The possible reasons for the practice of federalism in Nigeria are several, and have, for instance, been presented as British imposition targeted at a post-colonial relationship, or as a. The paper contends that unitary federalism in Nigeria is an imposition and extension of colonial and military entrenched inequalities in the Nigerian state. To browse Academia.edu and the wider internet faster and more securely, please take a few seconds toupgrade your browser. Best information base for latest information both national and international. Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. Unity of the country: 3.3 3. A large body of literature exists on Nigeria's fiscal federalism particularly with reference to revenue allocation. five reasons for the adoption of federalism in Nigeria explained. It discovered a positive relationship between the changes in the fiscal structure and the aggravation of ethnic minorities' struggles. 1 Issue 2, BETWEEN THE PRISMS OF NECESSITY AND LEGALITY - THE IPOB PROSCRIPTION IN CONTESTATION_pp.43-57, RE-THINKING BIAFRA IDEOLOGY OF SELF-DETERMINATION IN NIGERIA, A (UN)JUST AND (UN)HOLY WAR? In Nigeria, the main reason for the adoption of a federal arrangement was the sociological complexity of the society, its ethnic and geographical diversity. It submits that the problem with constitutionalism in Nigeria is poor leadership and poor implementation of the Constitution. Prior to independence, it is believed that the British adopted federalism because it favored their interest. Introduction In a statement on the 2015 Nigerian General Elections the Freedom House (2015a) congratulated Nigerians for an election that appears to be one of the smoothest and least violent in Nigeria's Asst. There are other political systems the country could have adopted but because of some reasons which I am going to share with you today, federalism seemed to be the best idea. In some areas where major communal or other social antagonism cuts across territorial boundaries, ranging through all the federating units, communities or classes have been driven to seek to protect or strengthen their position by inter-territorial union. Besides the Big Three Igbo, Hausa and Yoruba, there are other macro and micro ethnic minorities in the country. /Filter /FlateDecode 2012, Issues and Trends in Nigeria's Development. The benefits of federalism are that it can encourage political participation, give states an incentive to engage in policy innovation, and accommodate diverse viewpoints across the country. +rohyC ! 9S ) ?roh _ O4C sR & Pf?? AK kyC?& Pf;_Hu j_ G$: 5/ It also shows the growth rate as an engine to the development of economies of developing countries like Nigeria in this 21p century. This duplicity of government is not alien to a federal structure as identified, except that in the Nigerian case, there is ineffable strife for dominance. INTERNAL COLONIALISM IN NIGERIA Some of the reasons for the adoption of federalism in Nigeria are the diversity of the nation and the desire for political, cultural and social identity of a people of over 250 ethnic groups, several languages, diversities and a lot of political traditions; the desire for some form of Federalism did not return to Nigeria until after his death. /F5 18 0 R According to Ayoade (2009:iii): Nigerians have come to identify the first republic 1960- 66 as the golden age of federalism in Nigeria. Nigeria as a nation has succeeded in commanding influence among member states by the virtue of its size. As a result of this, it has brought about the cry of the minorities clamoring for their own state. This post will give you some insight into why federalism was adopted as the system of governance in Nigeria. Historical experience 3.2 2. Also, the adoption of the Littleton constitution of 1954 laid further credence to . This particular corroborated federalism in Nigeria. The Political Economy and Un-ending Search, Agitation for Restructuring and Resource Control in Nigeria's Federalism: Issues, Perspectives and the Way Forward, Federalism, Military Legacies and the Restructuring Debate in Contemporary Nigeria, Federalism, Decentralisation and the Liberalisation of Business Environment in Nigeria, Hands Behind their backs: Making a case for a region-centred restructuring framework, Nigerian Pseudo-Federalism and the Agitations for Restructuring, The evolution of fiscal centralism and strong centre federalism in Nigeria An historical analysis, The Nigerian fiscal formulas and the agitations for resource control in the Niger delta region of. Evidently, Nigerias political culture was federalism friendly and that gave rise to easy adoption of federalism. Abstract One of the arguments for the adoption of federalism in Nigeria is the desire for economic and political viability and development in a nation of uneven distribution of human and. He is also a Developer with knowledge in HTML, CSS, JS, PHP and React Native. SjHw`d"*z;3N&W3k]:}N\t+5 (Nw3hW"T"aDV$V e. Therefore, the adoption of a federal political framework in Nigeria was a necessity as the system was the only viable option for a multi-ethnic country like Nigeria. By every political barometer, this is a thought-provoking account of the Nigeria-Biafra political imbroglio. Voter Turnout, Voting Behavior and Democratic Consolidation in Nigeria By Professor Sakah Saidu Mahmud Kwara State University, Malete 1. /BitsPerComponent 8 The fear of ethnic groups overlapping regional boundaries and the loyalties of castes cutting of some extent across provincial political boundaries also encourage some groups to support wider federal unions. Another factor that prompted the adoption of federalism in Nigeria is the fear of insecurity and the desire for union. Here, both the majority and minority are represented in the government. In 1954, the Nigerian founding fathers opted for a federal system of government despite its inherent challenges in a pluralistic society. +rohyC ! 