Agitations: Whose Power is it to Restructure Nigeria? By Hameed Ajibola Jimoh
In recent time, there have been agitations across the Federal Republic of Nigeria calling on the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria or the Federal Government to restructure Nigeria for national development. There was also, a bill for the devolution of powers of the Federal Government to the States of the Federation by a bill seeking to amend the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (3rdAlteration as amended)-herein after referred to as the Constitution, and as has been seen, the National Assembly rejected such bill on devolution of powers to States of the Federation while the House of Representative passed the bill. The Presidency of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has responded that it is not the role or the duty of the President to restructure Nigeria, though the agitation calling on the President still persists.
This paper is an attempt at considering and creating awareness in the Nigerian public about who has been empowered or who has such power to restructure Nigeria, as a mediator in the resulting arguments of restructuring Nigeria.
It is important to observe that the issue of restructuring of Nigeria is a constitutional issue. The first guiding principle on this submission is the provisions of section 1(2) of the Constitution which provides thus ‘The Federal Republic of Nigeria shall not be governed, nor shall any person or group of persons take control of the Government of Nigeria or any part thereof, except in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution’.
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It is also important to point out that Nigeria is governed based on the principle of Federalism which posits that the powers of the different tiers of government are usually spelt out in legislative lists in the Constitution of the Country. Under the federal system of government that Nigeria operates, the Federal Government is saddled with the powers contained on the Exclusive Legislative Lists, while the Concurrent Legislative Lists are performed by both the Federal Government and the State Government. The Local Government which is the third tiers of Government also performs its functions specially spelt out in the Constitution. This Federal System of Government also laid the importance of the doctrines of separation of powers among the three arms or organs of government: the Legislature, with the power to make laws for the State or the Country; the Executive, with the power to implement the laws made by the Legislature and carry out the business of government; and the Judiciary, with the power to interpret the laws of the land and adjudicate in cases of disputes among or between persons. These powers have been clearly shared and separated under Part II of the Constitution which provides for ‘powers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria’, which runs from sections 4 to 6 of the Constitution for each of the organs respectively. For instance, in the case of: A.G. Federation v A.G. Lagos State (2013) 16 NWLR (Part 1380) 249 SC. where the Supreme Court held thus: ‘Section 4 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, divides legislative powers between the National Assembly for the Federation and the House of Assembly for the State in the exclusive and concurrent legislative list. The National Assembly has exclusive power to legislate for the Federal Republic or any part thereof in respect of matters in the exclusive list. The National Assembly also has power to legislate, though not exclusively, on matters in the concurrent legislative list set out in the first column of Part II of the Second Schedule to the Constitution and on any other matter with respect to which it is empowered to make laws. The House of Assembly of a State has power to make laws for the State or any part thereof on any matter not included in the exclusive legislative list, on any matter in the concurrent legislative list and on any other matter for which it is empowered to make laws. The House of Assembly of a State also has exclusive power to legislate on residual matters; that is, matters that are not in the exclusive and concurrent legislative lists’. Now, therefore, section 5(1) of the Constitution is to the effect that ‘5(1) subject to the provisions of this Constitution, the executive powers of the Federation-(a) shall be vested in the President and may, subject as aforesaid and to the provisions of any law made by the National Assembly, be exercised by him either directly or through the Vice-President and Ministers of the Government of the Federation or officers in the public service of the Federation’. As explained earlier in this paper, the powers of the President possessing the executive powers of the Federation means that he as an executive does not make laws for the country rather, he only has the powers of implementing the laws made by the National Assembly and or as conferred on him anywhere in the Constitution and carrying out the business of government.
As it has been clarified above, it is now clear that the President does not have the power anywhere in the Constitution to restructure Nigeria. In fact, where the President issues any such order having the effect of restructuring Nigeria, such order is unconstitutional, null and void and of no effect by section 1(3) of the Constitution which provides thus ‘If any other law is inconsistent with the provisions of this Constitution, this constitution shall prevail, and that other law shall to the extent of the inconsistency be void’. And as it has been observed earlier in this paper, the issue of restructuring Nigeria is an issue bothering on the Constitution. It therefore means that the process of restructuring Nigeria will have to pass through and or experience a constitutional amendment. As the writer of this paper understood and deduced from the comments made by some of the agitators of the restructuring of Nigeria, and considering the provisions of the Constitution, it is the submission of the writer of this paper that restructuring Nigeria is the same as devolving some of the powers of the Federal Government to the State Government of the Federation. It then means that the current situation whereby the Senate-an arm of the two arms of the Legislature- rejected devolution of powers to State governments is a mistake and misunderstanding and an hindrance to the restructuring of Nigeria mantra. The House of Representatives however, passed the bill for the devolution of powers already being performed by the Federal Government to the State, the passage, which is commendable.
It is therefore submitted that for Nigeria to be restructured, being a constitutional issue, it will require an amendment of the provisions of the Constitution which have created the current structures, the role of such restructuring is then to be carried out in compliance with either or respectively pursuant to sections: 8 and or 9 of the Constitution. Therefore, in discovering who has the power to restructure Nigeria, depending on the required restructuring, either section 8 or 9 or both of the Constitution will have to be considered.
From the above discussions, it is submitted that it is wrong to assume that the President is the one that has the power to restructure Nigeria, as this is definitely unconstitutional in a democratic system of government and Nigeria is no more being ruled by Military system of government except by the Constitution. See: section 1(2) of the Constitution (supra). It is further submitted that in restructuring Nigeria, pressures should be mounted on the person(s) or body(ies) conferred with that power by either section 8 or 9 or both sections of the Constitution, so that the agitations for the restructuring will be in conformity with the provisions of the Constitution.
Nevertheless, the writer of this paper is in support of restructuring Nigeria and or devolution of powers to States government and it is believed that the current situation of the country testifies to the fact that it is in the national interest to do so, however, it is suggested that necessary machinery should be institutionalized to avoid an abuse of those powers as ‘power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely’. However the writer of this paper is not in support of restructuring Nigeria by disunity and separation and or with violence, breach of law and order.
Finally, it is hoped that where the bill for devolution of powers to the States of the Federation is re-passed, there will be no hindrance to its passage and enactment into law.
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