DELHI METROPOLITAN EDUCATION

NOIDA
Affiliated to GGSIP University, New Delhi

FUNCTIONING OF THE GOVERNMENT

OF

FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA

BY

PRAGATI SHUKLA
ENROLLMENT NO- 06651103817

B.A.LL.B, II SEMESTER

DATE: 06TH April, 2018

SUBMITTED TO: Dr. Smita Gupta

 TABLE OF CONTENTS

 FORM OF GOVERNMENT

 LEGISLATIVE

 EXECUTIVE

 JUDICIARY

 SEPARATION OF POWERS

 CHECK AND BALANCES SYSTEM

 CONCLUSION
 FORM OF GOVERNMENT IN NIGERIA

The Federal Republic of Nigeria is governed in accordance with the provisions of a Constitution. The

most recent came into being in May, 1999, when the then out-going military Head of State,

General Abdulsalami Abubakar, promulgated a Decree recognising the new body of laws as the

country's supreme document. The new Constitution is based essentially on the report of a Committee

which had collated the views expressed by Nigerians on the 1995 Draft Constitution, although that

report was amended by the military government's Provisional Ruling Council. Nevertheless, the 1999

Constitution is, in many respects, also similar to the 1979 Constitution.

Significantly, the Constitution affirms that Nigeria is one indivisible and indissoluble sovereign state,

whose constituent units are bound together by a Federal arrangement. It provides for a presidential

system of government in which there is an Executive, a Legislature and a Judiciary, with each acting

as a check and balance on the powers of the other two arms. The Constitution further provides for the

operation of three tiers of government, at the Federal, State and Local levels. These provisions are

binding on all authorities and persons throughout the Federation.

There is now a belief in the country that we need to review the presidential system. The reason for this

is that from experience all the promises of the presidential system remain unfulfilled. Those who have

held the post have unfortunately pandered to ethnic demands and this is not good in a plural society. I

can say without any hesitation that only President Olusegun Obasanjo has fulfilled the demand of

rising above ethnic prejudice and solidarity in the appointment of state officials and sometimes to the

point of putting his own ethnic group down and last. Others have simply ignored the demands of

fairness and have gone ahead to pack their administrations with their ethnic cohorts. Nigeria’s
 experience under Abacha who used his office to denude the Central bank of billions of the country’s

dollar reserves has made people to be wary of concentrating all powers in the hands of a military or

democratic Poohbah. What operates at the centre also operates at state levels where the governors have

almost absolute and total control of the finances of their states leading to grand larceny and looting of

states resources. A way must be found for proper parliamentary control of leaders of government

business at state levels and they must be members of state assemblies where they will presumably be

controlled by the assembly.

 CONSTITUTIONAL STRUCTURE

The 1999 Constitution has been dogged by problems and controversies right from the moment of its

release in May 1999. As Chief Rotimi Williams has observed, it tells a lie about itself when it

proclaims as follows: “WE THE PEOPLE of the Federal Republic of Nigeria;……. DO HEREBY

MAKE ENACT AND GIVE TO OURSELVES the following Constitution”

As probably every enlightened Nigerian knows, we the people of the Federal Republic of Nigeria did

not make, enact or give ourselves the 1999 Constitution. A few persons selected by the Military Junta

collected some views, collated them and wrote a report. The Military Government thereafter, made,

enacted and gave to their Nigerian subjects, the Constitution. The document was in fact – hidden away

from Nigerians, until a few days before the handover date of 29th May 1999. Thus the present group

of political rulers only got to know what their functions and powers were after they were elected to

perform those duties and to exercise those powers. This applied not only to the Executive and

Legislative arms of Government, but also to the Judiciary, the third arm of government. Just as the

executive arm was ignorant of the scope and extent of its powers, just as the elected Legislators were

unaware of the Legislative lists and the comparative powers of the States and the Centre, so too were

the courts ignorant of their comparative jurisdictions, basis of appeals, or even the types of Courts that
 were to be established by the Constitution. The whole 2 transition programme, was for the politicians,

Judges and the civil populace, a sheer leap in the dark.

