Complete Lesson Note on Nigerian Government and Politics POL 112

Pre-colonial Political Administrations in Nigeria

 The Hausas and their Political System

THE KANEM-BORNU EMPIRE

The first well documented state in the northern region was the kingdom of Kanem Bornu, which emerged east of Lake Chad in what is now southwestern Chad by the 9th century ad. Kanem profited from trade ties with North Africa and the Nile Valley, from which it also received Islam. The Saifawas, Kanem’s ruling dynasty, periodically enlarged their holdings by conquest and marriage into the ruling families of vassal states. The empire, however, failed to sustain a lasting peace. During one conflict-ridden period sometime between the 12th and 14th centuries, the Saifawas were forced to move across Lake Chad into Bornu, in what is now far northeastern Nigeria. There, the Kanem intermarried with the native peoples, and the new group became known as the Kanuri. The Kanuri state centered first in Kanem and then in Bornu,  known as the Kanem-Bornu Empire, hereafter referred to as Bornu.

The Kanuri eventually returned to Chad and conquered the empire lost by the Saifawas. Its dominance thus assured, Bornu became a flourishing center of Islamic culture that rivaled Mali to the far west. The kingdom also grew rich in trade, which focused on salt from the Sahara and locally produced textiles. In the late 16th century, the Bornu king Idris Alooma expanded the kingdom again, and although the full extent of the expansion is not clear, Bornu exerted considerable political influence over Hausa land to the west. In the mid- and late 18th century, severe droughts and famines weakened the kingdom, but in the early 19th century Bornu enjoyed a brief revival under al-Kanemi, a shrewd military leader who resisted a Fulani revolution that swept over much of Nigeria. Al-Kanemi’s descendants continue as traditional rulers within Borno State.  By 1830 the Fulani were masters of most of what was the Northern Region of Nigeria. Only Borno, Parts of Kebbi and Gobir, the hill areas of the Jos Plateau and the Tiv and the Idoma did not come under their control.  The Kanem-Bornu Empire ceased to exist in 1846 when it was absorbed into the Wadai sultanate to the east.

Furthermore, after the great Jihad war (1804-1810) led by Usman Dan Fodio, the former fourteen Hausa states were merged and then divided into two caliphates. The eastern caliphate which included states like Yola, Gombe, Kano, Zaria and Katsina had Sokoto as its capital territory while the western caliphate, including Ilorin, Argungun and Kontagora had Gwandu as its capital city. Usman Dan Fodio became the head (Sarkin Muslim) of the whole Hausa land while the control of Sokoto (eastern) and Gwandu (western) caliphates went to Bello, Usman Dan Fodio’s son and Abdullah, Usman Dan Fodio’s brother respectively.

Moreover, the Sokoto and Gwandu caliphates were sub divided into emirates for easy administration. Each emirate was headed by an Emir who was appointed from two or three ruling families with the approval of the Emir of Sokoto or Gwandu, depending on the emirate who were in charge of the selection. These lesser Emirs were responsible to the Emirs of Sokoto and Gwandu respectively.

However, in each emirate, the Emir was assisted by some officials who were assigned to certain duties. These officials included, the Waziri who was the administrative officer or prime minister; the Galadima who was in charge of the capitals; the Madawaki who was the commander of the army; the Dogari who was the head of the police; Yari  is  regarded as the head of prison (chief superintendent of Prison); the Maaji the treasurer; the Sarkin Ruwa the river fishing official; the Sarkin Fada who was responsible for the administration of the palace; and the Sarkin Pawa the head of all butchers. All these officials, who were appointed by the Emir, were consulted in running the day to day affairs of the emirate. This can be said to be a similarity to the Yoruba political administration, but unlike a Yoruba kingdom, power was centralized in the hands of the Emir who had absolute control over these officials and could depose or dethrone any of them at his will.

Each emirate was further divided into districts which were headed by an official known as Hakimi. The Hakimi is appointed by the Emir to oversee the affairs of each district which included maintaining peace and order and collection of taxes like Jangali - (cattle tax), Jizyah - (land tax) and Zakat - which is the tax on moveable object meant for helping the poor, other commonest taxes were: Lizya - the tax collected from the slaves, strangers and alien., Kharaj is a general tax levied on farm yield or production. The Hakimi was however assisted in carrying out these functions by the village heads whom he appoints by himself. The Hakimi and the village heads were not paid salary but were entitled to retain some fixed proportions of the taxes and tributes while they forward the rest or remaining to the Emir.

