Society
can be defined as a group of people living together in a community with a
common goal and policies that will benefit them while Societal is connected to
society and the way it is being organized. Now, when we talk of societal values
we refer to the worth in money and other goods how the society is organized.
Here, the societal values are referring to economic, Political, Cultural and
Religious organization of the nations in exchange of worth in money or other goods
for which it can be exchanged. Based on this platform, we are using Nigeria and
United Kingdom as a case study to this topic.
Let
us dabble into the sector of the Nigerian economy to fish out the best values
of Nigerian economy in exchange to what is obtainable in other nations of the
world. To this end, we cannot elude the following elements of Nigerian societal
values that make up the economy of the nation. These elements of Nigerian
Societal values are to include:
(1)
Crude Oil
(2)
Agro-Based
Products
(3)
Coal Mining
(4)
Lime Stone
All
these elements are natural resources that help to build up the Nigerian economy
by refining them to produce artificial products we use to build, amend and
blend our society at large.
Now
narrating the importance of these natural resources which serves as elements of
Nigerian Societal values will help us to know their exchange values to compare
what is obtainable in other economies of the nations of the world like United
Kingdom:
CRUDE OIL: Crude oil remains the Major exportation product in
Nigerian economy as well as the main natural Nigerian mineral resources found
in the South-South zone of Nigerian Earth Crust. These particular natural
resources are well recognized by nations of the world because of its uniqueness
and importance to services of Automobiles when refined into various products.
Nigerian being blessed with this particular natural resources which give them
an hedge ahead of other nations despite the corruption that has ravaged and kept
the economy stagnant; Nigerians have what it takes to be ahead of other nations
of the world including United State but improper management due to corruption
has mal its performance. When we begin to count Petroleum Exporting Countries
under OPEC (Organization of Petroleum
Exporting Countries) Nigeria is amongst the leading nations just as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. This is one of the elements of Nigerian societal value that
distinguish our economy in terms of Foreign exchange. Nigeria make hails of
money from exporting Crude Oil. Yet our economy had sets back.
AGRO BASED PRODUCTS: Agro based products are those Agricultural products
that are unique which are not obtainable in other nations of the world except
Nigeria due to the climatic factor and geographical location. We sometimes
called them cash crops. These cash crops are to include: Cashew nut (Used in manufacturing Aviation oil), Pam Kernel (Used for producing Palm
Kernel Oil), Cocoa (used in
manufacturing Beverages like coffee and burnvita), Groundnut (Used for producing Groundnut oil). All these cash crops
are exported in exchange value of pounce sterling and US dollars. Nigerian makes
hails money from these products after Crude oil.
COAL MINING: A mine can be defined as a deep hole or holes under
the ground where mineral such as Coals, gold, copper etc. are dug for example
copper/Diamond mine. So using this definition, Enugu State in Nigeria remains
the state where Coal miners work tirelessly day and night mining, digging out
coals for road construction and for cooking as well as exporting this product
as foreign exchange Value to other countries that lack it who are also in need
of it for development. A Coal can be defined
as a hard black mineral that is found below the ground and burnt to produce
heat example I put more coal on the fire. The Nigerian Coal Corporation was the
body entrusted to be In charge of Coal Mining in Nigeria Founded in 1950. Coal
mining also is element of Nigerian Societal values because of it unique, used
in development for example it’s product being Coal tar is a thick black sticky
substance produce when gas is made from Coal, and it is used for road
construction.
LIMESTONE: A limestone can be defined as a typical white stone
that contains Calcium, used in building and making Cement. This is natural
resources just as Crude oil and Coal mine; it is obtainable from Nkalagu in Ebony
State, Nigeria. This natural resource helps the Cement producing industries or
factories like DANGOTE group of company and other companies to facilitate
production of Cement. The Lime Stone also are exported to foreign countries
after being crushed by Rock and Stone Crushing Companies in Nigeria because the
demands for this particular natural resource are very high outside Nigeria. So,
this is another element of Nigerian Societal value.
With
these, we are convinced that Nigerian Societal values are organized and the
elements are in demands everywhere. Using these to compare the European
exchange to our societal value; we can now rate our economic strength and
weaknesses which is obvious to us that we are being used to develop other
nations economy to detriment of our homeland due to corruption.
On
other hand, societal values also include the trends of development of nations’ Political
outfit. Using Feudal Society in the
Middle Ages of European development
as a case study to narrate the similar present trends of development in
Nigerian system society as regards Chieftaincy title in the primitive tribes in
Nigeria which aided the Colonial master to officially succeeded in their
indirect rules development during colonial rules, though the indirect rule was
not successful in the Ibo primitive tribes but succeeded in Yoruba and Hausa
tribes, but more especially in the Hausa tribes because their pre-colonial system of leadership was well organized to suit
the Feudal system of leadership in the middle Ages of Europe.