 BODIES OF GOVERNMENT

The Federal Republic of Nigeria is governed in accordance with the provisions of a Constitution. The

most recent came into being in May, 1999, when the then out-going military Head of State, General

Abdulsalami Abubakar, promulgated a Decree recognising the new body of laws as the country's

supreme document. The new Constitution is based essentially on the report of a Committee which had

collated the views expressed by Nigerians on the 1995 Draft Constitution, although that report was

amended by the military government's Provisional Ruling Council. Nevertheless, the 1999

Constitution is, in many respects, also similar to the 1979 Constitution.

Significantly, the Constitution affirms that Nigeria is one indivisible and indissoluble sovereign state,

whose constituent units are bound together by a Federal arrangement. It provides for a presidential

system of government in which there is an Executive, a Legislature and a Judiciary, with each acting

as a check and balance on the powers of the other two arms. The Constitution further provides for the

operation of three tiers of government, at the Federal, State and Local levels. These provisions are

binding on all authorities and persons throughout the Federation.

A. The Federal Executive

B. The Federal Legislature

C. The State Government

D. The Local Government

A.THE FEDERAL EXECUTIVE

At the Federal level, the Government is headed by an elected President. As provided for by the

Constitution, the President is the Head of State, the Chief Executive of the Federation as well as the

Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. He is also the Head of the Executive arm in the tripartite.

The office of the President is, undoubtedly, a concentration of considerable powers and a repository of

vast responsibilities. As Head of State, the President is the ceremonial head of the Nigerian

government. As the Chief Executive, he/she bears ultimate responsibility for the smooth and effective

running of the government on a day-to-day basis and must accept the ultimate blame for any failures

or shortcomings that may occur therein. As Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, he/she is

responsible for how those forces are organised, trained and equipped and is accountable for how they

are deployed to ward off external aggression and guarantee internal security. As the position is

paramount in the making of foreign policy, he/she is also the country's chief diplomat.

Furthermore, although not explicitly specified in the Constitution, the President must share

responsibility with the National Assembly in the making of laws for good governance of the

Federation and the public looks up to him as the leading formulator and expounder of public opinion

in the country. In the same vein, the public looks up to him/her as the overall manager of the nation's

economy, in which capacity he may claim credit in times of prosperity but must surely suffer

unsparing criticism for any failures of economic performance.

The President is not a member of the National Assembly (the legislature). But he may attend any

session of the Assembly either to deliver an address on major national issues, including fiscal

measures, or to make such statement on the policy of government as he considers to be of crucial

national importance. The office of the President is an elective one and no President is allowed to hold

office for more than two terms of four years each.

A Vice President assists the President. The Vice President is nominated by the presidential candidate

as his running mate for election to the office of President. This nominated presidential associate, or
running mate, automatically becomes the Vice President if the President is elected. The Vice

President's tenure of office is concurrent with that of the President. He assumes the office of President

if that office becomes vacant before the expiration of their term, by reason of death or resignation or

the removal of the President from office on the terms provided for in the Constitution.

The President is empowered by the Constitution to appoint Ministers after due screening and

confirmation of the list of nominees by the Senate, and to assign to them responsibilities for any

business of the Government of the Federation, including the administration of any department of that

government. The Constitution enjoins the President to appoint his ministers from all the 36 States of

the Federation. No Minister appointed to the Federal Executive Council or Cabinet from a Legislative

post is allowed to serve concurrently as a member of the National Assembly. Where a member of the

National Assembly is appointed a Minister, he or she is deemed to have resigned his membership of

any of the Assemblies on his taking the oat of office as a Minster.

The President and his ministers form the Federal Executive Council, with the President as the

Chairman. This body initiates the policies and programmes of the Federal Government and ensures

that they are properly implemented after they may have been passed into law by the legislature.

Besides the Federal Executive Council, there are also a number of other executive bodies at the

Federal level, namely;

a. Code of Conduct Bureau

b. Council of States

c. National Defence Council

d. Federal Civil Service Commission

e. Independent National Electoral Commission

f. National Judicial Council

g. Federal Character Commission

h. Federal Council of Traditional flulers

 I. Federal Judicial Service Commission

j. National Economic Council

k. National Population Commission

L. National Security Council

m. Nigerian Police Council

n. Police Service Commission

o. Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission

p. Public Complaints Commission

q. National Mass Media Commission

r. Judicial Service of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; and

s. National Assets Investigation Panel

The Constitution vests on the President varying decrees of authority in the composition and

operation of these councils and commissions.

