Hanatu Alahira

Colonial Ordinances & Capital in the Jos Tin Mines in Northern Nigeria: an Analysis Hanatu Alahira

This book is a critical analysis of colonial ordinances and mining capital in the Jos tin mines of Northern Nigeria . We demonstrated that the legal superstructure and colonial ordinances in particular acted as catalyst in the process of colonial exploitation by the tin mining industry. The Colonial ordinances were used as instrument of coercion(political control) propaganda (maintenance of class interest) and economic exploitation of the indigenous population on one hand and protected the economic interest of the foreign mining companies on the other hand. The land, mineral and labour ordinances were systematically used to take over control of indigenous tin mining and the exploitation of the indigenous population through high taxation, low wages, forced labour e.t.c The overall impact of British colonial ordinances facilitated British control over land, labour and mineral resources of the region. It sanctioned the expropriation and appropriation of super profits resulting in the exploitation and impoverishment of both peasants and mine laborers by the colonial government and foreign mining companies. It left a legacy of poverty and social conflict that characterized the Jos plateau.