Identities can be in terms of ethnicity, culture, religion and other differences," she says. Federalism has been present in Nigeria since the former British colony was reorganized into a federation of three regions in 1946. In federalism, there is accountability, there is transparency. Since a strong bond links the process through which constitutions are produced and their degree of acceptance and effectiveness, questions over the Constitutions legitimacy prompted parliament to amend it in 2010. Have you ever wondered why Nigeria is practicing a federal system of government and not any other system? 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. Dear Chidera, federalism allows the creation of ethnic-based federating units (States). The United States, Canada, India, France and Australia adopted federalism because of the desire for security by the various ethnic units. This type of government is also known as a "federation" or a "federal state" in common parlance (eg., United States of America). 7 Topics Revenue Allocation in Nigeria | Week 9. Besides the Big Three Igbo, Hausa and Yoruba, there are other macro and micro ethnic minorities in the country. Best information base for latest information both national and international. What is federalism? And even now we can see the population of Nigeria compared to other countries in Africa. Now, because the level of the development of the productive forces was still at a rudimentary stage, the pervasiveness of commodity relations was equally at a low level. Given the size of Nigeria, it lays claims to being the Giant of Africa. Many nations in the international community recognizes her as such. Is there high propensity or likelihood of exclusion, marginalization and relative deprivation, which was to engender obsessive mutual antagonism? Why indirect rule succeeded in Northern Nigeria, SEE REASONS HERE. Post-independence creation of states and further division of states created after independence was done as a framework for the development of Nigeria. As a Nigerian, it is important to understand some basic things about the system of governance in Nigeria and why it is so. Insecurity and the desire for union are the main reasons for the shift from unitary system of government to federal system of government in 1954. 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). These crises flow from issues such as fiscal federalism, corruption, credible elections, tribal politics, ethno-religious conflicts, and disdain for the rule of law. However, the practice of fiscal federalism in Nigeria is a negation of true federalism. This is because federalism is presented as a panacea in organizing distinct political identities under a state. Justice Udo Udoma is of the view that regionalism was introduced by the colonialists in order to divide and rule, and weaken true national unity in Nigeria. Hon. 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. So for effective governance of a country of this big size, federalism has to be adopted. /F7 24 0 R Also, there was a demand for more local regions by all these ethnic interest groups which was what led to the creation of new states. 7 Topics . Before the amalgamation of the Northern Protectorate and the Southern Protectorate in 1914, there was nothing like Nigeria. Nigeria as a result was divided into three provinces. The advanced economies where Nigeria had borrowed leaves from, such as USA practice federalism. It also shows the growth rate as an engine to the development of economies of developing countries like Nigeria in this 21p century. Another major reason why federalism was adopted in Nigeria is the multiple ethnic backgrounds in Nigeria. As a result of this, it has brought about the cry of the minorities clamoring for their own state. Geographical nearness of the component states to each other and the state network of roads and transportation. Generally speaking, one of the reasons for federalism is common historical or ancestral background. The United States, Canada, India, France and Australia adopted federalism because of the desire for security by the various ethnic units. Voter Turnout, Voting Behavior and Democratic Consolidation in Nigeria By Professor Sakah Saidu Mahmud Kwara State University, Malete 1. Here, both the majority and minority are represented in the government. However, where there is a conflict of authority between the federal government and regional government, the federal authority supersedes. Constitutionalism in Nigeria has been crisis-ridden since independence in 1960. To browse Academia.edu and the wider internet faster and more securely, please take a few seconds toupgrade your browser. /F5 18 0 R Federalism, State creation and National Integration State creation like federal character, quota system, etc. As I have already explained, Nigeria is an amalgamation of three different regions with beliefs and customs. Just very few words have evoked much more controversy in the discus of politics than the word, federalism. . 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. Another reason why federalism is adopted by any country is that of its population. It is believed by many that this was one of the reasons why Nigeria adopted a federalist system. However, that is not so in a federal government system. Keywords: Federalism, Nigeria, ethnic groups, federal character principle . 19 more states were created in 1976 in order to score more political advantage by the Murtala-Obasanjo regime against those that favor General Yakubu Gowon. /Parent 2 0 R government and the governed by enhancing political cohesion in such country with regional, ethic, racial, linguistic and cultural diversity like Nigeria. It is our pleasure. The size of Nigeria is therefore managed and maintained with federalism. This understanding is also in tune with that of Jinadu (1979:15), who insists that Federalism is usually viewed as a form of governmental and institutional structure, deliberately designed by political architects, to cope with the twin but difficult task of maintaining unity while also preserving diversity. It is no news, therefore, that the peoples of Nigeria are diverse in different respects culturally, historically, socially, religiously, educationally, industriously, and even philosophically. This research work x-rayed federalism in Nigeria as the only basis upon which Nigeria can remain united despite its diversity and peculiar conditions in which the different tribal groups live in and proffers solutions to the challenges of the practice of . Such an act has constituted to one of the major problems of federalism thereby militating against the development of the nation. Federal System of Government/Federalism | Week 8. 3 0 obj Thus, Nigeria's federalism is not only complex but also hard to understand. In Nigeria, there are different and distinct ethnic groups brought together by colonization. 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 . Critically, after that train, every other train went to Nigeria from Nigeria, indicating the enormity of the wall of enmity demarcating Nigeria from the sovereign State of Biafra. It will schock you to know Nigerias adoption of federalism was also in the interest of the leaders. Nigeria therefore falls into the latter because of the wide diversities. He is also a Developer with knowledge in HTML, CSS, JS, PHP and React Native. Wheare who contends that it is a system where powers are shared between central and regional governments so that each is in a sphere cordinate and independent. Each state has the same level of self-governance. After nearly three decades of cumulative military rule, the country returned to civilian governance in 1999 under a presidential system of government. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is publishing this proposed rule to revise HUD's regulations for branch office registration requirements. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Reasons for the Adoption of Federalism in Nigeria. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. For this alone, one thinks in consonance with the conviction of dominant scholarship, that such clustering and bundling of diverse identities in an amalgamative sense, in the case of Nigeria, is too, an irreconcilable British experimentalism of the federal principle. Political culture of Nigeria: 3.4 4. Federalism in Nigeria can be traced to Sir Frederick Lord Lugard, when the Northern and Southern protectorates were amalgamated in 1914. Local Government In Nigeria : Definition, Functions, And Importance, Bad Leadership Causes, Effects And Solutions In Nigeria, How To Calculate OAU Aggregate Score for Admission, Best Education Websites and Blogs In Nigeria (2021), Lakzeland Regional High School Board Of Education, Student Loan Planning Educational Webinar With Justin Rice, Is Agricultural Chemicals a Good Career Path? Nigeria and Ghana can not easily form a country chiefly because they are not geographically contiguous. The Complete Material Will Be Sent To Your . By the time Nigeria became a republic, the system of federalism was adopted and the country was considered as a federation of three regions. - Cooperative or "marble-cake" federalism is de ned as a exible relationship between the national and state government in which both work together on a variety of issues and programs. In light of this, a constitution is said to be federal when its operates two levels of government, that is the federal and state, and each of this level exercise its different powers without interference by the other level. 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. Below are the reasons why Nigeria adopted a federal system of government: The major reason for the adoption of federal system of government in Nigeria is borne out of the historical experience that brought all the ethical groups together under one Nigeria. In a Unitary system, the minority states cannot govern the entire region which is controlled by majority. And this is one of the factors responsible for the adoption of federalism in Nigeria. The Attorney General sought to know whether the 13% sharing formula of the oil producing states should include revenue from oil producing states should include revenue from oil production activities off shore. The federal government however has occupied a very strong position vis--vis the State and Local government since the 1970's in Nigeria. Another important factor that necessitated federalism in Nigeria was the political culture of the country. Nigeria is quite a big country with an area of 923,768 km2. Federalism is a system of government where there are a decentralization power and autonomy of governance to the regional or federated states that share sovereignty with the Federal Government. 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? i dont have my first school leaving certificate. The fact that these nations chose to adopt a federal system does not prove anything; it does, however, suggest that federalism may help these countries manage the problems that come with ethnic . It forays into the inherent issues underlying the Biafran movement and the ways in which those issues, as well as Biafran agitation, are inimical to Nigeria's development. Do you want to know the basis and the reasons for the adoption of federalism in Nigeria? The contradictions generated by this rigional arrangement threatened Nigeria unity. Federalism was the only solution to ensure peace and unity amongst the leaders and the citizens and that was why federalism was adopted into the Nigerian political system. Since Nigeria is a heterogeneous nation and Federalism is more practicable in such kind of nation, it is an ideal system of government. Not minding the general relevance of these coinages, an arduous task lies in properly assessing their specific impacts in a given political enclave. Naturally, federal system of government has some distinctive features namely: 1. The chief architect of this theory is Riker. 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. Fiscal Federalism and Democratic Governance in Nigeria - I. O. Taiwo 2004 In the first place, therefore, the contemplation of a federal pact is one of an overwhelming outcome of the emphatic need to handle the above concerns acceptably. The federal system adopted in 1954 comprised a national government and three regional governments: Eastern, Northern, and Western. The Plural nature of Nigeria. Journal of public administration and Management Vol.6,No.12, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka. is one of the devices built into the federal constitution of Nigeria as a means of achieving unity in diversity. 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). Despite that, instead of unity, cooperation and consensus, there has been apparent division, disagreement, and dissension. Nigeria is a plural society of over 250 tongues and tribes. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science Invention ISSN (Online): 2319 7722, ISSN (Print): 2319 7714 www.ijhssi.org Volume 2 Issue 8 August. Common national, racial, religious, cultural linguistic or social ties have often contributed to the unification of political unit. @VF:8=|@5&/1df gbjtCoy(L5A,JCI1/'5DT8`A!UY*&wTN5[v;KXvH* 5:>}W^Bp_ ;R!&L %s\q'(], To avert this domination, states unite to form a strong, virile and stable union capable of withstanding external attacks. In the words of Richards, regionalism was introduced to strengthen unity in diversity. This paper consequently argues that the anxiety as well as angst attributable to this agitation has the tendencies of not only disrupting the relative-peace presently enjoyed by the various groups, but is also, if not controlled, capable of plunging the country into a state of economic comatose and perpetual fragility. Emphasis on indigeneity, the federal revenue allocation formula and the increasing formalization of the 'federal character' principle, to mention only a few issues, increase sources of tensions and potential conflicts. We appreciate you. Nigeria is a heterogeneous nation facing challenges within the balance of economic development along ethnic divisions in society. 2012, Issues and Trends in Nigeria's Development. Required fields are marked *. In the case of Nigeria - how the oil money will be (in)judiciously dealt with. by the federal or any state government. Federalism is a defined or is said to be the system where powers are shared between central and regional governments so that each is in a sphere coordinate and are independent. As one of the most effective frameworks for governing a pluralistic society, Nigeria adopted Federalism to manage her multi-ethnic state. It was subsequently, not until after the American constitution of 1787, that a new concept of federalism was introduced.