During
the so called Dark Ages, when Europe split up into small states, a new social system
was developing. We call this system “Feudalism”.
The feudalism system of government
in Europe comprises the King as the
Supreme head in Feudal Kingdom, followed by the Great Lord called Dukes
and Counts. These were the Chief war
leaders in the Kingdom. Below the rank of the Baron and Knight; then,
came the freemen, most of these
lived in the town, which had begun to grow up be eleventh century. The lowest
on the ladder were the masses called the serf:
RANKS IN
DECENDING ORDER
THE KNIGHT
DUKE AND
COUNTS
BARON AND
KNIGHT
FREEMEN AND
SERF
The
serf were not freemen, and their lot was only slightly better that that of the
slaves in the ancient world. The serfs worked for the land owners and could not
leave the land. Nor were they allowed to marry anyone who lived outside their village
in Europe without the consent of their master. This is a master –Servant relationship
similar to Hausa tribe pre-colonial set up in Nigeria where the serf had strips
of land which they are allowed to farm in return for many rents and services to
their Lords. In addition to farming the Lord’s land for him, the serf had to
give him a share of their own produce. Other land in the village was known as
common land and here the serfs as well as the Lords could pasture their animals.
The
word Vassal was used in the middle Ages to mean a person who was socially lower
than another person. If a free man was given a grant of land (Called a ‘fief’),
he became a vassal to the baron or knight who granted it to him. He looked upon
the Knight as the Lords. The baron or the Knight, in turn, was a vassal to a Duke
or Count. Dukes and Counts were, in turn, Vassals to the King, from whom they
received land.
The
Land of a Lord was called a ‘Manor’ or ‘Domain’. He kept a large portion of
this land for his own use, and divided most of the remainder amongst his vassal.
So as long as the vassal remained faithful to the Lord, he could keep the land
(or fief) granted to him. On his death, the fief went back to the lord. The dead man’s
heir had to pay the lord for protection to get the land back. A vassal also
looked to his Lord for protection against attack. This was very necessary especially
in the first half of the middle Ages. Often, to get protection, freeman would
give his own land to a powerful Lord. The Lord would then give it back to him
on condition that he becomes the lord’s vassal. As a vassal, he could ask the
Lord to protect him.
In
return for the grant of land and for protection the vassal had to do certain
things for his Lord. He had to make payments to him at special times. He agreed
to help his Lord in time of War. Furthermore, He was expected to attend the
Lord’s Courts when called upon, and also to bring all disputes to him for settlement.
Lords served as adviser to their own Lords and as attendant on public occasion
A
time passed some of the dukes and counts, helped by their own numerous vassals,
became more powerful, and often able to rise against the King. This graded
pattern of government was similar to the system of Chieftaincy in many parts of
Africa, especially the Hausa Pre-colonial Emirate; there was the King or the
paramount chief who had under him divisional chiefs. Below the divisional
chiefs were the Local Chiefs, under who served the common people. As in the Middle
Ages in Europe there was a system of graded loyalty and dependence with regard
to the grant of land and payment of taxes. In both the feudal system of the Middle
Ages and the system of chieftaincy in Africa, the ordinary folk came under the
authority of King only indirectly, through their immediate Lord or chief.
This
system in Europe granted the White Colonial master successful leadership in
Northern part of Nigeria, which today had led to our political system of
leadership. It failed woefully amongst the Ibo tribe in Nigeria after Aba women’s
riot of 1929 which was demonstration against these rule. But it first became
successful after the amalgamation of Northern and Southern Protectorate by Lord Lugard in 1914 in Nigeria. The system
made Nigeria so dependency on the British leadership, but thank God for Nnamdi Azikiwe who fought the war of
freedom from British Colonization and brought us independent in 1960 before
Biafan war began in Januray 1966. These are the trends of Political Societal
Values we are experiencing today as part of the nations development. The impart
of the Europeans Middle Age System of Leadership had much effect on the
Nigerian system of leadership as it is today because it originated from Hausa
pre-colonial system of leadership which is similar to the Middle age in Europe.
And it was called “Divide and Rule
System”, because they penetrated Nigeria with sanction of guns to compel
obedient from different tribes. It was a forceful leadership, associated with
discrimination and intimidation, whereby you don’t have human right to the
superior colonial masters, who have the final say to everything. But thank God,
today it no more like that, Nigerian today can air their views as rightful
citizens of the nations because of Human Right which come as a result of democracy,
but those day who are you to air your view? You will be sanctioned and locked
up. To this end; long Live Federal Republic of Nigeria Long Live Nations of the
World.
Written
by
ONYIA EMEKA HARFORD
