Nigerian Spokesman in Onitsha.^[62] In 1944, the group acquired Dusé Mohamed Ali's The Comet. Azikiwe's newspaper venture was a business, as well as a tool for politics and advocacy.^[63] The Pilot focused less on advertising than on circulation, largely because expatriate firms dominated the Nigerian economy.^[64] Many of Azikiwe's newspapers emphasized sensationalism and human-interest stories; the Pilot introduced sports coverage and a women's section, increasing coverage of Nigerian events compared with the competing news source Daily Times (which emphasized expatriate and foreign-news-service stories).^[65] The Pilot's initial run was 6,000 copies daily; at its peak in 1950, it was printing over 20,000 copies.^[66] Azikiwe founded other business ventures (such as the African Continental Bank and the Penny Restaurant) at this time, and used his newspapers to advertise them.^[67]

Before World War II, the West African Pilot^[68] was seen as a paper trying to build a circulation base rather than overtly radical. The paper's editorials and political coverage focused on injustice to Africans, criticism of the colonial administration and support for the ideas of the educated elites in Lagos.^[67] However, by 1940, a gradual change occurred. As he did in the African Morning Post, Azikiwe began writing a column entitled "Inside Stuff", which he sometimes tried to raise political consciousness.^[69] The paper's editorials called for African independence, particularly after the rise of the Indian independence movement.^[70] Although the paper supported Great Britain during the war, it criticized austerity measures such as price controls and wage ceilings.^[71] In 1943 the British Council sponsored eight West African editors (including Azikiwe), and he and six other editors used the opportunity to raise awareness of possible political independence. The journalists signed a memorandum calling for gradual socio-political reforms, including abrogation of the crown colony system, regional representation and independence for British West African colonies by 1958 or 1960.^[72] The memorandum was ignored by the colonial office, increasing Azikiwe's militancy.^[73]

He had a controlling interest in over 12 daily, African-run newspapers. Azikiwe's articles on African nationalism, black pride and empowerment dismayed many colonialist politicians and benefited many marginalized Africans.^[74] East African newspapers generally published in Swahili, with the exception of newsletters such as the East African Standard. Azikiwe revolutionized the West African newspaper industry, demonstrating that English-language journalism could be successful. By 1950, the five leading African-run newspapers in the Eastern Region (including the Nigerian Daily Times) were outsold by the Pilot. On 8 July 1945, the Nigerian government banned Azikiwe's West African Pilot and Daily Comet for misrepresenting information about a general strike.^[75] Although Azikiwe acknowledged this, he continued publishing articles about the strike in the Guardian (his Port Harcourt newsletter). He led a 1945 general strike, and was the premier of East Nigeria from 1954 to 1959.^[76] By the 1960s, after Nigerian independence, the national West African Pilot was particularly influential in the east. Azikiwe took particular aim at political groups which advocated exclusion. He was criticized by a Yoruba faction for using his newspaper to suppress opposition to his views. At Azikiwe's death, The New York Times said that he "towered over the affairs of Africa's most populous nation, attaining the rare status of a truly national hero who came to be admired across the regional and ethnic lines dividing his country."^[77]

Conspiracy allegations and Zikist movement

As a result of Azikiwe's support for a general strike in June 1945 and his attacks on the colonial government, publication of the West African Pilot was suspended on 8 July of that year.^[82] He praised the striking workers and their leader, Michael Imoudu, accusing the colonial government of exploiting the working class.^[83] In August, the newspaper was allowed to resume publication.^[84] During the strike, Azikiwe raised the alarm about an assassination plot by unknown individuals working on behalf of the colonial government.^[83] His basis for the allegation was a wireless message intercepted by a Pilot reporter.^[65] After receiving the intercepted message, Azikiwe went into hiding in Onitsha. The Pilot published sympathetic editorials during his absence, and many Nigerians believed the assassination story.^[85][86] Azikiwe's popularity, and his newspaper circulation, increased during this period. The allegations were doubted by some Nigerians, who believed that he made them up to raise his profile.^[87] The skeptics were primarily Yoruba politicians from the Nigerian Youth Movement, creating a rift between the factions and a press war between Azikiwe's Pilot and the NYM's Daily Service.

