Features of 1979 Nigerian constitution that changed our country

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The present constitution was adopted in 1999. It was the fourth in a row since Nigerian independence. However, the fundamental human right in Nigeria was published and operated during periods of civilian rule 1960-1966 years (1960 Constitution) and 1979-1983 (1979 Constitution). In 1989, the Parliament of the Third Republic began to develop a new basic law, which was supposed to come into force in 1993 but was canceled due to a military coup.

Features of 1979 Nigerian constitution

What is constitution definition?

Features of 1979 Nigerian constitution

The Constitution is the main and primary legal document in the country. Any laws, regulations, orders and decisions of all the state bodies and officials of the country must comply with the Constitution.

Features of Nigerian constitution

Features of 1979 Nigerian constitution

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• Two previous types of constitution, as well as current, guaranteed fundamental rights and claimed the federal structure, but the number of states consistently increased from 3 (constitution of 1960) to 19 (1979), and then to 36 (1999).
• According to the Constitution of 1960, the Head of State was declared Prime Minister, who was elected by secret ballot by members of the bicameral National Assembly consisting of the House of Representatives and the Senate. Members of the House of Representatives chose the senators appointed by Prime Minister. The premieres stood at the head of the state, who were also the formal political party leaders. At the regional level, there were the Legislative Assembly and the House of Chiefs. The Prime Minister and Premier were endowed with legislative functions.

Features of 1979 Nigerian constitution

• The Constitution of 1979, which took the substantive US law as a basis, established a presidential rule. The President became the chief executive and the Supreme Commander of the armed forces, and members of the upper and lower chambers of the legislature were elected by the general election. The elected governors were the heads of regional areas.
• The current Nigerian constitution is very similar to the basic principles of the basic law of 1979 and has a democratic character.
• Nigeria is a federal state with a presidential form of government. The President, who is head of state, at the same time is the head of the federal government and is the commander in chief. Legislative power is exercised by the National Assembly (Parliament), consisting of the Senate and House of Representatives.

Features of 1979 Nigerian constitution

• The Constitution gives the people of Nigeria, the supreme state sovereignty and declares the safety and welfare of citizens the priority objectives of the Government, and also ensures the participation of citizens in government. According to the constitution, Nigeria is a state affording fundamental rights and freedoms of its citizens (the right to life, respect for honor and dignity, private property, freedom of thought, expression, correspondence, movement, association and so on).
• Particular attention is paid to the principles of the welfare state: for example, p. 16 says that the state should ‘controls the economy in order to ensure the maximum welfare, freedom, and happiness of every citizen on the basis of social justice and equality of opportunities’. Public policy, according to the basic law, should be aimed at providing employment and livelihood for the population, fair and humane working conditions, and opportunities for leisure. In addition, the state should provide its citizens with the conditions for obtaining timely medical care and equal access to education. In general, the country’s constitution is very detailed. It leaves little space for varying interpretations, which seems logical in light of the failures of the previous constitution.

Features of 1979 Nigerian constitution

• The procedure of amending the basic law is fixed in Sec. 1. Proposals for amendments to the Constitution (with the exception of Art. 8, which defines the procedure for the creation of new subjects of the Federation, as well as Sec. 4, devoted to rights and freedoms of citizens) must be supported by not less than 2/3 of the members of one of the chambers of the federal parliament (National Assembly) and approved by the legislative chambers of not less than 2/3 of the states. Amendments in Art. 9 and Ch. 4 may be adopted only after the approval of 4/5 of the members of the National Assembly and the parliaments of the 2/3 state.
• Since the adoption of the constitution, there were at least two attempts to make changes in it. The first time it was in 2006 when his second term Olusegun Obasanjo expired, and the ruling party NDP unsuccessfully made the idea of the amendment, which would allow the head of the state to stay for a third term.
• In early 2008, the Constitutional Review Commission was established.

Features of 1979 Nigerian constitution

• Formulating the basic law of the country, its founders were guided by US constitutional model, so from a formal point of view, it would be quite legitimate to compare the institutional arrangements between these two countries. Nigeria’s Constitution gives the president the authority of the head of state, the chief executive and the Supreme Commander at the same time. As the head of the executive branch the president, with the approval of the Senate, shall appoint the members of the federal government. The President can dismiss the ministers. The President also appoints the vice-president, in a pair with which he runs for election.
• The President is elected by universal suffrage and is responsible to Parliament, which can initiate the procedure for removal of the President from office in cases stipulated by the constitution. The president has no right to dissolve the parliament but can veto laws adopted by Parliament (in turn, the parliament in the second ballot may overcome a presidential veto by 2/3 of votes).
• Thus, from a formal point of view, the constitution ensures the separation of powers and mutual checks.