The judicial administration of Hausa land was based on Sharia law which covered a wide range of issues like marriage, divorce, theft, murder, debt and so on. These laws were interpreted by the Alkali judges in the Alkali courts. Each emirate could have more than one Alkali court depending on its size. However, issues not covered by the Sharia law were transferred to the Emir court where the Emir could preside over such issues. The Emir must be careful in making his laws or judgments as they must not go against the will of Islam religion which was the main practice of the people in Hausa land, for example, the Emir could not legalize the drinking of alcohol in the emirate. Therefore, the legislative powers of the land can be said to be solely wielded by the Emir in accordance to the religion of Islam. The Hausa pre-colonial political system was a highly centralized while, the Emir posses almost all the powers. This was one of the main reasons why the Indirect Rule System was very successful in the Northern part of Nigeria (Hausa/Fulani Empire).

The features/characteristics of the Hausa-Fulani Pre-colonial Political system

1.      Hierarchical: their political authority was properly arranged having the Emir as the highest in authority. The Emir is the most powerful traditional rulers in Nigeria.

2.      Autocratic:   the Emir controls all the decisions and takes very little inputs from other group members, make choices or decisions based on his own beliefs and do not involve others for their suggestion or advice provided it is in line with the Sharia law.

3.       Centralization: powers were centralized while the Emir remains the overall person in charge of the helm of affairs of the community.

4.      Theocracy: the Emir runs a form of government in which a religious institution is the source from which all authority derives. Also religion is fused with politics and the law based on principles of the sharia.

5.      The tax system: the way they collect tax was systematically organized in such manner that the collection of revenue for the administration of the Emirate is not cumbersome.

6.      Monarchical:  the Emir stands as king and the chief commander of his territory meaning that his decision is final as he holds the supreme power of authority.

7.        Feudalistic: they run a system in which the feudal lords own land and people receive land and protection from a lord when they worked and fought for him.

 

Functions of the Emir

1.      The Emir who is the head of the Emirates manages disputes or presides over it among his subjects.

2.      Gives advice to local government chairman the importance of community development.

3.      Educates and encourages his subjects the importance of tax payment

4.      Enlightens his people on the importance of carrying out their civil responsibilities

5.      It is the duty of the Emir to supervise the chieftaincy matters.

6.      He ensures that his people adhere to their cultural heritage.

7.      The Emir ensures that law and order are maintained in his territory.

8.      He presides over Council of Elders meeting in his community.

9.      He appoints official in his emirate.

10.  The Emir performs legislative role and makes law where the sharia law does not cover.

 

Pre-Colonial Political System in Igbo land

The Igbo pre-colonial political system was described as an ‘a cephalous political system’ which can be translated as ‘a leaderless or chief less political system’. This term is suitable for describing the Igbo pre-colonial political system why because it was decentralized and based on village and direct democracy where everyone in the village has the authority to contribute in decision making. Each Igbo village was seen as a political unit inhabited by related families who were bounded by common beliefs and origin. Each family head in the village held the ‘Ofo‘title and altogether formed the Council of Elders. The council of elders presided over important issues on the village’s welfare, safety, development and so on. Among the Council of Elders, one was recognized as the most senior to others. He was the ‘Okpara‘. He could call for and adjourn a meeting, and could also give judgments as well.  

The Council of Elders was believed to be earthly representatives of the Igbo ancestors. They maintained the age long customs, traditions and laws of the land. These included laws against misbehavior or immoral acts in which suitable punishment would be meted out to its perpetrators. There was an important institution in the Igbo political system called the age-grade. The age-grade consisted of youngsters that belong to the same age-group. The senior age-group maintained peace and order in the village and also provided security to ward off external attacks, while the junior age-group concentrated on the sanitation of the community and other necessary duties, like going to fine some defaulters that refused to comply pertaining their rules and regulations.  

The age-grade were also involved in the administration of the village, and as well acted as a check to the council of elders and other administrative bodies. Another level in the Igbo political administration were the ‘Ozo‘title holders. This expensive title was only conferred on wealthy and influential men in the community who after getting the title become recognized and could then preside over meetings with the village elders. Also, the chief priests were not left out in the administration of the village, great importance were attached to them for they were believed to be the mouthpiece of the gods e.g. Aro’s long juju. Even the council of elders consulted the chief priests on matters that were beyond their powers i.e. matters that needed spiritual intervention. Therefore, different institutions were doggedly involved in administering the Igbo community, and powers were equally shared among them.

