True Federalism Research Articles

Federalism and National Integration in Nigeria: A Study of Selected States in South-South, Nigeria

Abstract : Nigeria as a multi ethnic nationalities country is faced with tremendous task of integrating a country that is deeply depleted by mirage of problems, including among others ethno-religious and cultural crises and the constitutional imperfection. Regrettably, the manner the country practices federalism has resulted to the country's inability to foster or promote national integration, and unity in diversity. The main objective of the study was to investigate the role of federalism in promoting national integration in Nigeria. Four states comprising of AkwaIbom, Bayelsa, Delta and Rivers in south south, Nigeria were selected for the study. To achieve this objective, survey correlation/research design was adopted for the study and a sample size of 384 was drawn from the population of 20,787,224, using purposive and systematic sampling techniques respectively. Data were selected using researchers developed questionnaire titled Federalism and National Integration Questionnaire (FNIQ) the instrument was administered and retrieved by the researchers with the help of two research assistants. Three research questions and three hypotheses were formulated for the study. Pearson Product Moment Correlation (PPMC) was used in testing the hypotheses at 0.5 level of significance. Three null hypotheses of the study were rejected leading to the decision to accept the alternative hypotheses. It was concluded that there was significant relationship between ethnicity, supremacy of power of having, and the Federal Constitution and the national integration in south south Nigeria. It was recommended among others, that, to foster possible breakup by the ethnic nationalities in Nigeria, government should device a federal principle through accommodation, consultation, negotiation and inclusion, instead of exclusion and denial of their rights. The sharing of political offices and opportunities should be equitable and based on the spirit of federal character principle and true federalism.

Legal Issues in the Demands for Self-Determination in Nigeria

Abstract There have been different ethnic political struggles calling for self-determination through secession in Nigeria since independence. There have also been calls for ‘restructuring’ the Nigerian federation to achieve what is called ‘true federalism’ believing that it is the only panacea for each ethnic group to achieve relative independence and self-determination within Nigeria. In addition, the question of control over natural resources has been a major issue in claims for self-determination. This article examines the legal issues involved in these self-determination demands in Nigeria. It finds that self-determination started as a moral or political concept before it developed into a legal concept under international law. Under international law, self-determination has emerged as external self-determination, internal self-determination, self-determination as indigenous autonomy, self-determination as a right against intervention and economic self-determination. It has also manifested in the same form in constitutional law. Against the backdrop of these findings, it is argued that self-determination demands assume three different legal forms in Nigeria manifesting as the right to external self-determination, the right to internal self-determination and the right to economic self-determination. It is further argued that there is no right to external self-determination or secession in Nigeria. In addition, it is argued that internal self-determination manifests as the right against discrimination on ethnic grounds in Nigeria and that it constitutes a fundamental right. Lastly, it is argued that the right to economic self-determination does not exist in Nigeria as natural resources are vested in the government while the interests of the people are undermined.

Redefining the Nigerian System of Government: The Error of a Copied Democracy without True Federalism

Redefining the Nigerian System of Government: The Error of a Copied Democracy without True Federalism

Investigating the Practicality of True Federalism in Nigeria

The growing frustration among different disenchanted regions of Nigeria raises the question; if Nigeria’s current federal structure is delivering the full benefits of citizenship to every region? This study investigates the practicability of Nigeria’s federalism, taking stock of different challenges confronting the nation-state which are mainly economic and political. The study revealed that the current system of federalism fails to meet the standards of true federalism. This is based on the idea that the autonomy advocated for states and regions is not respected in law or practice. The study therefore recommends restructuring and autonomy, which are meant to give every state and region a sense of belonging, improve unity, create healthy competition and help citizens achieve their aspirations. This will safeguard against a heavy-handed and unfair central government, which will allow states to maintain a degree of autonomy and make decisions that they believe best serve local interests. The study concludes that Nigeria must focus on restructuring and autonomy to drive a decentralized governing structure, which creates balance, preserve the country's national unity and cohesion.

