Restructure Nigeria; True Federalism; all you need to know How We Can Acheive It

| 16th June 2017 | African Music | No Comments

 

What exactly is Federalism?

The understanding of federalism varies from  country to country,
however, there are certain basic principles inherent in all federal
systems that makes it easy to identify a country that practices
federalism.

The most cogent, clearly expressed and the most acceptable definition of federalism is that of Kenneth C. Wheare.

In his book he talked about ‘‘federal principle’’ i.e. the
method of dividing powers so that general and regional governments are
each, within a sphere, co-ordinate and independent of one another.
Thus, Wheare’s proposition posits that the federal principle essentially
entails a legal division of powers and functions among levels of
government with a written constitution guaranteeing and reflecting the
division.  Wheare’s formulation of federalism is been drawn correctly
from the United States of America which is regarded by him as the
archetype of federal government. Since other formulation of federalism
from other scholars are variations of his work, the basic tenets or
elements of federalism according to K.C Wheare will be use  as a
templates to determines Nigerian federalism and the extent to which
Nigeria has fulfilled the basic tenets of federalism. The basic tenets
according to him are:

a)      There must be at least two levels of governments and there
must be constitutional division of powers among the levels of
governments.

b)      Each levels of government must be co-ordinate and independent.

c)      Each levels of government must be financially independent.
He argued that this will afford each levels of government the
opportunity of performing their functions without depending or appealing
to the others for financial assistance.

d)      There must be Supreme Court of the independent judiciary. He
argued that in terms of power sharing, there is likely to be conflict
hence, there must be independent judiciary to resolve the case.

e)      In terms of the amendment of the constitution, no levels of
government should have undue power over the amendment process.

He maintained that, once a country is able to satisfy these conditions, such country is said to practice federalism.

Some other of the most basic features of federalism are as follows;

  • The federating units (states and community governments) maintain
    autonomy over the most basic issues that affect their people. From
    security to education, resource control, taxes, infrastructural
    developments, elections, judiciary, health care, etc.

  • Powers are shared between the various tiers of government in a manner that unnecessary interference becomes impossible.

  • The government (tier) closest to the people is more empowered to meet up with the needs of the local people.

  • The federal national government is usually a creation of the sub-national (state) governments.

  • The federal government responsibility is usually limited to just
    foreign affairs, monetary policy, immigration, customs, defense. Al
    powers not expressly given to the federal government by the federal
    constitution is reserved for the state government.

  • Governance is run in a bottom-up approach.

  • There is a federal and state constitution

Like
Prof. Itsey Sagay rightly stated Federalism is, therefore, an
arrangement whereby powers within a multi-national country are shared
between a federal or central authority, and a number of regionalised
governments in such a way that each unit, including this central
authority, exists as a government separately and independently from the
others, operating directly on persons and property with its territorial
area, with a will of its own and its own apparatus for the conduct of
affairs and with an authority in some matters exclusive of all others.
In a federation, each government enjoys autonomy, a separate existence
and independence of the control of any other government. Each government
exists, not as an appendage of another government (e.g. the federal or
central government) but as an autonomous entity in the sense of being
able to exercise its own will on the conduct of its affairs free from
direction by any government. Thus, the Central Government on the one
hand and the State Governments on the other hand are autonomous in their
respective spheres.
 
As
Wheare put it, “the fundamental and distinguishing characteristic of a
federal system is that neither the central nor the regional governments
are subordinate to each other, but rather, the two are co-ordinate and
independent.”

In
short, in a federal system, there is no hierarchy of authorities, with
the central government sitting on top of the others. All governments
have a horizontal relationship with each other.

Another scholar by the name Nwabueze has identified the following additional characteristics in a federal system:

  • The
    power sharing arrangement should not place such a preponderance of
    power in the hands of either the national or regional government to make
    it so powerful that it is able to bend the will of the others to its
    own.

  • Federalism
    presupposes that the national and regional governments should stand to
    each other in a relation of meaningful independence resting upon a
    balanced division of powers and resources. Each must have powers and
    resources sufficient to support the structure of a functioning
    government, able to stand on its own against the other.

    • From
      the separate and autonomous existence of each government and the
      plenary character of its powers within the sphere assigned to it, by the
      constitution, flows the doctrine that the exercise of these powers is
      not to be impeded, obstructed or otherwise interfered with by the other
      government, acting within its powers.