The political organization of the Igbos was segmented because there was no central government headed by the king. They are chief less society that was segmentary and egalitarian in nature. Therefore their administrative system was highly decentralized with diffused power. The Igbos has no monarch or Kingship except in Onitsha where they have Obi of Onitsha equivalent to Oba or Emir and Red Cap Chiefs this was as result of the contact between Onitsha and Benin (Edo state). History has it that under Oba Esigie, migrants from Benin founded Onitsha town across the river Niger, thereby brought their traditional life to the people of Onitsha thus explained why they have central organized political system like the Benin (Crowder, 1978)   We can conclude that the Igbo pre-colonial political system can be safely said to be similar to the modern Republican system of government in which the people are governed by their consent. The political system is also gerontocratic in the sense that the Council of Elders takes the final decision for any difficult case. It is also known as the government for the elders of which still reign in Igbo land even till date. There unit of political and judiciary administration the village consisting the kindred, whereas the family or kindred was the basic unit of administration.

Pre-colonial Political /Administrative System of the Igbos

       I.            The Executive: administrative structures of the Igbo political system were performed by the village assembly, the council of Elders/Ndichie, the Age Grade and the Masquerade Cult stands as the Executive functions

    II.            The Legislature: the Igbo traditional political system lacks formal or specialized bodies   for enacting legislation. Laws are made by the village assembly and the rest of other law makers. Various law makers has a specific role to play; for instance the Age Grade legislates on matter concerning their mates, the priests of deities enact laws concerning spiritual matters that concerns land, and where they did not reach agreement the Council of Elders t

 III.            The Judiciary: The village assembly, the Council of Elders, the Age Grade, and the priest of deities in their various capacities takes the judicial decisions

Characteristics of Igbo Pre-colonial Political System as mentioned above were that their political system are noted for being  acephalous, gerontocracy, republican, democratic, highly decentralized, absent of tax system  and egalitarian etc.

Functions of the Age-Grade

The age grade in Igbo land has various functions to perform. They serve as security by maintaining internal and external attack from others; they also sweep the community by keeping the place neat. They also help in development by constructing roads and mending roads that is bad. The age grade also fines their members who fail to meet up their demand. They discipline any offender who is heady or have failed to abide by their rules and regulations. The age grade engage themselves in social-cultural activities like dancing for entertaining the community for a festive period. They maintain law and order

The political administrative structure of the Oyo Empire (Yoruba land)

The vast Oyo Empire was known to be the largest and the most powerful of all Yoruba empires.
THE ALAAFIN: The Alaafin is the political head of the empire. He was chosen by the Oyomesi. It was claimed that he could only appear three times a year in public and that was only during some historical festivals or event.

THE AREMO: is the eldest son of the ruling Alaafin but cannot succeed his father at his demise. He can only help his father in the administrative system of the Empire.

THE OYOMESI: These are the seven hereditary kingmakers in the Oyo Empire. Their leader is Bashroun. Their duty is the installation of the new Alaafin when the time arises.

BAALE OR OBA: Each province was administered by Ajele or Oba. They guaranteed the payment of tribute and homage to the Alaafin. There was the claim that these rulers had the power to threaten any hardened Alaafin or chief by invoking the god of thunder and lightning through the cult of Sango, to a deified Alaafin.

THE ARMY (ESO): Are- ono kankanfo is the head of the army. Oyo had for long maintained a strong army that had been used in winning different wars. It was claimed that if the army should suffer any defeat, the Are- ona- kankanfo was to commit suicide or go on exile.

THE OGBONI SOCIETY: This society posse judicial powers and was involved also in policy making. The maintenance and preservation of the cultural values of the people were also delegated to them. They influence a lot of issues in the society.