Investigating the Practicality of True Federalism in Nigeria: A Review Literature

The growing frustration among different disenchanted regions of Nigeria raises the question of whether Nigeria’s current federal structure is delivering the full benefits of citizenship to every region. This study investigates the practicability of Nigeria’s federalism, taking stock of different challenges confronting the nationstate, which are mainly economic and political. The study adopts descriptive analysis, which allows us to identify and describe the topic in a clear and in-depth way. The data for the study were gathered from secondary sources such as journal articles, internet sources and textbooks. The inclusion of these sources was evaluated based on the relevance of their input to the discourse, providing information helpful to the understanding of the topic and supporting the argument of the paper. The study revealed that the current system of federalism fails to meet the standards of true federalism. This is based on the idea that the autonomy advocated for states and regions is not respected in law or practice. The study, therefore, recommends restructuring and autonomy, which are meant to give every state and region a sense of belonging, improve unity, create healthy competition and help citizens achieve their aspirations. This will safeguard against a heavyhanded and unfair central government, which will allow states to maintain a degree of autonomy and make decisions that they believe best serve local interests. The study concludes that Nigeria must focus on restructuring and autonomy to drive a decentralized governing structure, which creates balance, preserve the country's national unity and cohesion.

A comparative analysis of the federal system in USA and Nigeria and its impact on national unity and development

This paper compares the federal system in two countries: Nigeria, a developing country and the United States of America (USA), a developed country. The subject examined is true federalism as it affects national unity and development. In order to achieve our aim, the following areas were explored in the literature review: the concept of federalism, the evolution of federalism, division of powers in federal states, revenue allocation and resource control in federal states. Relevant variables such as, democracy, independent judiciary and a powerful legislature were also examined as prerequisites for the existence of true federalism in a political system. Four research objectives and questions guided the study. The theoretical frame work for the study was hinged on K.C. Wheare’s Theory of Federalism. The work is purely qualitative, (doctrinal method of research) as only secondary data were used for the entire study. The research findings revealed that, the American federal system of government is more ideal and that Nigeria can borrow a lift from the USA if it desires to experience true federalism, which guarantees national unity and development.

Regional Security Formations as a Panacea to the Myriads of Insecurity in Nigeria, Enugu State in Perspective

Security decentralization is a hallmark of true federalism across the globe. Yet, the Federal Government of Nigeria refused to decentralize security despite the prevailing high rate of insecurity—terrorism, insurgency, kidnapping, killings, robbery, and banditry going on in Nigeria. Hence, a clear attestation to the failure of the centralized security architecture, leading to the formation of regional security outfits across the country. The method used is a cross-sectional survey leveraging quantitative and qualitative data. Findings revealed that regional security formations are the antidote to the insecurity in Nigeria. Recommendations made anchored on the liberal perspective of security in a secular state.

Decentralisation, Local Governance and Nation Building in Nigeria

The paper examines the logic of decentralization and local governance in Nigeria with a hint on its constitutionality and contributions to nation building. Emerging facts reveals that Nigeria operates a centralized and decentralized system of governance and state administration. This is confirmed by its federal nature, division of state administration into federal, state and local government, state power into exclusive (federal), concurrent (federal and state) and residual powers (local government), and the allocation and distribution of fiscal responsibilities and benefits along vertical and horizontal lines by the Fiscal Responsibility Act 2007 and the 1999 constitution. Data generated from the Federal Responsibility Act 2007 shows that the federal government gets 52.68%, the 36 state governments get 26.72% and the 774 local government councils get 20.60% fund allocation from the pool of distributive resources domiciled in the Consolidated Federal Revenue Account of Nigeria. Analytical evidences are also drawn from other secondary sources of information to confirm the abuse of the tenets of political and administrative decentralization through the instrumentality of the State-Joint-Local Government Account and the Caretaker Committee System. The dialectics of undue political interference in the management of local government affairs by the state government and the use of the Caretaker Committee system as a governing structure at the local government level reveals the threat it poses to leadership development, liberal democratic growth, local governance and nation building. These conclusively undermine the tenets of true federalism, decentralization, local government autonomy and the statutory powers and authority of elected local government councils to initiate and manage local development visions and initiatives. The need to place a balance between avoidable political control and local government autonomy as pathways to promoting genuine decentralization, participatory local governance and grass root development is strongly advocated.