9S ) ?roh _ O4C sR & Pf?? AK kyC?& Pf;_Hu j_ G$: 5/ Granted is the fact that federalism was launched in Nigeria by expatriate leaders, its continued existence since independence is standing firm on the interest of the indegeneous leaders. As I have already explained, Nigeria is an amalgamation of three different regions with beliefs and customs. Nigeria as a result was divided into three provinces. The main goal of the Convention was to revise the Articles of Confederation, the agreement that governed the 13 colonies and was adopted by the Continental Congress on November 15, 1777, shortly after the end of the Revolutionary War . That is often the reason why some adherents of Marx quarrel vehemently about such preordained classification such as: haves and have-nots; and the liberal minds grappling with, insisting not only that all hands are not equal, but that they must never, for whatsoever reason at all, be made equal - believing that that would tantamount to the highest injustice. Thus, federalism is mostly considered a tangible element for coexistence, but much more, I think, as political syrup, for adumbrating potent dislocations inherent in, and symptomatic of pluralist societies. In developing countries like India, Iraq and Nigeria, federalism has either failed to close developmental gaps and ethno-communal tensions among various states or, more worryingly, in some. Policy Brief on the agitation for cessation of Biafra republic from the Nigerian state, response to the agitation and the options to address the issues. I have said that Nigeria is reputed to be the largest black country around, even Nigeria has claimed to be the giant of Africa by . Nigeria, a previously unitary state, became a federation in 1954. It was believed that federal system of government would take care of the interest of the minority and human rights that had been the fear of the minority under colonial rule. Therefore, the problem with federalism in Nigeria is the mix-application or non-application of this clause especially as it has to do with power distribution (Awa, 1977). The current problems facing the Nigeria government and the Biafra separatist agitators originate in the causes and the effects of the Nigerian Civil war (06 July 1967-15 January 1970). Before the amalgamation of the Northern Protectorate and the Southern Protectorate in 1914, there was nothing like Nigeria. But besides these three major tribes, there are over 350 other smaller tribes with diverse languages and dialects. *$( %2%(,-/0/#484.7*./. C INTRO: Federalism has been approached with variegated definitions such that one might argue that there are as much definitions of federalism as there are authors on the subject. This paper recommends that there should be an overhaul of the political system through constitutional amendment process to expunge provisions that negate federalism and provide for implementation of true federalism. Evidently, Nigeria's political culture. ideology, federalism becomes the only solution to ensure peace and unity amongst the. Federalism in India. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Your email address will not be published. x^[YsF~[-`pys)fk"%J hE;}LO *%gH=zoN/oNS~~zb|\U?_s3jJ}ZxhK2&$9|H-&9)q7"|kxN7i,anHiw>&_N~@bdkBs>gIM>z2|1zFDW+1"y-#HCQJmvj4CW5z,#IwHGc&Y"`Sg|2)FQ& p:?WT hQ4M:*|9tKy?c[U(zqfNBA=XCOf~2i6KC@;DGO? All these strengthen political bonds and gave Rice to unity in diversity. Your email address will not be published. V(B8eDK@sx AK hG~ u;6DV,pwP# _ O4C sR 8_yC ! 9S ) ?roh _ O4C sR & Pf?? AK kyC?& Pf;_Hu j_ G$: 5/ Nigeria. Nigeria and Ghana can not easily form a country chiefly because they are not geographically contiguous. Many Nigerian ethnic groups began to agitate for their own states. stream Each state has the same level of self-governance. The paper suggested that fiscal and political restructuring as panacea for the instituted conflicts and underdevelopment caused by quasi federalism through ongoing review of the 1999 constitution. Resource control: 3.7 7. The USSR was an example of this type of federalism. /F7 24 0 R The history of Ijaw, Edo, Igala, Yoruba, Igbo, Nupe and Hausa Kingdoms are enriched with social-political relationships that existed before the emergence of the white man. The states' territories were formed around ethnic groups with common interest and close ties, culture, and dialects. In a unitary constitution which opposes federal principles, everything belongs to the central government; the federating unit does not exist, let alone agitating for resource control. Section 10 of the constitution rule outs the adoption of any religion as a state religion either. By the time Nigeria became a republic, the system of federalism was adopted and the country was considered as a federation of three regions. Constitutionalism in Nigeria has been crisis-ridden since independence in 1960. (eds. Keep it up , Yes , I love it and I was sentitize on those reasons. Since 1954 successively Nigerian constitution had adopted the federal system of government without much emphasis on the unity or disunity it has accorded to Nigeria. We can offhandedly list all of the reasons for the adoption of federal system in Nigeria. Given the size of Nigeria, it lays claims to being the Giant of Africa. Many nations in the international community recognizes her as such.