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SubjectFree lesson

Development of Political Parties in Nigeria

ClassNotes Team 4 MIN READUPDATED 5 JUL 2026

Government SSS 3 First Term

WEEK 6

Development of Political Parties in Nigeria

Performance Objectives

Student should be able to:

1. Explain the establishment of NNDP

2. establishment of NYM

3. establishment of NCNC

Content

i. National Democratic Party (NNDP)

ii. Nigerian youth movement (NYM )

iii. National Council of Nigeria and Cameroun citizens (NCNC)

Development of Political Parties

 This is the historical background of political parties, how they emerge, the aim and objectives of the political parties.

Nigerian National Democratic Party (NNDP)

This political party was formed in 1923 under the leadership of Sir Herbert Macaulay, who was popularly referred to as "Father of Nigerian Nationalism ". This party won all the three seats in Lagos, into the legislative council in the elections of 1923,1928 and 1933. It also won the elections into the Lagos Town Council.

The Nigerian National Democratic Party(NNDP) also founded Lagos Daily News. This was a newspaper formed by this party and it was an arm of the party which helped to encourage political activities, especially in Lagos. The party was mainly based in Lagos and did not have a national outlook. The financing of the party was done by the party members. However, the political history of Lagos in the twenties and thirties was essentially the history of Herbert Macaulay's political activities, and he also identified himself with the people.

Contributions of NNDP

1. The NNDP successfully organized various Lagos interest groups into a single group that was able to compete politically.

2. The (NNDP) ran many candidates for seats in the 1922 elections for the Lagos Legislative Council, winning three seats.

3. The party won all the seats in the elections of 1923, 1928 and 1933. Though the party's major function was to put candidates into the legislative council, it had a broader objective of promoting democracy in Nigeria, increasing higher Nigerian participation in the social, economic and educational development of Nigeria.

4. The party continued to dominate politics in Lagos until 1938

Nigerian Youth Movement (NYM)

This was formed in 1935 and featured characters like, Earnest Ikoli, Samuel Akinsanya and Dr C. Vaughan. The movement competed with NNDP for the control of political activities of Lagos. Nnamdi Azikwe, H.O Davies, Obafemi Awolowo and Samuel Akintola later joined the movement. The party had a national outlook based on the composition of the members.

Aims and Objectives 

I. To work towards the unity of Nigeria.

ii. To work towards the attainment of self-rule.

Contributions of Nigerian Youth Movement

1. Legislative council: It won all the three elective seats allocated to Lagos in the legislative council, this creates room more competition between parties and also promote overtaken in competition.

2.  Unity: It worked to promote national unity.

3. National Outlook: NYM was the first political party that had a national outlook in the composition of members.

4. Set machinery for independence: It set the machinery for a political independence of Nigeria.

5. Modern national: It could further in bringing in modern nationalism to Nigeria.

The National Council of Nigeria And Cameroun's ( NCNC)

The NCNC was formed in 1944. The first president was Herbert Macaulay and the first general secretary was Dr Nnamdi Azikwe. At the death of Herbert Macaulay, Azikwe became the president and when Southern Cameroun left Nigeria in August 1944, the NCNC changed its name to National Council for Nigerian Citizens. This party was as a result of the split in the Nigerian Youth Movement (NYM) over-representation of the party in the vacant legislative council seats in 1941. Dr Nnamdi Azikwe took over the leadership of NCNC as a result of the death of Herbert Macaulay in 1946.

Aims and Objectives of the NCNC

1. Political reforms: To arouse mass interest and obtain overwhelming national support for political reforms.

2. Political education: To achieve political: To achieve political independence by educating people of Nigeria politically.

3. To extend democratic principles: This is to extend the democratic principles of the people of Nigeria.

4. To secure freedom of expression: To secure political freedom, economic security, social equality and religious tolerance as a good medium of expression that had to be introduced.

The Contributions of the NCNC

1. The struggles for self-governance.

2. It educate Nigerian on their political rights.

3. It introduced and published the West  African pilot which served as a powerful platform for opposing colonial rule.

4. NCNC took part in most of the constitutional conferences, e.g the 1953 London constitutional conference.

5. The NCNC worked in agreement with NPC in creating Mid- Western region out of the Western region in 1963.

6. The party was instrumental to the sending of delegates to London to protest the 1946 constitution.