It’s the 49th anniversary of Nigeria’s independence from Britain this weekend. From the outset the colonial leaders wanted to prevent the country from developing, but the new leadership class has not been any different. The management of oil revenues plays a big part in Nigeria’s development. From the time of independence–when oil was discovered–until 1999, for example, Nigeria’s leaders (with the collusion of oil companies) stole at least $400 billion of the oil revenue. So for most of its citizens things have gotten a lot worse (they’re subjected to abuse and attacks by the army, environmental pollution and underdevelopment), especially in the Niger Delta. Some of the frustrated locals have turned to attacks government officials and oil company installations (abducting oil workers is a favorite), as this recent report by Current TV (Al Gore’s outfit) shows. (I like the comment by the Delta chief who refers to Shell as “Mr Government.”)