The youth united with enthusiasm and purpose, filled with zealous ideas about how to build a glorious sovereignty outside the controlling arms of the British hegemony. One such group of young people were the Zikists. A non violent youth movement, led by Kolawole Balogun, Raji Abdallah, Osita Agwuna, M. C. K. Ajuluchukwu and Abiodun Aloba, was established in 1946 to defend Azikiwe's life and his ideals of self-government.^[83][88][89]Kola Balogun was the first president of the Zikist Movement. In February 1946, Balogun sent invitations to about 20 young men in Lagos, inquiring of their opinion on the national issues. Out of the twenty, twelve of them responded, leading to the creation of the Zikist Movement, as those men became its founding members. Nwafor Orizu coined the term 'Zikism' from Azikiwe which became the movement's name.^[90] He was a non member of the movement but a close associate and admirer of Azikiwe, and one of the several youths Azikiwe inspired to study in the USA, alongside Eyo Ita and KO Mbadiwe. Raji Abdallah became the second president of the Zikist Movement, following Balogun's departure to London, serving from 1948 to 1949. He was instrumental in getting northern support and membership for the movement. Abdallah and Osita Agwuna (his deputy) had just formed the Anti-Colour Bar Movement (ACBM) in Kano, which was opposed to racial discrimination segregating whites and blacks in Nigeria. The ACBM later dissolved into the larger Zikist Movement.^[91]Similar to Balogun, in 1948, Abdallah was dismissed from his job with the Kano Rediffusion Service, a radio broadcasting service. The dismissal led him to get more involved with the Zikist Movement. He was fired because his involvement in the Zikist Movement was considered too overtly political for a civil servant. Abdallah was later arraigned on November 7, 1948 at the Lagos High Court, where he gave a speech, thus saying, "This is an important day indeed. The most important, perhaps in the history of our country. I call it the most-important because it is today that we have to decide, whether we are to be free or remain hereditary bondsmen, who knows not that they must be free?" "I hate the Union Jack with all my heart. Because save in Britain, wherever it goes; far from uniting, it divides the people. I have nothing against King George VI of England. But hate the Crown of Britain with all my heart. Because to me and my countrymen, it is a symbol of oppression, a symbol of persecution and in short, a material manifestation of iniquity. We have passed the age of petition. We have passed the age of resolution. We have passed the age of diplomacy. This is the age of action. Plain, blunt and positive action. Therefore, I am here this evening, to call a spade a spade, an axe an axe, and a machete, a machete." "Today, I, Habibu Raji Abdallah, by the grace of God, President General of the Zikist Movement and Field Secretary of the NCNC, do hereby, declare myself a free and independent citizen of Nigeria. I owe no allegiance to any foreign Government, and in the absence of any' government of the people by the people and for the people of Nigeria'; I am henceforth, not bound to obey any law, other than the Nigerian Native Laws, Customs and International Laws. Therefore, I shall pay no more tax to this Government.Because if you pay, they will use that money to perpetuate their domination over you." Upon his sentence, he reacted in mitigation to the presiding judge, Justice Gregg, saying,

"if you sincerely believe that it is a crime to fight for freedom, then by all means, condemn me to death. Were I to be set free today, I cannot give assurance to muzzle my tongue. As for me, my conscience being clear, I shall be satisfied to leave the final verdict to God and His unfathomable river of time. So, proceed to fulfill the pleasure of those who put you here. I shall leave the final verdict to God."