Features of 1979 Nigerian constitution

• Due to the cultural characteristics of Nigerian the President has much more power than the fundamental law of the country provides indeed. The judicial system of the country (at both the federal and regional level) is under the pressure of the legislators and government officials. That is why the separation of powers is presented in Nigeria (as in most other African countries) only as a formal attribute.
• The high bearer of executive power is the President. The President is elected in general, equal and direct elections for 4 years and cannot hold office for more than 2 consecutive terms. To win, a candidate must gain a simple majority and get the support of at least 1/4 of voters in 2/3 states and the federal capital territory of Abuja.

Features of 1979 Nigerian constitution

• When forming a government (which is located in Abuja), the president shall appoint at least one minister from each state. One and the same person cannot simultaneously be a member of the Government and the National Assembly. Each applicant for the post of the federal minister must meet the criteria for candidates for election to the National Assembly.
• The President may assign to the vice-president and the federal ministers the task of implementing government policy. The Constitution requires the head of state to hold regular meetings with the Vice-President and members of the government on the development of the main directions of domestic and foreign policy. He also can make appointments to positions of special adviser, permanent secretary of the Ministry and heads of departments according to his own wish.

Features of 1979 Nigerian constitution

• The Constitution of 1979 and the Basic Law of 1999 has no Prime Minister (the chief executive is the president). To date, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa was the only prime minister (1957-1966 years).
• The highest authority of the legislature in Nigeria is given to the National Assembly, which consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The composition of both chambers is determined by the elections. The upper house, the Senate, represents the interests of states and comprises three Senators from each State and one representative of the Federal Capital Territory of Abuja (109 seats). Apart from the right of legislative initiative, the Senate approves the use of armed forces outside the country.
• During the election, the Independent Federal Election Commission is authorized to divide each state into three ‘senatorial district’ with roughly the same number of people, each of which elects one representative to the upper house. In real life, the senators tend to think that they are not the representatives of their states, but of their groups, refusing to support ‘their’ state, because, for example, of different party affiliation with the current governor.

Features of 1979 Nigerian constitution

• There are 360 seats in the 360 National Assembly, the deputies should represent constituencies with approximately equal populations. Thus, the states with the largest number of people will have the largest representation. The applicant must submit any registered party and cannot change party affiliation during his work.
• The electoral system virtually eliminates the representation of ethnic minorities. This is because the Nigerian constitution forbids running of independent deputies to form political parties on the ethnic, regional or religious basis, and requires having party representation in at least 24 states. Thus, it is a measure aimed at strengthening the national political unity in the country, which leads to a weakening of political parties and often represents the various political groups, without a clearly designed program.

Features of 1979 Nigerian constitution

• The Head of Nigeria is elected in national elections. According to the constitution, the presidency can be given to a person who:

1. is a citizen of Nigeria by birth;
2. has reached 40 years old;
3. is in a political party or is supported by it;
4. has at least secondary education.

Features of 1979 Nigerian constitution

• During the presidential elections, the whole country is considered as a single electoral district. The country’s legislation allows the possibility of non-alternative elections, but in order to avoid such a situation, a special provision is already written in the Constitution. If the deadline for submission of applications for participation in the elections is close and there is only one candidate, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has the right to extend the period of candidate registration.
• The Constitution contains three possible scenarios of the election procedure. If only one candidate takes part in the election, he shall be considered elected if:

1. the majority has voted for him,
2. he has got at least 25% of the votes in at least 24 states and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

Features of 1979 Nigerian constitution

• If 2 candidates are taking part in the elections, the winner is the one who gains a majority of votes; at the same time, he should get not less than 25% of the votes in at least 24 states and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
• If the election involves more than two candidates – the winner is the one who gains a majority, and at least 25% of the votes in at least 24 states and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. If in the third case the voting does not reveal the winner, then the second round should start. It involves two candidates who have obtained the most votes in the greatest possible number of states.
• Judicial power in Nigeria is given to the courts. They guarantee the fundamental law of the independence in the administration of its powers. The judicial system of the country has the federal and state courts.

Features of 1979 Nigerian constitution

• The Constitution provides for the existence of the supreme courts of each of the 36 subjects of the Federation. The number of judges and members of the Supreme Court of the state is determined by the decision of the Chamber Assembly of the certain state. In addition, the legislature must approve the nominated judges. State Supreme Court is the highest court for civil and criminal cases, with the exception of some related to the Supreme Federal Court jurisdiction.
• Like most African countries, in terms of the institutional design of the political system of Nigeria, it is a ‘product’ of the Western state system models. The process of creation of modern political institutions and implementing the political practices using Western standards was launched since the colonization of the territory by the UK, which is now a modern Nigeria, at the end of XIX – early 20 century.

Features of 1979 Nigerian constitution

Nigeria has a good constitution, but, unfortunately, its historical development is not as rapid as we wish. We have all the sources of wealth and protection we need. Let’s hope our government will understand it one day.

Download the Nigerian constitution and know your rights!

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