The fundamental and distinguishing characteristic of a federal
system is that neither the central nor the regional governments are
subordinate to each other, but rather, the two are co-ordinate and
independent. In short, in a federal system, there is no hierarchy of
authorities, with the central government sitting on top of the others.
All governments have a horizontal relationship with each other.
Kenneth C. Wheare
Kenneth C. Wheare

Is Federalism Compatible with Nigeria’s Heterogeneous Nature?

Let us consider the contribution of the most consummate student of
federalism Nigeria has ever known- Chief Obafemi Awolowo (see ‘Thoughts
on Nigerian constitution’, pp. 48-49). From our study of the
constitutional evolution of all the countries of the world, two things
stand out clearly and prominently. First in any country where there are
divergences of language and of nationality- particularly of language- a
unitary constitution is always a source of bitterness and hostility on
the part of linguistic or national minority groups. On the other hand,
as soon as a federal constitution is introduced in which each linguistic
or national group is recognized and accorded regional autonomy, any
bitterness and hostility against the constitutional arrangement
disappears. Secondly, a federal constitution is usually a more or less
dead letter in any country which lacks any of the factors conducive to
federalism. From the facts and analysis quoted from Chief Obafemi
Awolowo book, the two following principles can be deduced:

  1. If a country is bilingual or multi-lingual like Nigeria, the
    constitution must be federal, and the constituent state must be
    organized on linguistic basis;

  2. Any experiment with a unitary constitution in a bilingual or multi-lingual or multi-national country must fail, in the long run.

It is surprising that Nigeria only operates federal system on paper.
The federal structures have never existed in Nigeria society. The
reasons are not far fetch; First, the federal government, ever since the
intervention of the military in government has always assumed
superiority over the state government, Because military federalism had
been more common than civilian federalism, this model made the federal
government the ‘‘master in relation to the dependent’’ state
governments. At independence largely autonomous regions possessed the
residual powers in the federation and functioned almost independently
and efficiently. The regions had independent revenue bases; separate
constitutions, foreign missions, and the primary and secondary education
were under the residual list while the university education was under
the concurrent list. All these changed under military rule. Attempts by
the state governments to reassert their autonomy during the second
republic were aborted by the return of military rule.

Let us now take a review of Nigeria’s past experience with federalism and see how compatible it was.

The Independence and Republican Constitution (1960 and 1963)
It
is hardly surprising that the 1960 and 1963 Constitutions epitomised
true Federalism. The 1950 National Conference had been followed by
others in 1953, 1954, 1957 and 1959, in which the practice of true
federalism were perfected.
 
It
can thus be said that the period 1950 to 1959 represented a 10-year
period of negotiations between the major stakeholders in the Nigerian
project and that what they finally arrived at in the form of 1960
Constitution was, subject to minor, non-structural modifications, the
only legitimate basis of association of all the different nationalities
in Nigeria.
One
important feature of the 1960 Constitution is the extensive powers
granted the Regions, making them effectively autonomous entities and the
revenue arrangements which ensured that the regions had the resources
to carry out the immense responsibilities.
 
Under
the 1960 and 1963 Constitutions, a true federal system made up of
strong States or Regions and a Central or Federal ‘state’ with limited
powers, was instituted. Both the 1960 (Independence) Constitution and
the 1963 (Republican) Constitution were the same. The only differences
were the provisions for ceremonial President (1963) in place of the
Queen of England (1960) and the judicial appeals system which terminated
with the Supreme Court (1963) rather than the Judicial Committee of the
British Privy Council (1960).
 
The
following features, which emphasized the existence of a true federal
system composed of powerful and autonomous Regions and a Centre with
limited powers are worth noting:

  • Each Region had its own separate Constitution, in addition to the Federal Government Constitution.

  • Each region had its own separate Coat of Arms and Motto, from the Federal State or Government.

  • Each Region established its own separate semi-independent Mission in the U.K. headed by ‘Agents-General’.

    • The
      Regional Governments had Residual Power, i.e., where any matter was not
      allocated to the Regions or the Federal Government, it automatically
      became a matter for Regional jurisdiction.