THE THREE ENUCHES: are also involved in the administration of the Empire. Namely:

1. The Osi Efa: He was in charge of political affairs, which dies with the Alaafin and can also be called ‘Abobaku’.

2. The Ona Efa: meant for judicial purpose

3. The Otun Efa: functions for the religious duties of the Alaafin .

Based on what was known as the Yoruba history we can safely conclude that the Yoruba political system had a resemblance to the modern federal system of government. Pre-colonial systems in Nigeria witnessed a lot of alterations at the advent from the British colonial masters. Several traditional rulers tried to protect and preserve their political organization of their kingdoms or empires but were overpowered by the British government and later gave up after much pressure and threat from the colonial masters. Colonialism had a great impact on every pre- colonial system in Nigeria, which has come to stay even till today.

The British conquest and Rule in Nigeria

The colonial period in Nigeria began with the slave trade in the 15th century. According to an article from The Commonwealth entitled "Nigeria: History," the Portuguese paved the way for the slave trade, and Nigeria was a big area of business for them. They sold slaves in order to obtain spices and weapons in other areas. However, the article written by John Edward Phillips entitled "What's New About African History?" states that the Nigerians themselves were the ones who provided the slaves. Tensions between different ethnic groups and tribes caused prisoners of war, so to speak, who would be sold to the Portuguese as slaves. For many Nigerians, this was their main source of income.

"Nigeria: History" also states that by the 18th century, the British had replaced the Portuguese as the leaders of the slave trade business. According to Google Culture Institute's "Birth of the Nigerian Colony," British traders settled in Nigeria around this time in an area that surrounded the Niger River known as Lagos. The abolition of the slave trade was the key moment when the British truly “intervened in the region.” They placed their focus on obtaining goods to increase their ability to trade, as well as on converting the people of the area, which was previously heavily Muslim, to Christianity.

The British began their colonization of the area by slowly moving around the area and defeating different power heads in order to obtain more trading goods. According to an article written by Toyin Falola titled "Nigeria as a Colony," the British government gained control over the Royal Niger Company’s territories, and added on lower regions near the river to create the Protectorate of Northern Nigeria and Protectorate of Southern Nigeria. The British kept their control over Nigeria via indirect rule, which meant that local leaders would govern the area under orders of the British. This way, the British could profit from the economy of Nigeria that, because of their intervention, was based primarily on the export of different crops including palm oil, cacao, and peanuts, while also not getting in the way of ethnic tensions.

The British created “divide and rule policy” that could keep different Nigerian groups as far away from one another as possible. Further divisions among the country came about from the fact that “traditional authorities” led the north, and subsequently Islam resisted the spread of Christianity. The south, however, was home of a “political hierarchy” in which the British “ruled through those who were most malleable.” Here Christianity spread quickly, adding further tensions to the area by separating people in both religion and politics.

Basically, near the mid 20th century, many groups in Nigeria were fearful of gaining independence, for they knew the major ethnic groups would gain control of the new country. However, by 1960, Nigeria achieved its independence.

The following map shows 21st century Nigeria and the major ethnic groups that live within the country. Because the colonial powers drew national borders around so many different groups, the postcolonial history includes the struggle for power among various factions. To learn about other issues regarding Nigeria's population and government in the viewpoint of a Nigerian author

Nationalist Movement

Herbert Macaulay became a very public figure in Nigeria, and on June 24, 1923, he founded the Nigerian National Democratic Party (NNDP), the first Nigerian political party in the history of the nation. The NNDP won all the seats in the elections of 1923, 1928 and 1933. In the 1930s, Macaulay took part in organizing Nigerian nationalist militant attacks on the British colonial government in Nigeria. The Nigerian Youth Movement (NYM) founded in 1933 by Professor Eyo Ita was joined in 1936 by Nnamdi Azikiwe that sought support from all Nigerians regardless of cultural background, and quickly grew to be a powerful political movement. In 1944, Macaulay and NYM leader Azikiwe agreed to form the National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons (NCNC) (a part of Cameroon was incorporated into the British colony of Nigeria). Azikiwe increasingly became the dominant Nigerian nationalist leader, he supported pan-Africanism and a pan-Nigerian based nationalist movement.

Nigerian nationalism as at that time was a radical movement and grew in popularity and power in the post-World War II period when Nigeria faced undesirable political and economic conditions under British rule. The most prominent agitators for nationalism were Nigerian ex-soldiers who were veterans of World War II who had fought alongside British forces in the Middle East,Morocco, and Burma; another important movement that aided nationalism were trade union leaders. In 1945 a national general strike was organized by Michael Imoudu who along with order trade union figures became prominent nationalists.