^[92][93][94]His famous phrases travelled beyond the borders of Nigeria and was adopted by Kwame Nkrumah's Convention Peoples Party (CPP) of the Gold Coast (now Ghana). The Colonial Government did not take kindly to the revolutionary undertones of Abdallah's message. As a result, Abdallah along with nine other leaders of the Zikist Movement were arrested and charged with sedition.^[95]This crackdown on Zikist leadership led to another round of reorganization within the Zikist Movement, allowing Nduka Eze to emerge as president, after Abdallah's imprisonment, and Mokwugo Okoye as secretary-general. Zikists, in time, outgrew the NCNC, becoming more nationalist than their parent organization. Colonial officers deemed the Zikist movement an unlawful society and promulgated an Order-in-Council, outrightly banning the Zikist Movement on April 12, 1950. The group later dismantled and its members transitioned to politics, business, and traditional rulership.^[96][97][98]

Opposition to Richards constitution

In 1945, British governor Arthur Richards presented proposals for a revision of the Clifford constitution of 1922.^[70] Included in the proposal was an increase in the number of nominated African members to the Legislative Council. However, the changes were opposed by nationalists such as Azikiwe.^[74] NCNC politicians opposed unilateral decisions made by Arthur Richards and a constitutional provision allowing only four elected African members; the rest would be nominated candidates.^[99] The nominated African candidates were loyal to the colonial government, and would not aggressively seek self-government. Another basis of opposition was little input for the advancement of Africans to senior civil-service positions. The NCNC prepared to argue its case to the new Labour government of Clement Attlee in Britain.^[100] A tour of the country was begun to raise awareness of the party's concerns and to raise money for the UK protest.^[101] NCNC president Herbert Macaulay died during the tour, and Azikiwe assumed leadership of the party. He led the delegation to London and, in preparation for the trip, traveled to the US to seek sympathy for the party's case. Azikiwe met Eleanor Roosevelt at Hyde Park, and spoke about the "emancipation of Nigeria from political thralldom, economic insecurity and social disabilities".^[102] The UK delegation included Azikiwe, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, Zanna Dipcharima, Abubakar Olorunimbe, P. M. Kale, Adeleke Adedoyin and Nyong Essien.^[103][104] They visited the Fabian Society's Colonial Bureau, the Labor Imperial Committee and the West African Students' Union to raise awareness of its proposals for amendments to the 1922 constitution. Included in the NCNC proposals was consultation with Africans about changes to the Nigerian constitution, more power to the regional House of Assemblies and limiting the powers of the central Legislative Council to defense, currency and foreign affairs.^[105] The delegation submitted its proposals to the colonial secretary, but little was done to change to Richards' proposals. The Richards constitution took effect in 1947, and Azikiwe contested one of the Lagos seats to delay its implementation.^[106]

1950–1953

Under the Richards constitution, Azikiwe was elected to the Legislative Council in a Lagos municipal election from the National Democratic Party (an NCNC subsidiary).^[107] He and the party representative did not attend the first session of the council, and agitation for changes to the Richards constitution led to the Macpherson constitution.^[74] The Macpherson constitution took effect in 1951 and, like the Richards constitution, called for elections to the regional House of Assembly. Azikiwe opposed the changes, and contested for the chance to change the new constitution. Staggered elections were held from August to December 1951.^[108] In the Western Region (where Azikiwe stood), two parties were dominant: Azikiwe's NCNC and the Action Group. Elections for the Western Regional Assembly were held in September and December 1951 because the constitution allowed an electoral college to choose members of the national legislature; an Action Group majority in the house might prevent Azikiwe from going to the House of Representatives.^[109] He won a regional assembly seat from Lagos, but the opposition party claimed a majority in the House of Assembly and Azikiwe did not represent Lagos in the federal House of Representatives. In 1951, he became leader of the Opposition to the government of Obafemi Awolowo in the Western Region's House of Assembly. Azikiwe's non-selection to the national assembly caused chaos in the west.^[110] An agreement by elected NCNC members from Lagos to step down for Azikiwe if he was not nominated broke down. Azikiwe blamed the constitution, and wanted changes made. The NCNC (which dominated the Eastern Region) agreed, and committed to amending the constitution.^[111]

Azikiwe moved to the Eastern Region in 1952,^[112][113] and the NCNC-dominated regional assembly made proposals to accommodate him. Although the party's regional and central ministers were asked to resign in a cabinet reshuffle, most ignored the request.^[114] The regional assembly then passed a vote of no confidence on the ministers, and appropriation bills sent to the ministry were rejected.^[82] This created an impasse in the region, and the lieutenant governor dissolved the regional house. A new election returned Azikiwe as a member of the Eastern Assembly. He was selected as Chief Minister, and became premier of Nigeria's Eastern Region in 1954 when it became a federating unit.