Thus,
apart from items like Aviation, Borrowing of moneys outside Nigeria,
Control of Capital issues, Copyright, Deportation, External Affairs,
Extraction, Immigration, Maritime Shipping, Mines and Minerals, Military
Affairs, Posts and Telegraphs, Railways, all other important items were
in the Concurrent List, thus permitting the Regions equal rights to
legislate and operate in those areas. The most significant of these
included; Arms and Ammunition, Bankruptcy and Insolvency, Census,
Commercial and Industrial Monopolies, Combines and Trusts, Higher
Education, Industrial Development, the Regulation of Professions,
Maintaining and Securing of Public Safety and Public Order, Registration
of Business Names, and Statistics.
 
It
is important to observe once more that anything outside these two lists
was exclusively a matter for Regional jurisdiction. Other features
indicative of the autonomous status of the Regions included:

  • Separate
    Regional Judiciaries and the power of the Regions to establish, not
    only High Courts, but also Regional Courts of Appeal.

  • The
    Regions had their own separate electoral commissions for Local
    Government elections. However, the Chairman of the Federal Electoral
    Commission was the statutory Chairman of the State Commission.

    • The Revenue Allocation system under the 1963 Constitution was strictly based on derivation.

It
will be observed that Mines, Minerals, including oil fields, oil
mining, geological surveys and gas were put in the Exclusive Legislative
List in the 1960 and 1963 Constitutions. This was a carry over from the
provisions of the 1946 Minerals Act, under which the Colonial
Government gave itself the exclusive ownership and control of all
minerals in Nigeria. This was understandable under a Colonial Regime
whose objective was the exploitation of the colonised peoples, but
certainly not acceptable in an independent country constituted by
autonomous (Federal) Regions. It is, therefore, not surprising that what
was lost by placing mines, minerals, oil fields, etc., in the Exclusive
Legislative List, was regained by the very strict adherence to the
principle of derivation in the revenue allocation formula, particularly
the allocation of the proceeds from mineral exploitation.

Did Nigeria make progress under the short lived federal system?

Omoh Gabriel, a journalist described the period of Nigeria’s
federalism as such; NIGERIA after Independence was on the right path of
economic growth and development. It had visionary leaders who were
interested in the welfare of the people. Industries were springing up in
every region of the country. In the North, Ahmedu Bello who held sway
was occupied by setting up farm settlements, textile industries. It was
the same story in the East where Michael Opera set up farm settlements
and a number of manufacturing companies. In the West, Chief Awolowo,
apart from the popular free education, set up a number of industrial
estates which attracted several companies from abroad. It is this simple
reason that the West is the most industrialized part of the country.

At this time, the Nigeria economy was in top shape and at take off
stage in economic development. The Nigerian economy was rated along the
same indices with Brazil, Indonesia, Malaysia and the rest of the now
talked about BRICKS countries. Then Nigeria had development plans that
guided the nation.

Autonomous entities

In the North pyramids of groundnuts and cotton were part of foreign
exchange earning commodities. In the West, cocoa was found in abundance.

It brought pride to the nation. The various regions were autonomous
entities and there was competition among the regions on internally
generated revenue. The military intervention and the discovery of crude
oil in commercial quantity seemed to have radically altered the course
of Nigeria’s economic development.

While the military discarded the fiscal federalism structure of the
country and made the states to become federal allocation collector, the
discovery of oil made Nigerian leaders to sleep walk and refuse to plan
believing that the money flowing from the ground will solve all the
nation’s problems.

As the military leaders were sleep walking and basking in the
euphoria of petrol dollar earnings, Nigeria’s population was growing
faster than the resources.

From the foregoing and from historical accounts, we can see that
federalism is not just compatible with Nigeria but has equally worked i
the past until it was discarded by the military.

NIGERIA after Independence was on the right path of economic
growth and development. Industries were springing up in every region of
the country. In the North, Ahmedu Bello who held sway was occupied by
setting up farm settlements, textile industries. It was the same story
in the East where Michael Opera set up farm settlements and a number of
manufacturing companies. In the West, Chief Awolowo, apart from the
popular free education, set up a number of industrial estates which
attracted several companies from abroad. It is this simple reason that
the West is the most industrialized part of the country. At this time,
the Nigeria economy was in top shape and at take off stage in economic
development. The Nigerian economy was rated along the same indices with
Brazil, Indonesia, Malaysia and the rest of the now talked about BRICKS
countries. Then Nigeria had development plans that guided the nation.
The various regions were autonomous entities and there was competition
among the regions on internally generated revenue. The military
intervention and the discovery of crude oil in commercial quantity
seemed to have radically altered the course of Nigeria’s economic
development. While the military discarded the fiscal federalism
structure of the country and made the states to become federal
allocation collector, the discovery of oil made Nigerian leaders to
sleep walk and refuse to plan believing that the money flowing from the
ground will solve all the nation’s problems. As the military leaders
were sleep walking and basking in the euphoria of petro dollar earnings,
Nigeria’s population was growing faster than the resources
Omoh Gabriel
Omoh Gabriel

What System Does Nigeria Currently Operate?