However Nigerian nationalism by the 1940s was already facing regional and ethnic problems to its goal of promoting a united pan-Nigerian nationalism. Nigerian nationalism and its movements were geographically significant and important in southern Nigeria while a comparable Nigerian nationalist organization did not arrive in northern Nigeria until the 1940s. This regional division in the development and significance of Nigerian nationalism also had political implications for ethnic divide - southern Nigeria faced strong ethnic divisions between the Igbo and the Yoruba while northern Nigeria did not have strong internal divisions, this meant northern Nigeria that is demographically dominated by the Hausa was politically stronger due to its greater internal unity than that of southern Nigeria that was internally disunities. The south that was ethnically divided between the Igbo and the Yoruba, though the region most in favour of Nigerian nationalism; faced the north that was suspicious of the politics of the south, creating the North-South regional cleavage that has remained an important issue in Nigerian politics.

In 1960, Nigeria became an independent country. Azikiwe became the first President of Nigeria.

THE 1922 CONSTITUTION

The Clifford constitution of 1922, introduced the first electoral system in Nigeria. The first election was conducted into the legislative council with four slots: 3 for Lagos while 1 for Calabar. However, the election was based on limited franchise which restricted the election to those that earned a minimum of 100 pounds annually, which was very expensive for most Nigerians.

It also introduced a legislative council which replaced the Nigerian council. It consisted of 46 members with the governor as the head. Out of the 46, 23 were official members and 19 were unofficial members. The remaining four were elected as previously stated. However, the council could only legislate for the South. The governor legislated for the North via proclamation.

There was also an executive council; however, it had no Nigerians. It consisted of the governor, chief secretary, lieutenant governors, an administrator for Lagos, attorney – general, commandant of the Nigerian regiment,director of medical service, Comptroller general and Secretary for native affairs.

After Hugh Clifford, there were two other governors, Cameroon and Bernard Boudillion. They didn’t do much in terms of constitutional development. However, Boudilion divided Nigeria into East, West and North for administrative purposes. This was the bedrock for future regionalism.

THE RICHARDS CONSTITUTION 1946

In 1944,  governor, Sir Arthur Richards took over from Clifford and provided a new proposal for constitutional amendment. This was as a result of pressure being mounted on him by the educated elite. They felt that the Clifford Constitution did not represent the indigenous population. Therefore, the governor introduced the constitution which had the following aims:

1.      To promote Nigeria’s unity

2.      To provide adequately within that desire for the diverse elements that make up the country

3.      To provide greater participation of Africans in the determination of their own affairs.

The constitution provided for a new legislative council, it had: The governor, 16 official members, and 28 unofficial members. Of the 28, two were nominated by the governor while 4 were elected. The North had 11 members; the West had 8 members while the East had 6 members. The elected 4 were from Lagos and Calabar. Also, the constitution made the council legislate for the whole country.

The constitution also provided for regional houses of assembly. The members of the regional assembly were nominated by the native authority. However, they weren’t legislative bodies. They were just grounds for discussing national issues. Also, it was from the house of assembly that members were nominated to the legislative council. The East and West had unicameral legislature while the North, in addition to a house of assembly, had a house of chiefs.

More so, the constitution reduced the amount of the limited franchise from 100 pounds to 50 pounds. This is considered as a plus because more people could vote and be voted for. However, it was still too expensive for most Nigerians. The executive council in Lagos also had for the first time, Nigerians. They were Sir Adeyemo Alakija and Bankole Rhodes.

Despite all these improvements compared to the Clifford constitution, the constitution still had some defects. First, it limited franchise to only Lagos and Calabar. Also, the money required for the right to vote was still too expensive for most Nigerians. Also, the regional houses of assemblies could not make laws; they were merely grounds for public discussion. The constitution also did not include the elites. This is because those nominated into the regional houses of assembly and the legislative council was nominated by the native authority.

MACPHERSON CONSTITUTION 1951

Richard constitution was also criticized as not having the interest of all, it was felt that a new constitution was needed. The governor, Sir John Macpherson, not wanting to make the mistake his predecessor made, decided to include Nigerian in the constitutional making process. There was wide consultation of Nigerians even to the village levels. Also, there was the Ibadan conference of 1950. The result of all these was that it led to the creation of the Macpherson constitution.

