“Trade” does not make a nation. As Onye Nkuzi pointed out, tons of other countries have extremely lucrative trade relationships — but France and the United Kingdom are not one nation. Nor is Mexico and the United States.

What unites a nation is a commonality of values. Nigeria doesn’t possess that. So long as Nigerians wished to be governed by Sharia and other Nigerians oppose Sharia as an organizing governing principle, there can be no “nation”.

If trade is your organizing principle, Nigeria does not need to exist to facilitate that sort of relationship.