Judging from the historical accounts and and structure of our
present system, we could say for sure that Nigeria does not practice a
federal system even though it claims to be a ‘federal’ republic.

What Nigeria practices in reality is a unitary system. In a federal
system for example, the federal government does not create the states
government, rather than it is the autonomous state government that come
together to establish a federal union. Also, in a federal setting, the
central authority does not sustain the states  by giving them monthly
allocations as it is in Nigeria. Rather, it is the central government
that derives its sustenance from the states.

The following attributes in our present system shows that we are not a federal republic but a unitary republic.

  • In a federal system, the states are autonomous creations and the
    federal government is a creation of the states. In Nigeria, the states
    are the creations of the federal government and must therefore sustain
    them until it can no longer do so.

  • Autonomy in a federal system means that the states are able to
    manage its affairs without interference from the central government. In
    Nigeria, the states are unable to conduct their own elections, they have
    no control over their own security (there is no state and community
    police system), they have no control over their natural resources. They
    have no control over their basic education policies, they have no
    control over electricity distribution and generation. Their taxation
    base is limited, and many others.

  • In a federal system, there is no such thing as monthly allocations
    to the states from the federal government. In Nigeria, reverse is the
    case. Because the federal government created the states, it has to
    sustain them!

History of the Unitary system in Nigeria

General Ironsi,  emerged as the head of state after the first coup.
Against all advice, Ironsi promulgated Decree Number 34 of 1966, which
abrogated the federal system of government and substituted a unitary
system; he argued that the military could only govern in this way. Given
the already charged atmosphere, this action reinforced northern fears.
As the north was less developed than the south, a unitary system could
easily lead to southerners “taking over control of everything,” as a
northern spokesperson put it. It was at the height of northern
opposition to unitarism that the countercoup of July 1966 took place.
The North wanted a return of federalism as the only way to guarantee
their autonomy. The military government of Ironsi insisted on
maintaining the unitary military system!

Lieutenant Colonel (later General) Yakubu Gowon,  became the head of
state after the second coup. His first act was to reinstate the federal
system, along with the four regions and their allotted functions. But
relations between the federal government and the Eastern Region, led by
military governor Colonel Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, were very
strained. In September Colonel Gowon summoned an ad hoc constitutional
conference to deliberate on the country’s political future. Most
regional delegates to the conference, with the exception of those from
the midwest, recommended a confederal system to replace the federal
system. The delegates from the Eastern Region insisted that any region
wishing to secede from the federation should be allowed to do so. The
conference was ended abruptly by increased killings of Igbos in the
north and the heightening of tensions between the federal government and
the Eastern Region. A summit of military leaders at Aburi, Ghana, in
January 1967 attempted to resolve the disagreements and recommended the
establishment of a base confederation of regions. The Aburi Agreement
became a source of contention, however.

In anticipation of eastern secession, Gowon moved quickly to weaken
the support base of the region by decreeing the creation of twelve new
states to replace the four regions. Six of these states contained
minority groups that had demanded state creation since the 1950s. Gowon
rightly calculated that the eastern minorities would not actively
support the Igbos, given the prospect of having their own states if the
secession effort were defeated.

The Gowon years also saw the oil boom and a buoyant economy. The
federal government was encouraged to take on some responsibilities
formally allocated to the states, especially in the area of education.

The structure of government under Gowon was basically unitarian. At
the apex of government was the all-military Supreme Military Council
(SMC), which was the lawmaking body for the entire federation. Its
decrees could not be challenged in any law court. Most members of the
SMC under Gowon were state governors. There was also a Federal Executive
Council composed of military and civilian commissioners. The states
also had commissioners appointed by the governor. The states were
practically reduced to administrative units of the federal government,
which in several domains made uniform laws for the country. This basic
structure of military federalism has, with amendments, remained the same
during all military governments in the country and was transferred to
the civilian government with its 1999 constitution. Nigeria has remained
so till date; a unitary system.