The constitution provided for a federal legislature called the House of Representatives. It had 136 elected representatives, 6 ex-officio members and 6 nominated by the governor. 68 members were from the North, 34 from the West and 34 from the East.

It also provided for regional legislatures that could make laws for their regions. The legislatures in the West and North were bi-cameral, each having a house of chiefs alongside the regional legislature. In the East, it was a unicameral legislature. It was also from the regional legislatures that members were nominated to the legislative council.

MERITS OF MACPHERSON CONSTITUTION OF 1951

i.            It introduced legislative principles

ii.            It made provision for offices of ministers

iii.            It introduced a revenue allocation formula in Nigeria

iv.            The constitution had a national outlook, as it covered all parts of Nigeria.

 

DEMERITS OF MACPHERSON CONSTITUTION OF 1951

i.            Three constitutional crises of 1953 led to the collapse of the 1951 constitution.

ii.            The first Crisis in the Eastern Region arose as a result of the failure of the party to elect their candidate Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe into the House of Representatives in Lagos and as a result of the expulsion of some party’s ministers because of the party’s unwillingness to continue to support the constitution.

iii.            The second Crisis was due to the motion moved by Chief Anthony Enahoro in 1953 at the House of Representatives for self-government. The North opposed the motion on the grounds that Nigeria was not ripe enough and that the date 1956 should be changed to “as soon as possible”.

iv.            The third was a riot in Kano in 1953 that was precipitated by second crisis from the northerners’ attempt to revenge the disgrace meted out to Sardauna of Sokoto when motion was moved by the southern delegates in the House.

v.            These three crises exposed the defects of the Macpherson constitution and led to its collapse.

LYTTLETON CONSTITUTION 1954

Despite, the improvements in the Macpherson constitution, it could not keep Nigerians united. It collapsed soon due to problems from the legislature. In 1953, Anthony Enahoro of the A.G proposed on the floor of the house that Nigeria should be given independence in 1956. The Northerners, who felt they were not ready for independence, opposed the move for independence. They proposed that independence should be given ‘as soon as practicable’. This led to been booed in Lagos. This led to a riot in Kano in reaction to what happened in Lagos. Also, the North threatened to secede.

In order to calm things down, the then colonial secretary, Oliver Lyttleton called the leaders for a conference in London. Some issues were discussed during the conference and committees were set up. Their reports were to be considered in the Lagos conference of 1954. It was the conference that led to the Lyttleton constitution.

The constitutional conferences of 1953 and 1954 held in London and Lagos respectively gave birth to the Lyttleton constitution. The constitution fully introduced a federal system, with North, East, West and Southern Cameroons, whereas, the Federal capital territory was in Lagos.

Based on the recent development the West African court of appeal was abolished. There was a supreme court for Nigeria and individual high courts for the regions. However, the highest court of appeal was the judicial committee of the Privy Council. The Eastern and Western regions became self-governing in 1957 while the North became self-governing in 1959. Southern Cameroon through a referendum opted out of Nigeria.

THE INDEPENDENCE CONSTITUTION 1963 / Republican Constitution 1963

On 1st October 1960, Nigeria became independent. This meant that Nigeria was a sovereign state independent of colonial influences. However, this was not fully the case. The Queen was still the head of state, even though, she was represented by a Nigerian in the person of Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe who was the Governor-General (head of government) while Tafawa Balewa was Prime minister (head of state).

The constitution was like the 1954 constitution but with minor changes. There was the inclusion of provisions for acquiring citizenship of the country. There was also included in the constitution provisions for the procedure for amendment of the constitution. Some Judges of the courts were appointed through nomination by the judicial service commission upon the assent of the Privy Council. The Privy Council was as at then the highest court of appeal in the country.

The constitution divided legislative powers between the center and the regional legislature. It made provisions for an exclusive legislative list. It also made provisions for a concurrent list. Items in the exclusive list were to be legislated by only the central legislature. Items in the concurrent list were to be legislated upon by the central legislature and the regional legislatures. Items not included in any of the lists were regarded as residual lists which were within the sole purview of the regional legislature.

It also provided for a dual executive. This meant that we had the Head of State and the Head of Government in two different people. The head of government was Nnamdi Azikiwe while the head of state was Tafawa Balewa. The head of state had only ceremonial functions while the head of government had executive powers. He was responsible for the day to day running of the activities of government. The constitution also provided for its supremacy. This was in contrast to the convention in a parliamentary system. In a parliamentary system they have parliamentary supremacy, not constitutional supremacy. However, due to the heterogeneous nature of Nigeria, the constitution had to be supreme in order to dissuade fears of domination of minority groups.