Ethno-Religious Crises and Terrorism as Bane of Economic Development and Good Governance in Contemporary Nigeria

The history of Nigeria is replete with ethno-religious crises and diverse acts of violence that have characterized its existence as a nation. Nigerian’s crises have taken an exponential dimension, from ethnic clientelistic tendencies to religious bigotry and now the new terrorism-killer herdsmen who go about as armed bandits and are kidnapping for ransom, sacking and uprooting communities, seizing farmlands from the autochthonous occupants who hitherto use to cultivate such farmlands for subsistent and commercial purposes. The main objective of this paper was to examine how ethno-religious crises and terrorism in Nigeria have hampered economic development and good governance and to show how the new terrorism originated, its causes and effects that have retarded economic growth and good governance and advance possible measures that could address the menace of these killer herdsmen/armed bandits. Giving the socio-historical nature of the theme, qualitative research methodology was used. This involved content analyses of available secondary sources and focus group discussions. From the data collection and technique of data analysis, the researchers were inspired to anchor the research on the attachment theory. From the non-statistical data gotten through personal communication and in various focus group discussions, the results revealed the starkest truths. It was revealed that religious fundamentalist jihadists lack childhood attachment to good parental upbringing, thus lending credence to the attachment theory discussed in the paper. The study also revealed that these jihadists have over the years been planning to overthrow the secular Nigerian government and that these new religious expantionists are bent on Islamizing the Nigerian state and that as conquering and apocalyptic warriors, they have links with other Fulani who share same Fulanization ideology and vow to enshrine Sharia law at whatever cost-including meaningful economic development and good governance. The paper concluded and recommended among other things that the restructuring of the Nigerian state to reflect true federalism is one of the surest ways of arresting the present insecurity situation in Nigeria.

The role of the Church in the quest for political restructuring in Nigeria

The present political structure of Nigeria has proved unfavourable to Nigerians. This has led to catastrophic situations in Nigeria. This article evaluates the role of the Church in the fight to curb these catastrophes in the form of rising spates of insecurity, corruption, separatist agitation and marginalisation. These challenges have led to serious underdevelopment, poverty and unemployment, mostly in South-East Nigeria. Nigeria’s inefficiency as a nation stems from a long history of poor leadership from the time of colonial rule until today, partly because of the unbalanced political structure in the country. The history of poor leadership has denied Nigerians the opportunity of achieving a new Nigeria like other countries of the world. The study uses a descriptive historical approach to investigate this challenging situation. As a result of the lack of true federalism demonstrated in the lack of a proper political structure in the country, the study advocated for restructuring the country’s political structure to meet the immediate and long-term needs of all, especially in South-East Nigeria.Contribution: Many Nigerian scholars have researched on the need to restructure Nigerian polity, but there is a paucity of literature on the role of the Church to achieve this, leading to a dire want of research materials in this regard. This research, therefore, contributes its quota to the search for the lingering problems of Nigeria as a nation.

Justice and Inclusive Governance in Nigeria: Rethinking the Niger Delta Problem

The Niger Delta issue besides attracting impressive attention continues to linger due to failure to find plausible explanation for issues of the region. The discourse woven around this issue leaves two clear lines of argument. One sees the region responsible for her development woes, the other hold the alleged flawed Nigerian federal system, responsible for the challenges of the region. This paper relied on triangulation of data to argue that the issue of the Niger Delta lingers because of injustice in the Nigerian governance. The paper concludes that inclusive governance capable of giving the troubled oil-bearing region needed sense of belonging, would be able to bring peace to the region. The paper found inverted justice system in resource politics in Nigeria responsible for the continued agitation of the Niger Delta region. It concludes that true federalism be adopted in Nigeria to birth healthy competition for development. Keywords: Nigeria, Niger Delta, Oil Politics, Inclusion, Justice, Development. DOI: 10.7176/DCS/12-7-03 Publication date: September 30 th 2022

Secession, Self-Determination and the Quest for 'True Federalism' in Nigerian Federation

Secession, Self-Determination and the Quest for 'True Federalism' in Nigerian Federation

Analysis of Good Governance as an Earmark of Distinctive Federalism in Nigeria Federation

Purpose: The restructuring of Nigeria towards the path of true federalism is a clarion call for good governance in the federation. It is argued that the enhanced performance of governmental agencies in any federation is a product of good governance, which in turn leads to peace, security, and development in the living standard of the people. The main objective of this paper is to examine good governance as a catalyst of true federalism in Nigeria. Research methodology: The paper employs a qualitative methodology that heavily relies on secondary sources of data. Results: In line with the findings, Nigeria's route to true federalism is being hampered by a variety of challenges which include but are not limited to weak leadership, corruption, flawed electoral procedures, an uneven distribution of resources, and a lack of security of lives and properties. Limitations: The study covers only Nigeria and may not be appropriate to generalize the findings to other countries practicing federalism. Contributions: The study contributes to knowledge as it examines the impact of good governance as an earmark of distinctive federalism in Nigeria federation, which has not been adequately discussed in numerous works on federalism. It recommended that good governance that encompasses accountability, prudent financial management, and an improved judicial system backed up with adequate security of life and property.