A.) THE FEDERAL LEGISLATURE

The highest law-making body of the Federation is the National Assembly. The Assembly is made up

of an upper House known as the Senate and a lower house known as the House of Representatives.

The Senate, is headed by a Senate President, who is supported by a Deputy Senate President. It

consists of three members from each State of the Federation and one member from the Federal Capital

Territory. Thus, the Senate has a total of 109 members. The House of Representatives is presided over

by the Speaker of the House supported by a Deputy Speaker

The National Assembly has responsibility for making laws for the good governance of the Federation.

Each of the Houses of the Assembly is made up of several specialised Committees whose work focus
 on aspects of national life. All members of the Assembly, in accordance with the Constitution, are

required to sit for a minimum of 181 days in a year.

The Power of the National Assembly to make laws is exercised through bills passed by both the

Senate and the House of Representatives, and assented to by the President. A bill may originate from

either house of the Assembly but cannot become law until it has been passed by both Houses and

assented to by the President. When a bill from the Assembly is presented to the President for his

assent, the Constitution stipulates that the President shall, within 30 days thereafter, signify that his

assents or withholds assent. And if the President withholds his assent and the bill is again .passed by

two-thirds majority in each House, such a bill becomes law, requiring no further presidential assent.

B.) THE STATE GOVERNMENT

Each of the thirty-six States that make up the Nigerian Federation is administered by a Chief

Executive. The Chief Executive is the Governor of the State and is elected, like the president, to a

four-year term of office in the first instance. The Governor is assisted in the discharge of his duties and

responsibilities by a Deputy Governor. The Governor is empowered to appoint Commissioners and

Advisers and to assign responsibilities to them. The Governor, Deputy Governor and Commissioners

constitute the State Executive Council. They cannot be members of the State House of Assembly.

The State House of Assembly is the unicameral legislature for the State. It comprise representatives

from all the local government areas within the State, it exercises identical functions at the State level

with those of the National Assembly at the Federal level. It makes laws for the good goverrnance of

the State, and acts as a check and balance on the powers and actions of the State's Chief Executive.

The House of Assembly of each State consists of three times the total number of seats which the State

has in the House of Representatives.

C.) THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT

The local government is the third tier of the administrative structure in Nigeria. There are 774

local government areas (LGAs) in the country. The functions of Local Governments, as spelt out

in the Constitution, are as follows:

A.) Consideration and making of recommendations to the State commission on economic

planning or any similar body on economic development of the State, particularly in so far as the

area of authority of the Council and of the State are affected;

B.)Collection of rates, and radio and television licenses;

C.)Establishment and maintenance of cemeteries, burial grounds and homes for the destitute or

infirm;

D.) Licensing of bicycles, trucks (other than mechanically propelled trucks), canoes, wheel

barrows and carts;

E.) Establishment, maintenance and regulation of markets, motor parks and public conveniences;

F.) Construction and maintenance of roads, streets, drains and other public highways, parks, open

spaces, or such public facilities as may be prescribed from time to time by the House of Assembly

of a State;

G.) Naming of roads 'and streets and numbering of houses;

H). Provision and maintenance Of public conveniences and refuse disposal;

I.) Registration of births, deaths and marriages;

J.) Assessment of privately-owned houses or tenements for the purpose of levying such rates as

may be prescribed by the House of Assembly of a Stale; and,

K.) Control and regulation of:

i. out-door advertising and hoarding,

ii. movement and keeping of pets of ail descriptions,

iii. shops and kiosks, .

iv. restaurants and other places for sale of food to the public, and

v. laundries.

The local government councils also work hand- in-hand with State governments on issues such as:

a.) the provision and maintenance of primary education;

b.) the development of agriculture and natural resources, other than the exploitation of minerals,

and

c ) the provision and maintenance of health services.

Each local government area is administered by a Local Government Council. The Council

comprises & Chairman who is the Chief Executive of the LGA, and other elected members who

are referred to as Councillors.

The Chairman is normally elected, but can, under special circumstances, also be appointed.

He/she supervises the activities of the local government and presides over all meetings of the

Council.

All members are enjoined by law to meet, as far as practicable, the aspirations of the people who

elect them. Committees, focusing on specific issues, play very important roles in the day-to-day

business of the Councils. They assist the Councils in decision-making and are usually required to

report their discussions to the Councils.