Even though, Nigeria was purported to have gained independence from the British, there were still some vestiges of imperialism in the independence constitution. One of them is that the queen was still the head of state, who was represented by a Nigerian. Also, the highest court of appeal was the judicial committee of the Privy Council in the House of Lords instead of the Nigerian Supreme court. It was due to these that a new constitution had to be made. This was the 1963 republican constitution that gave Nigeria their full right as a republic nation .

History of Nigerian Constitution

Nigeria is a federal republic in West Africa. With an estimated population of 123,000,000 people, Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa. It spans an area of 925,000 square kilometres and has a landmass extending inland from the eastern end of the Gulf of Guinea deep into the western savannah. Nigeria lies between the Cameroon on the east and the Republic of Benin on the west; to the north is Niger and to the northeast is Chad. Although the country is rich in mineral resources 'particularly oil' the per capita income in Nigeria is only $300 per year.

The territory that is now Nigeria was formerly made up of various states, empires, and smaller territories. The largest and the most influential of these was the Fulani Empire which extended over most of northern Nigeria in the nineteenth century. In the more forested south which could not be easily penetrated by Fulani cavalry were the Oyo (Yoruba) and Benin states. East of the Niger lived the Igbo and Ibibio communities. The earliest authentic records date European influence in the coastal areas of Nigeria from 1472, when Portuguese ships landed in Benin. Until the arrival of the Europeans, the coast was of little international political significance. Before the Portuguese sailors came looking for gold and slaves from West Africa, contact with the outside world was undertaken across the Sahara. When the British arrived in the area a century later, it marked the beginning of a new period in Nigerian history.

At the Berlin Conference of 1884/1885 British interest along the River Niger was given official recognition. In 1900, the British Crown took over the administration of the territory from the Royal Niger Company and declared protectorates over Northern and Southern Nigeria.

In 1914 a Nigerian Council of 30 Europeans and six Nigerians was inaugurated. This Council was not given any legislative or executive powers’ its function was advisory in character but the first of its kind in the history of the colonizers.

The constitution of 1922 (known as the Sir Hugh Clifford Constitution) expanded and reconstituted the Legislative Council. It now had 46 members, 10 of whom were elected, and made laws for the colony and the Southern Provinces. The Governor continued to legislate for the Northern Provinces.

The constitution of 1946, called the Richards Constitution after Sir Arthur Richards who masterminded it, set up a Legislative Council for the entire country and divided the country into three regions’ north, west and east. The Council had 45 members, 28 of whom were Nigerians (four of the 28 were elected and the remaining 24 were nominated). The constitution also established three regional legislatures. The regional legislative bodies considered matters referred to them by the Governor and advised him accordingly.

In 1951, the constitution was changed to make necessary provisions for a Council of Ministers of 18 members (12 Nigerians and six other members who were ex-officio members from the colonial bureaucracy). The Council of Ministers was made up of equal representation from each of the three regions and the nomination of regional representatives was by the Regional Legislature. A House of Representatives was created consisting of 142 members, of this number 136 were Nigerians.

The regional legislative bodies had powers to legislate on a limited number of local matters, but the laws made by them were subject to reference to the Governor. In a fundamental sense, the €˜regional' concept introduced by the Richards Constitution provided the building-blocks for a federal system of government in Nigeria.

In 1954 another constitution was adopted. This constitution strengthened the federal character of Nigeria even further. It declared Nigeria a federation, recognized the limited autonomy of the regions, and continued the regional representation on the Council of Ministers. While the centre presided over foreign relations, defense, the police, etc., the regions were responsible for primary and secondary education, agriculture, public health and local government. The judiciary, the Public Service Commission and the Marketing Boards were regionalized.

Responsibility for economic development, labour matters and higher education was shared between the centre and the regions. Thus, Nigeria achieved federation by desegregation. Between 1954 and 1960, the three regions achieved self-government.

On 1 October 1960, the Nigerian federation was granted full independence by Britain. Three years later, on 1 October 1963, Nigeria became a federal republic (the 'First Republic'), with a republican constitution.