Effects of the Practice of Federalism in Nigeria on its International Image

Nigeria is a heterogeneous State whose many ethnic groups were outlandishly merged by Britain purely for administrative purposes during the colonial era and without regard for their characteristic diversities. The amalgamation gave rise to the adoption of federal system of government by Nigeria in 1954 as well as the subsequent evolution of federal character principle, all with the aim of managing the diversity for the sake of national survival. Regardless of the efforts, the practice of federalism in the country has continued to be plagued by various challenges. How these challenges affect the international image of Nigeria was the major task of this study. The study was anchored on the Group Theory while the qualitative mechanism of data collection and analysis was applied in this study. Among other things, the study found out that among the challenges confronting the practice of federalism in the country was the ineffective application of the federal character principle. It also found out that the international image of Nigeria suffers unthinkable damages as a result of the challenges associated with the practice of federalism. In view of the findings, the study therefore recommended the need for the political class to show commitment to the practice of true federalism by way of promoting national, rather than ethnic and divisive interests. It equally recommended that the National Assembly must amend the constitution to request any president who disrespects federal character principle in allocation of benefits to resign his or her position.

Dynamics of the politico‐administrative conflicts of resource control in Nigeria: Exploring the oil politics of who gets what, when, and how

AbstractFor their survival, humans have always depended upon natural resources that are scarce and unevenly distributed across the globe. The constantly increasing value of crude oil has provoked individuals, groups, nations, and governments to fight for ownership and control over it, leading to clashes of interests that often culminate in violent conflicts. A model of politics–value–interest–interactions and relationships was developed to analyze the conflicting political environment surrounding oil‐dependency in Nigeria. Data were gathered from secondary sources and analyzed using the contextual‐descriptive method. The findings demonstrate that conflict triggered by “oil politics” in Nigeria is a result of political class manipulations, marginalization, and lack of true federalism. The study suggests a policy change in line with the tenets of true federalism that will enable individual states to obtain greater control over their resources. This will also ensure sustainable development in the Nigeria oil sector that is currently riddled with contention and strife.

The role of the Church in the quest for political restructuring in Nigeria

The present political structure of Nigeria has proved unfavourable to Nigerians. This has led to catastrophic situations in Nigeria. This article evaluates the role of the Church in the fight to curb these catastrophes in the form of rising spates of insecurity, corruption, separatist agitation and marginalisation. These challenges have led to serious underdevelopment, poverty and unemployment, mostly in South-East Nigeria. Nigeria’s inefficiency as a nation stems from a long history of poor leadership from the time of colonial rule until today, partly because of the unbalanced political structure in the country. The history of poor leadership has denied Nigerians the opportunity of achieving a new Nigeria like other countries of the world. The study uses a descriptive historical approach to investigate this challenging situation. As a result of the lack of true federalism demonstrated in the lack of a proper political structure in the country, the study advocated for restructuring the country’s political structure to meet the immediate and long-term needs of all, especially in South-East Nigeria. Contribution: Many Nigerian scholars have researched on the need to restructure Nigerian polity, but there is a paucity of literature on the role of the Church to achieve this, leading to a dire want of research materials in this regard. This research, therefore, contributes its quota to the search for the lingering problems of Nigeria as a nation.

The Sociological Implication of State Creation in Nigeria And The Means of Resolving The Unforeseen Dispute

