Today is Independence Day. The first of October 1960 is a date to which for two years every Nigerian has been eagerly looking forward. At last, our great day has arrived, and Nigeria is now indeed an independent sovereign nation. Words cannot adequately express my joy and pride at being the Nigerian citizen privileged to accept from Her Royal Highness these Constitutional Instruments which are the symbols of Nigeria’s Independence. It is a unique privilege which I shall remember for ever, and it gives me strength and courage as I dedicate my life to the service of our country.
This is a wonderful day, and it is all the more wonderful because we have awaited it with increasing impatience, compelled to watch one country after another overtaking us on the road when we had so nearly reached our goal.
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But now we have acquired our rightful status, and I feel
sure that history will show that the building of our
nation proceeded at the wisest pace: it has been
thorough, and Nigeria now stands well-built upon firm
foundations.
Today’s ceremony marks the culmination of a process
which began fifteen years ago and has now reached a
happy and successful conclusion. It is with justifiable
pride that we claim the achievement of our
Independence to be unparalleled in the annals of
history. Each step of our constitutional advance has
been purposefully and peacefully planned with full and
open consultation, not only between representatives of
all the various interests in Nigeria but in harmonious
cooperation with the administering power which has
today relinquished its authority.
At the time when our constitutional development
entered upon its final phase, the emphasis was largely
upon self-government. We, the elected representatives
of the people of Nigeria, concentrated on proving that
we were fully capable of managing our own affairs both
internally and as a nation. However, we were not to be
allowed the selfish luxury of focusing our interest on our
own homes. In these days of rapid communications we
cannot live in isolation, apart from the rest of the world,
even if we wished to do so. All too soon it has become
evident that for us Independence implies a great deal
more than self-government. This great country, which
has now emerged without bitterness or bloodshed, finds
that she must at once be ready to deal with grave
international issues.
This fact has of recent months been unhappily
emphasised by the startling events which have occurred
in this continent. I shall not labour the point but it
would be unrealistic not to draw attention first to the
awe-inspiring task confronting us at the very start of our
nationhood. When this day in October 1960 was chosen
for our Independence it seemed that we were destined to
move with quiet dignity to place on the world stage.
Recent events have changed the scene beyond
recognition, so that we find ourselves today being
tested to the utmost We are called upon immediately to
show that our claims to responsible government are
well-founded, and having been accepted as an
indepedent state we must at once play an active part in
maintaining the peace of the world and in preserving
civilisation. I promise you, we shall not fail for want of
determination.
And we come to this task better-equipped than many.
For this, I pay tribute to the manner in which successive
British Governments have gradually transferred the
burden of responsibility to our shoulders. The
assistance and unfailing encouragement which we have
received from each Secretary of State for the Colonies
and their intense personal interest in our development
has immeasurably lightened that burden.
All our friends in the Colonial Office must today be
proud of their handiwork and in the knowledge that they
have helped to lay the foundations of a lasting
friendship between our two nations. I have indeed every
confidence that, based on the happy experience of a
successful partnership, our future relations with the
United Kingdom will be more cordial than ever, bound
together, as we shall be in the Commonwealth, by a
common allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth,
whom today we proudly acclaim as Queen of Nigeria and
Head of the Commonwealth.
Time will not permit the individual mention of all those
friends, many of them Nigerians, whose selfless labours
have contributed to our Independence. Some have not
lived to see the fulfilment of their hopes on them be
peace, “but nevertheless they are remembered here, and
the names of buildings and streets and roads and
bridges throughout the country recall to our minds their
achievements, some of them on a national scale. Others
confined, perhaps, to a small area in one Division, are
more humble but of equal value in the sum-total.
Today, we have with us representatives of those who
have made Nigeria: Representatives of the Regional
Governments, of former Central Governments, of the
Missionary Societies, and of the Banking and
Commercial enterprises, and members, both past and
present, of the Public Service. We welcome you, and we
rejoice that you have been able to come and share in
our celebrations. We wish that it could have been
possible for all of those whom you represent to be here
today: Many, I know, will be disappointed to be absent,
but if they are listening to me now, I say to them,
“Thank you on behalf of my Thank you for your devoted
service which helped build up Nigeria into a nation.
Today we are reaping the harvest which you sowed, and
the quality of the harvest is equalled only by our
gratitude to you. May God bless you all.
This is an occasion when our hearts are filled with
conflicting emotions: we are, indeed, proud to have
achieved our independence, and proud that our efforts
should have contributed to this happy event. But do not
mistake our pride for arrogance. It is tempered by
feelings of sincere gratitude to all who have shared in
the task of developing Nigeria politically, socially and
economically. We are grateful to the British officers
whom we have known, first as masters, and then as
leaders, and finally as partners, but always as friends.
And there have been countless missionaries who have
laboured unceasingly in the cause of education and to
whom we owe many of our medical services. We are
grateful also to those who have brought modern
methods of banking and of commerce, and new
industries. I wish to pay tribute to all of these people
and to declare our everlasting admiration of their
devotion to duty.
And, finally, I must express our gratitude to Her Royal
Highness the Princess Alexandra of Kent for personally
bringing to us these symbols of our freedom, and
especially for delivering the gracious message from Her
Majesty The Queen. And so, with the words “God save
our Queen”, I open a new chapter in the history of
Nigeria, and of the Commonwealth, and indeed of the
world.
- The first Independence Day speech by Sir Abubakar
Tafawa Balewa, Prime Minister
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