A Local Government Council is the pivot of socio-economic planning and development in its area

of authority. Being also the tier of government closest to the people, it is considered a most

important facilitator of economic and social development at the grassroots.

 THE JUDICIARY
While the Legislature is responsible for making laws and the Executive is charged with the

implementation of such law, the Judiciary is responsible for the interpretation of the law in accordance

with the provisions of the Constitution. In line with the doctrine of separation of powers, which is a

cardinal feature of a democratic system, the Nigerian Constitution guarantees the independence of the

Judiciary. The Constitution provides for Federal and State Courts, as well as Election Tribunals. At the

apex of the Judiciary is the Supreme Court.

 Federal Courts

 The Court of Appeal

 The Federal High Court

 The High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja

 The Sharia Court of Appeal of the Federal Capita! Territory, Abuja.

 The Customary Court of Appeal of the Federal Capital Territory.

 THE COURT OF APPEAL

The Court of Appeal has exclusive original jurisdiction to determine any question in respect of the

election, term of office or vacancy in frie office of the President or Vice-President. The Court has

exclusive appellate jurisdiction to hear and deter- mine appeals from all Federal Courts and State

Courts established by the Constitution, decisions of all Election Tribunals, Code of Conduct Tribunal,

court marshals or other tribunals as may be pre- scribed by the National Assembly.
 THE SUPREME COURT

the highest court of lhe land, has both original and appellate jurisdictions. The Court has exclusive

original jurisdiction in any justiciable dispute between the federaition and a State or between States.

The Court also has exclusive jurisdiction to hear and determine appeals from the Court of Appeal. The

Supreme Court is duly constituted if not less than five Justices of the Court hear the matter. However,

where the court is considering an appeal on a constitutional matter or exercising its original

jurisdiction, seven Justices shall constitute the Court.

 THE FEDERAL HIGH COURT.

The Federal High Court has exclusive original jurisdiction in respect of matters involving the

revenue of the Federal Government and or its agencies, taxation of companies, admiralty, customs,

companies affairs, banking regulation, intellectual property, citizenship and immigration, bankruptcy

and insolvency, aviation, drug and poisons, weights and measures, mines and minerals, including oil

and gas and any action involving the Federal Government or any of its agencies. The Court also has

criminal jurisdiction in respect of treason, treasonable felony and allied offenses and also in respect of

criminal causes and matters in which it has civil jurisdiction.

 THE HIGH COURT OF THE FEDERAL CAPITAL TERRITORY, ABUJA

The High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, has similar jurisdiction in the Federal Capital

Territory, Abuja, as the State High Court has in a State. State High Courts and the High Court of the

Federal Territory are duly constituted by a single Judge of the court seating.

 THE STATE COURTS

 The High Court

 The Sharia Court of Appeal
 The Customary Court of Appeal
 THE HIGH COURT

The High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, has similar jurisdiction in the Federal Capital

Territory, Abuja, as the State High Court has in a State. State High Courts and the High Court of the

Federal Territory are duly constituted by a single Judge of the court seating.

 THE SHARIA COURT OF APPEAL

The Sharia Court of Appeal of the Federal Capita! Territory, Abuja, and the Sharia Court of Appeal

of a State have appellate and supervisory jurisdiction in civil proceedings involving questions of

Islamic personal law in their respective jurisdictions. These Courts are duly constituted with three

Khadis of the Courts sitting.

 THE CUSTOMARY COURT OF APPEAL

The Customary Court of Appeal of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, and the Customary Court

of Appeal of a State have appellate and supervisory jurisdiction in civil proceedings involv- ing

questions of customary taw in their respective jurisdictions.

In addition to the courts established by the Constitution, there exist Magistrate, Area and Customary

Courts which are established by the National Assembly in respect of the Federal Capital Territory,

Abuja and the State House of Assembly in respect of a State. These courts have limited civil and

criminal jurisdiction conferred on them by their respective enabling law.

 THE ELECTION TRIBUNALS

 a) The National Assembly Election Tribunals

b) The Governorship and Legislative Houses Election Tribunals

In addition to the Courts and Tribunals established by the Constitution, there are other court and

tribunals created by Federal or State laws. These include:

Magistrate Courts, Area Courts, Sharia Courts and Customary Courts.