The paper examines the Sociological Implication of State Creation in Nigeria and the Means of Resolving the Unforeseen Dispute. State creation in a Federation is primarily aimed at promoting unity in diversity particularly among the various ethnic groups in a heterogeneous country such as Nigeria. The creations of states are also aimed at resolving boundary disputes and promote national development. However, the multiplication of states on the other hand, translates to the multiplication of administrative agencies particularly the bureaucracy. The constant increase in the number of these administrative agencies no doubt has a lot of consequences for their viability, crises, effectiveness and efficiency. This is because it weakens the administrative capacities of these bureaucracies since their existence and indeed their survival in terms of finances depends almost entirely on the central government. This paper infers that the exercise of uncontrolled creation of more states in Nigeria requires radical reorientation coupled with strong sociological/political will for public bureaucracies at the state level to be able to meet their developmental and efficiency goals. In the course of this study, the Sociological Implication of State Creation and The Means of Resolving the unforeseen Dispute in Nigeria were brought to the fore while the objectives of the study are well spelt out. Hypotheses were postulated and the Modern Conflict Theory was used to explicate the works. Data were obtained from both primary and secondary sources. From the primary sources, the survey method, that is, the use of questionnaire designed and adopted. Data obtained from this method were analyzed with the aid of Simple Percentage. Thereafter, the five researchable hypotheses were tested and accepted while the null hypotheses were rejected. The implication is that there was relationship between the dependent and independent variables. Generally, the paper brought to focus that the Sociological Implication of State Creation and the Means of Resolving the unforeseen Crises is a collective effort in reaching a compromise in the management of Nigeria Political and Sociological affairs and it has contributed immensely to the growth and development of crises management else-where. The paper painstakingly appraises many of these issues and concludes that all stakeholders in the federal polity should thread softly, be objective, rational, altruistic and magnanimous in order not to make the existence of true federalism (sociological, political and economic cohesive existence of the people, peace and tranquility) a fleeting illusion and a mirage. Keywords: State, Ethnic, Politics, Bureaucracy, Crises, Creation DOI: 10.7176/JCSD/67-04 Publication date: February 28 th 2022

Korišćenje turističkog potencijala Nigerije za održiv društveno-ekonomski razvoj - kontekst zakona i politike

This paper looks at Tourism as a Sector that can contribute substantially to the growth of Nigeria economy especially in this era where everyone is calling for diversification of the economy, resource control, restructuring and true federalism. It is of common knowledge that our dependence on oil as a country is no longer sustainable because of the fall in price of oil in the international market and the domestic problems of oil theft, pipeline vandalization and militancy of the youths in the oil communities. More importantly, oil is a wasting asset that is being depleted every day. It is therefore the thrust of this paper that if our tourism sector in Nigeria can be developed and well branded, Nigeria can make a lot of money from it, like Israel, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirate. The research method used in this paper is the doctrinal method of research.

Agitacja na rzecz kontroli zasobów w delcie Nigru. Rozumienie zasad dotyczących własności rzeczy na gruncie common law w zakresie zarządzania i kontroli zasobami ropy naftowej w Nigerii

The agitation for resource control in Nigeria’s Niger Delta region has frequently snowballed into violence and militancy. Although the demand for resource control borders on the transfer of ownership and management and control of the processes of exploitation of crude oil found abundantly in the region, the exact parametres of the demand are not defined by the agitators. This paper examined the various variants of resource control demanded by the different groups of agitators in the Niger Delta. It particularly argued that the common law private property ownership principles of Cuius est solum, eius est usque ad coelum et ad inferos , and Quic quid plantatur solo, solo cedit be adopted to transfer ownership of natural resources, including crude oil to the indigenous inhabitants of the oil rich Niger Delta region in line with the principles of true federalism. The paper recommended the restructure of the Nigerian federal system to devolve more powers to the states and repeal of certain existing laws that inhibit the rights of the people to own land and natural resources beneath those lands, which belong to them, their ancestors and children yet unborn.

National Security Challenges and the Quest for True Federalism in Nigeria: the Issue of Amotekun (South-West Regional Security Network)

Among the various challenges that the Nigerian State has had to contend with since its inception, incessant security challenges stand out. Indeed, these challenges have continued to defy the various strategies put in place to check them by various federal security agencies in the country, including the Military, Police, Road Safety, Civil Defense, Immigration, and Custom, thereby rendering them ineffective and inefficient, and as such contributing to louder calls for restructuring of the country. State Governors in the South-West in response to the security challenges facing the region formed the Western Nigerian Security Network (WNSN) code-named Operation Amotekun, the Yoruba name for Leopard, a wild animal known for its great agility and hunting prowess. This paper seeks to examine, 1. The current federal structure vis-à-vis the various security challenges in the country, 2. The formation of the Western Nigerian Security Network (Amotekun), i.e., its prospects, likely challenges and mode of operation, and 3. Propose some policy options to aid the performance and efficiency of Amotekun and any other that may follow.