United Middle Belt Congress
- United Middle Belt Congress
United Middle Belt Congress (UMBC) was a political party in Nigeria during the nation's First Republic. The Party was a fusion of two major middle belt organizations, the Middle Zone League and the Middle Belt Peoples' Party. The party was formed to create a political platform for the various ethnic groups in central Nigeria covering parts of present day Benue State, Kogi State, Plateau State, Nasarawa State, Adamawa State and Kaduna State. It's establishment was an act to ensure an alternative minority voice in the Northern Nigeria Assembly which was dominated by the Northern People's Congress, a political party which the central Nigerian leaders felt had the potential to curb the middle belt's political voice. The UMBC in due time, became the largest opposition party in the Northern Nigeria Assembly. In 1958, the UMBC entered into an alliance with the Southwest Nigeria dominant Action Group of Chief Obafemi Awolowo.
Party Structure
Some of the early leaders of the UMBC were Joseph Tarka, David Lot, Patrick Dokotri, Edward Kundu Swem, Ahmadu Angara, Isaac Shaahu (Northern Assembly Opposition Leader), Solomon Lar, D. Bulus Biliyong, D.D. Dimka, V.T. Shisha, M.D. Iyorka, and Ugba Uyeh.The party adopted a decentralized nomination system whereby local ethnic unions or special committees in a given area nominated and presented candidates for local elections, this was partly used to validate the ethnic diversity of the party.
References
*K. W. J. Post, The Nigerian Federal Election of 1959: Politics and Administration in a Developing Political System, Oxford University Press, 1963.
Wikimedia Foundation.
2010.
Look at other dictionaries:
Middle Belt Forum — The Middle Belt Forum (MBF) is a regional socio political group in Nigeria that promotes the interests of the people of the Middle Belt region, a loosely defined area between the Moslem and Hausa dominated North and the predominantly Christian… … Wikipedia
Middle Belt — The Middle Belt is a human geographical term designating the region of central Nigeria populated largely by minority ethnic groups and stretching across the country longitudinally. The Middle Belt is indeterminate in that it lacks designated… … Wikipedia
Congress for Progressive Change — Chairman Tony Momoh Secretary General Buba Galadima Founded … Wikipedia
United States — a republic in the N Western Hemisphere comprising 48 conterminous states, the District of Columbia, and Alaska in North America, and Hawaii in the N Pacific. 267,954,767; conterminous United States, 3,022,387 sq. mi. (7,827,982 sq. km); with… … Universalium
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA — UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, country in N. America. This article is arranged according to the following outline: introduction Colonial Era, 1654–1776 Early National Period, 1776–1820 German Jewish Period, 1820–1880 East European Jewish Period,… … Encyclopedia of Judaism
United States Coast Guard — portal Active 4 August 1790–present … Wikipedia
United Kingdom — a kingdom in NW Europe, consisting of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: formerly comprising Great Britain and Ireland 1801 1922. 58,610,182; 94,242 sq. mi. (244,100 sq. km). Cap.: London. Abbr.: U.K. Official name, United Kingdom of Great… … Universalium
United States general elections, 2006 — The 2006 United States midterm elections were held on Tuesday, November 7 2006. All United States House of Representatives seats and one third of the United States Senate seats were contested in this election, as well as 36 state governorships,… … Wikipedia
United States Marine Corps — USMC redirects here. For other uses, see United States Maritime Commission and University of St. Michael s College. United States Marine Corps United States M … Wikipedia
United States Air Force — USAF redirects here. For other uses, see USAF (disambiguation). The U.S. Air Force redirects here. For the song, see The U.S. Air Force (song). United States Air Force … Wikipedia