Final years

On November 8, 1989, news media falsely announced Azikiwe’s death as a result of enquiries from a BBC correspondent about his condition. He eventually resurfaced saying “I am not in a hurry to leave this world, because it is the only planet I know." In 1991, Azikiwe went to the launching of Nnamdi Azikiwe Centre in Zungeru, his place of birth, by President Ibrahim Babangida. In the summer of 1995, he granted an interview at Lincoln university, Pennsylvania with the Director of Public Relations of the University.

Azikiwe eventually died on 11 May 1996, at the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital in Enugu after a prolonged illness. He was 91. Azikiwe was given a state funeral by the government of Sani Abacha, following nearly two weeks of national ceremonies. His body taken to various important cities in the country for mourning and tributes. He was finally buried in his native Onitsha on November 16, 1996, on what would have become his 92nd birthday. At Azikiwe's death, The New York Time’s said that,

"He towered over the affairs of Africa's most populous nation, attaining the rare status of a truly national hero who came to be admired across the regional and ethnic lines dividing his country."^[139]

In 2019, the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari undertook the completion of Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe Mausoluem and was declared a National monument.^[140][141]

Honors

•  : Member of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom, 16 November 1960.^[147]
• Grand Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (GCFR).^[148]

Honorary Degrees

Dr Azikiwe was awarded fourteen (14) honorary degrees from Nigerian, American and Liberian universities, notably;

• 1946: Doctor of Law by Lincoln University.
• 1947: Doctor of Letters by Storer College.
• 1950: Doctor of Law by Howard University.
• 1959: Honorary Doctor of Law by the Michigan State University.^[149]
• 1961: Honorary Doctor of Letters (D.Litt.) by the University of Nigeria.^[150]
• 1969: Doctor of Law by the University of Liberia.
• 1980: Honorary doctor of Humane Letters by the University of Pennsylvania.

Others include degrees from University of Ibadan, University of Lagos, Ahmadu Bello University, UNIZIK, FUTO.^[151]

Memorials and Monuments to Nnamdi Azikiwe

^{[152][153][154][155]}

Currency and Postage Stamps

Azikiwe's portrait appears on Nigeria's ₦500 banknote since 2001. Azikiwe was included in the postage stamps unveiled during the first anniversary of Federal Republic of Nigeria in 1964 and has since appeared in other stamps.^[156]

In popular Culture

The first biography of Azikiwe was authored by himself, published in 1970 titled "My Odyssey: An Autobiography.^[157]

The Federal Government of Nigeria established Zik Prize - annual leadership award, in 1995 in honor of Azikiwe.

In 2006, Ben Obi initiated Zik Annual Lecture Series to immortalize the good works and legacies of Dr Nnamdi azikiwe.^[158]

Azikiwe's educational philosophy was portrayed in the University of Nigeria Documentary Film.^[159]

In 2023, Duke of Shomolu Foundation produced a play based on the life and times of Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe.

Michigan State University created 'Nnamdi Azikiwe International African Student Fellowship' in 2023, to support MSU international African students to Africa for research. The award was in honor of Azikiwe who partnered with MSU faculty to build a land-grant model university (University of Nigeria) in Eastern Nigeria.

Traditional honor

Azikiwe was inducted into the Agbalanze society of Onitsha as Nnanyelugo in 1946, a recognition for Onitsha men with significant accomplishments. In 1962, he became a second-rank red cap chieftain (Ndichie Okwa) as the Oziziani Obi.^[137] Chief Azikiwe was installed as the Owelle-Osowa-Anya of Onitsha in 1972, making him a first-rank hereditary red cap nobleman (Ndichie Ume) in the Igbo branch of the Nigerian chieftaincy system.^[112]