The Chief Justice of Nigeria, the President of the Court of Appeal, the Chief Judge of the Federal High

Court and the Chief Judge of the High Court of the Federal Territory, Abuja are all appointed by the

President on the advice of the National Judicial Council subject to the consent of the Senate.

The President also appoints the Grand Kadi of the Sharia Court of Appeal of the Federal Capital

Territory, Abuja and the President of the Customary Court of Appeal of the Federal Capital Territory,

Abuja in the same manner as friose of the other Federal Courts. All other judicial appointments to the

Federal Courts are made by the President on the advice of the National Judicial Council.

The Governors appoint the Chief Judges of the States, the Grand Kadi of the Sharia Court of Appeal

and the President of the Customary Court of Appeal, in those States where those courts exist, on the

advice of the National Judicial Council and the State House of Assembly. All other judicial appoint-

ments to State Courts are made by the Governor of the State on the advice of the National Judicial

Council.

 THE SPERATION OF POWERS

THE term "separation of powers" is an influential concept in modern democracies. It denotes the

practice of dividing the powers of a government among different branches therenof . Like the principle

of "division of labour" in Adam Smith’s economics, the doctrine of separation of powers is geared
towards efficiency but also more importantly, towards guarding against abuse of authority. Hence, it is

a liberty-sensitive concept. A government of separated powers assigns different political and legal

duties to the legislative, executive and judicial departments. This means that while the legislature has

the power to make laws, the executive branch has the authority to administer and enforce the laws so

made. The judicial division, on the other hand, tries cases brought before the courts and interprets the

laws. It is this latter function that constitutes the court’s power of "judicial review".

The above system is usually described as a "horizontal" separation of powers. In a federal structure,

there is yet another type called "vertical" separation of powers whereby governmental powers are

shared between the central government and the fringe governments (i.e the state and the local

governments).

The Theory of Separation of Powers means that, a different body of persons is to administer each of

the three departments of government. That no one of them is to have a controlling power over either of

the others. For the purpose of preserving the liberty of the individual and for avoiding tyranny

separation of powers is necessary. In Nigeria, how has this theory been effective either during the

military rules or the civilian administrations? This study is going to examine the working of separation

of powers in Nigeria.

In Nigeria, the doctrine of separation of powers dates back to the pre-colonial era. A perfect reflection

of the doctrine is that of old Oyo Empire where there were inexistence the Alafin, Oyo Mesi, the

Ogboni cult and other traditional title holders. The division of power or the Separation of power in

Nigeria has been devided between three pillars forming the foundation of the country.

 LEGISLATURE

 EXECUTIVE

 JUDICIARY
 THE LEGISLATURE

Legislative functions require that, laws should be made for the generality of

the population. The best guarantee against arbitrariness in the exercise of legislativefunctions is to

require legislations to be made for every citizen in a State and not separately for each individual or for

each situation. This was affirmed in Abraham Adesanya V. President Federal Republic of Nigeria

where it was held that if we areto keep our democracy, there must be one commandment: Thou shall

not ration justice. For the assurance of liberty, equal and uniform treatment of the citizens there must

be compartmentalization of powers as conveyed in the words of Montesquieu that “there is no liberty

yet, if the power to judge is not separated from the legislative function and executive power. Section 4

of the 1999 Constitution confers legislative powers on the National Assembly and the House of Assembly of a

State.

The Constitution also gave what may be considered judicial power to the Senate or the House of

Representatives or a Committee so appointed Such power include

the power to issue a warrant to compel the attendance of any person who, after having been summoned

to attend, fails, refuses or neglects to do so and does not excuse such failure, refusal or neglect to the

satisfaction of the House or Committee in question. In view of these provisions, the Court of Appeal in

Senate of the National Assembly& Ors. V. Momoh held inter alia that the provision of the equivalent of

section 89 of the 1999 Constitution did not amount to an infraction on the powers of the judiciary and

executive.

 THE EXECUTIVE

The executive is an important organ in the tripartite classification of powers..By Nigeria’s

constitutional arrangement, the executive forms the second of the tripod of legislative, executive, and

judicial power. It is evident that the government of any nation is seen in the picture of the executive.
 The relevant provisions of the Constitution epitomizes the importance of this organ of government.