The Republican Constitution of 1963 gave exclusive powers to the federal government in areas such as defense, external affairs, immigration, passports, currency, railways, post and telecommunications, aviation and meteorology. In addition, the federal government could legislate on any matter outside its exclusive legislative list during any period of national emergency. The Concurrent List in the 1963 constitution contained subjects on which the federal and regional legislatures could initiate legislation, including undertaking a census, industrial development and antiques. The residual powers left to the regional legislatures contained matters such as primary and secondary school education. Regional legislatures could legislate on these items as deemed appropriate.

Nigeria is a multi-ethnic country and by the 1960s the various ethnic groups were in constant competition for control of the central government and power within their own regions. This led to demands for more regional units, and in 1963 in response to this, the Western Region was split, creating the Mid-Western Region. This marked the beginning of a process which has increased the number of constituent units in the country from three to 36.

In January 1966 there was a military coup led by Major Chukwuma Nzeogwu, an Igbo. Killed in the coup were the Prime Minister of the federation, the Premier of the Northern Region, the Premier of the Western Region, and a number of senior military officers. The plotters of the coup failed to secure Lagos and eventually Major-General Aguiyi-Ironsi, the most senior officer in the Nigerian Army, and an Igbo, took control and ordered the arrest of the coup perpetrators. Most of those involved in the coup were Igbos and because of this, it was wrongly described as an Igbo coup, even though one of the main participants was a Yoruba major. After taking control of the federal government Ironsi abolished the federal system and opted for a unitary system. This action abolished the regions.

Northern civil servants felt threatened by the highly trained and educated southerners. The north reacted. Igbos in the north was attacked and thousands were killed. In July 1967 there was a second coup staged by junior northern military officers. Many Igbo officers were killed in this coup. This redressed the balance of power in favour of the north and brought Lieutenant-Colonel Yakubu Gowon to power. From this time the Igbo leaders wanted secession, and this demand was further fuelled by a second wave of massacres of the Igbos in September 1967. Having lost confidence in the Nigerian political system, more than one million Igbos from all parts of the country fled to their homeland. Attempts at striking a compromise with the Igbos failed and on 30 May 1967, the former Eastern Region was declared an independent sovereign state of Biafra by Lieutenant-Colonel Odumegwu Ojukwu. Civil war broke out between Nigerian and Biafran forces and ended only in January 1970 with Biafra's surrender.

Despite the massive wealth generated by Nigeria's oil industry in the 1970s, political unrest continued. In 1975 General Gowon was overthrown. His successor, General Murtala Mohammed, initiated a number of political reforms, but was killed in an unsuccessful coup attempt in 1976. Lieutenant-General Olusegun Obasanjo succeeded him. In mid-1976 the military government appointed the Aguda Panel to look at alternatives for reform. The panel recommended that the federal capital be moved from Lagos to Abuja and that seven new states be created. In 1979 a general election was held. Shehu Shagari, leader of the National Party of Nigeria (NPN), won the presidential elections in 1979 (and again in 1983). General Obasanjo handed over power to Shehu Shagari and he became President of the Second Republic, inaugurated in October 1979.

The inauguration of the Second Republic was preceded by the adoption a new constitution entitled 'The 1979 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria'. The 1979 constitution introduced the presidential system of government, and stated that 'Nigeria shall be a Federation consisting of states and Federal Capital Territory' (Section 2(2)). The 1979 constitution recognized local governments as constituting the third tier of government within the Nigerian federation, with defined functions.

In December 1983, citing corruption and economic inefficiency, the military overthrew the civilian government. Another coup by

Military leaders occurred in 1985 and Major General Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida took over. Babangida announced that he would allow the country to return to civilian rule but then annulled the results of the June 1993 presidential elections. An interim national government (ING) was implemented by the military. (This is usually referred to in official circles in Nigeria as the 'Third Republic'.) The suspended 1979 constitution was to be reviewed during this period.

During this time the National Assembly was revived with limited powers and there were some elections for government officials. Babingida's government was overthrown in November 1993 by General Sani Abacha who then dissolved the National Assembly and dismissed all elected officials. Abacha died suddenly in June 1998 and General Abdulsalam Abubakar became President. Abubakar announced that elections would be held, and in 1999 Nigeria elected a civilian government, headed by Olusegun Obasanjo (now a civilian). A new constitution, 'Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999', ushered in the Fourth Republic in May 1999