Pictures of abubakar tafawa balewa
Sir ahmadu bello.
Pictures of abubakar tafawa balewa
Nigeria's independence: Six images from six decades
As Nigeria prepares to celebrate its independence anniversary, the BBC's Nduka Orjinmo selects six images, one from each decade, that represent watershed moments in the country's 60 years of self-rule.
1960s - The making of an African giant
After decades of British colonial rule, Prime Minister Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa took on the reins of power and led independent Nigeria's new coalition government.
The celebrations lasted for weeks in some parts of the country and for those present at the Race Course (now Tafawa Balewa Square) in Obalende, Lagos, on 1 October 1960, it was an unforgettable experience.
"Just before the stroke of midnight, they switched off the lights and lowered the British Union Jack," Ben Iruemiobe, then a bright-eyed 16-year-old student who witnessed the raising of the Nigerian flag, told the BBC.
"Then at midnight, the lights were swit