Section 5 of the Constitution confers executive powers on the President and the Governor of a State.

The Constitution confers on the executive the power to carry out functions which may seem exclusive

to the legislature and the judiciary. The President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is empowered

under section 32 of the Constitution to make regulations concerning citizenship and immigration

matters. Whereas, section 32(2) requires the President to lay before the National Assembly such

regulations,

the promulgating authority here is the executive (that is, the president) and not thelegislature. Again,

the president or the governor as the case may be is empowered under section 175 and 212 respectively

to pardon convicted persons or to exercise his prerogative of mercy. Furthermore, sections 160 and

204 of the Constitution, allow certain executive bodies established under the constitution to regulate

their

own procedure, confer powers and impose duties on any officer or authority, for the purpose of dischar

ging its functions, provided the approval of the president or thegovernor is obtained beforehand.

 THE JUDICIARY

The judiciary in every democratic State is the body saddled with the constitutional function of justice

administration. It is therefore important that the judicial has

its powers separated from the legislature and the executive. The idea of judicialindependence is

protected by various sections of the Nigerian Constitution. The judicial powers under the

1999 Constitution are not separated. Unlike the case of the executive and legislature, the judicial

powers are interwoven in terms of exercise of those powers. Both Federal and State judicial powers

operate on the same hierarchical structure to the extent that a case that was handled by State courts
canr each Federal courts when appealed against; there are therefore inter-relations between the State

and Federal judicial powers. Sections 6(1) and (2) of the 1999 Constitution vests the judicial powers of

the Federation and a State in the courts established for the Federation and States respectively. These

courts include;

 The Supreme Court of Nigeria;

 The Court of Appeal

 The Federal High Court

 The High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja

 High Court of a State

 The Sharia Court of Appeal of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja

 Sharia Court of appeal of a State

 The Customary Court of Appeal of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja

 Customary Court of Appeal of a State

such other courts as may be authorized by law to exercise jurisdiction on matters with respect to

which, the National Assembly may make laws; and such other courts as may be authorized by law to

exercise jurisdiction at first instance or on appeal on matters with respect to which a House of

Assembly may make laws.

The judiciary as the third arm of government exercises its powers of adjudication and interpretation of

the constitution and laws made by the legislature through the courts. Therefore, the judiciary and
 courts may be used interchangeably as they imply the same thing. Visible overlaps are found in the

judiciary as it is granted legislative powers in the 1999 Constitution. The judiciary may, under powers

delegated to it bythe legislature, through the Chief Justice of Nigeria make rules with respect to

the practice and procedure of a High Court for the enforcement of fundamental rights a function that is

legislative in nature. Closely knit with this are the provisions of sections 236, 248, 259, 264, 269, 274,

279 and 284 of the constitution which grants the power to make rules for regulating the practice and

procedure on the Chief Justice with legislative tyranny from their own personal experience and their

study of political history.

 CHECKS AND BALANCES SYSTEM

Checks and balances which like separation of powers is generally credited to Montesquieu is a

government structure that gives each branch some control of the actions of the others and requires

cooperation among the branches. A system of checks and balances minimizes the risk that one branch

might completely take over the government or stray too far politically from the other branches. The

principle has been a key factor in a constitution’s survival, assuring evolution in government rather

than revolution. Due to a system of checks and balances, the legislature, executive and judicial

branches’ powers overlap, and each branch exerts some power. The core idea of the principle of

checks and balances therefore, was that no one branch of government should be able to get too far out

of control without being put in check by the others. Thus, if a President

starts acting like a despotic king he can be impeached by the National Assembly. If the National

Assembly starts trying to pass a series of laws that are blatantly unconstitutional, those laws can be

overturned by the Courts and so on. The most important result is that getting anything done within any
 democratic system of government typically requires the cooperation (or at least the acquiescence) of

more than one branch of government.

 LEGISLATIVE CHECKS

a) REMOVAL

The power to remove an elected executive officer is an ultimate weapon the principle of checks and

balances gives to the legislature. This power is granted to the legislature to check the abuse of the

enormous executive powers exercised and exercisable by them. This is important since they are

shielded from prosecution from criminal or civil charges (in their personal capacities) while in office

Thus, as a check on the executive, the legislature may remove the President or Vice-President ,a

Governor or his Deputy where one or more of them is found guilty of gross misconduct in the performance of

the functions of their office

b) LAW FUNCTION

The primary function of the legislature is to make laws for the society for the good of the people.

