WAEC Government 2013 Theory — Question 9

Model answer

The West African Student Union (WASU), founded in 1925 by Ladipo Solanke, was a nationalist organisation made up of West African students studying in London. The following were factors that led to the collapse of the union: I. One of the factors that led to the collapse of the West African Student Union (WASU) is the lack of internal democracy for the election of leaders of the union. The lack of desire to hand over the leadership of the union to others by the founder, Ladipo Solanke, made most of the members leave the union, a major reason for its collapse. II. Lack of unity among members was another factor for the collapse of the West African Student Union (WASU). Membership of the union as well as its leadership was dominated by Nigerians. A situation which made members from other countries to be suspicious and to engage in activities that caused disunity among members. III. The West African Student Union as a nationalist movement abroad had no strong base in the colonies they claimed to be fighting for. Many of the union activities focused on events in London as it affected students studying in the United Kingdom. IV. The West African Student Union also suffered from the problem of lack of fund and financial sponsors. The lack of fund hindered the union from being relevant.