Thus, where the executive intends a policy to become law, it does not have the power to make it law

except it is ascertained and approved by the National Assembly. Under the Nigerian constitution,

proposals for law come before the National Assembly or a State House of Assembly in the form of

Bills. These Bills are either private, public or Money, but majority of the Public Bills coming before

the National Assembly or a State House of Assembly are usually from the executive. Where the

executive sends a Bill to the necessary Assembly, the Assembly scrutinizes such a Bill before it

becomes Law. This is important as it will enable the legislature to ascertain whether or not the Bill

will be beneficial to the people when it eventually becomes Law.

c) OVER SIGHT FUNCTION

The legislature is mandated by the people through the Constitution to carry out necessary investigation

with the view to exposing corruption, inefficiency or waste in the administration of the laws made by

the necessary Assembly. This puts the executive on its toes at all times to reduce corruption in the

administration of its activities to the barest minimum lest it be found wanting .Finally, the President

does not have the unilateral power to give a treaty entered

into between the Federation and any other country the force of law as the NationalAssembly shall be

the one to enact such a treaty into law. The essence of this is

to prevent the President from entering into a treaty with another country that istyrannical in nature or

purports to surrender the sovereignty of the Federal Republicof Nigeria to the other country.

 EXECUTIVE CHECK

a) LEGISLATIVE CHECK

The National Assembly and a State House of Assembly makes laws for the Federation and State

respectively. No Bill passed the National Assembly or a State House of Assembly becomes law unless the

President or Governor as the case may be gives his assent to it (Although they may veto to President’s assent

after 30 days of his refusal to grant assent to the Bill). Where a Bill is presented to the President or

Governor and he refuses to assent to the Bill, he must within 30 days communicate to the National

Assembly or the State House of Assembly of his refusal to assent to the Bill with reasons.

The beauty of this process and of the principles of checks and balances came to therefore in 2015

when the National Assembly sought to among other things separate the office of the Attorney-General

of the Federation from that of Minister of Justice and forwarded the document to the President for his

assent. The President relying on section 9(3) of the constitution refused to give his assent to the
 amendments of some sections of the constitution in the document sent to him by the National

Assembly.

b). JUDICIAL CHECK

The judiciary has the constitutional power to among other things adjudicate on matters between the

executive and legislature and to also interpret laws made by the legislature. This does not exclude the

judiciary from being checked by the executive as it has power to appoint certain judicial officers who

serves in the court in the first place on the recommendation of the National Judicial Council.

Similarly, the President may recommend to the Senate the removal of a judicial officer who has been

found guilty of judicial misconduct .The President or Governor as the case may be also has the power

to grant prerogative of mercy to a person sentenced by the Court after consultation with the Council of

State.

 THE JUDICIAL CHECK

a) JUDICIAL REVIEW

The actions or inactions of the other organs of government are subject to the judiciary’s power of

review. Judicial Review is defined as a Court’s power to review the actions of other branches or levels

of government. Constitutional experience in Nigeria where elected State officials and

their unelected party officials often engage in abuse of office, corruption, lawlessness and lack

of respect for the rule of law gives credence to the need to check and balance the legislature and

executive through judicial review.

The judiciary however by its power to review the activities of the legislature stepped in to declare

most of the removals carried out during that period as unconstitutional .Similarly, the judiciary will act

as a check on the legislature to declare as null and void a law passed by the legislature that does not
 follow the due process of law or does not favor the people. To protect the powers of the judiciary to

check on the activities of the legislature, the Constitution provides that the legislature does not have

the power to preclude the judiciary from determining whether or not it has acted ultra vires of its

powers

 CONCLUSION
From the above research we can conclude that the governing system of The Republic Of Nigeria by

the constitution of 1999 holds a federal structure government toughened by the three strong and

efficient pillars of Executive, Legislative and Judiciary. Also the separation of power among these

three pillars has been kept quite easy and efficient and in a way that it also keeps check on each other,

and all these features aim towards securing a goal of good polity and governance