General Ironsi, emerged as the head of state after the first
coup. Against all advice, Ironsi promulgated Decree Number 34 of 1966,
which abrogated the federal system of government and substituted a
unitary system; he argued that the military could only govern in this
way. Given the already charged atmosphere, this action reinforced
northern fears. As the north was less developed than the south, a
unitary system could easily lead to southerners “taking over control of
everything,” as a northern spokesperson put it. It was at the height of
northern opposition to unitarism that the countercoup of July 1966 took
place. The North wanted a return of federalism as the only way to
guarantee their autonomy. The military government of Ironsi insisted on
maintaining the unitary military system! Lieutenant Colonel (later
General) Yakubu Gowon, became the head of state after the second coup.
His first act was to reinstate the federal system, along with the four
regions and their allotted functions. But relations between the federal
government and the Eastern Region, led by military governor Colonel
Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, were very strained. In September Colonel
Gowon summoned an ad hoc constitutional conference to deliberate on the
country’s political future. Most regional delegates to the conference,
with the exception of those from the midwest, recommended a confederal
system to replace the federal system. The delegates from the Eastern
Region insisted that any region wishing to secede from the federation
should be allowed to do so. The conference was ended abruptly by
increased killings of Igbos in the north and the heightening of tensions
between the federal government and the Eastern Region. A summit of
military leaders at Aburi, Ghana, in January 1967 attempted to resolve
the disagreements and recommended the establishment of a base
confederation of regions. The Aburi Agreement became a source of
contention, however. In anticipation of eastern secession, Gowon moved
quickly to weaken the support base of the region by decreeing the
creation of twelve new states to replace the four regions. Six of these
states contained minority groups that had demanded state creation since
the 1950s. Gowon rightly calculated that the eastern minorities would
not actively support the Igbos, given the prospect of having their own
states if the secession effort were defeated. The Gowon years also saw
the oil boom and a buoyant economy. The federal government was
encouraged to take on some responsibilities formally allocated to the
states, especially in the area of education. The structure of government
under Gowon was basically unitarian. At the apex of government was the
all-military Supreme Military Council (SMC), which was the lawmaking
body for the entire federation. Its decrees could not be challenged in
any law court. Most members of the SMC under Gowon were state governors.
There was also a Federal Executive Council composed of military and
civilian commissioners. The states also had commissioners appointed by
the governor. The states were practically reduced to administrative
units of the federal government, which in several domains made uniform
laws for the country. This basic structure of military federalism has,
with amendments, remained the same during all military governments in
the country and was transferred to the civilian government with its 1999
constitution. Nigeria has remained so till date; a unitary system.
U.S. Library of Congress (edited)
U.S. Library of Congress (edited)

How will Federalism Fix Nigeria

There are basically three revolutionary movements in Nigeria today
and each of them have a different perspective on how to solve the
Nigerian problem.

The first group, lets call them the unitarians. They believe that
there is nothing wrong with the present unitary system of Nigeria. What
is wrong with Nigeria is Nigerians. There is a moral decadence that must
be tackled, there is need for reorientation and values. Nigerians have
become corrupt and have equally corrupted the political system. In
summary, the unitarians believe that it is Nigerians that needs to be
restructured and not Nigeria’s political system.

The second movement; lets call them the secessionists. This group of
Nigerians believe that Nigeria is in fact a lie and that a lie cannot
be restructured! They admit that Nigeria is badly structured and they
doubt that it can ever be restructured. So far, they have opted for a
complete dismemberment of he union as the only way to save themselves,
their tribe, communities and region. They want Nigeria dissolved because
they fear Nigeria has never worked and will never work.

The last group is where we belong here; the Federalists. The
federalist movement believes that something is obviously and
fundamentally wrong with Nigeria. After an interesting research, the
federalist has reached the conclusion that what is wrong with Nigeria is
the structure of its defective federal system and that the solution
will be to restructure the country and entrench true federalism.

The unitarians, secessionists and the federaists are now in a battle
towards shaping the future of Nigeria. The future of Nigeria will be
greatly determined by the success of one or more of these revolutionary
movements.

Can the Federalists with their Federalism fix Nigeria?

From the foregoing discussion about the history of federalism in
Nigeria, we can agree that the only period when Nigeria witnessed
sustainable economic growth was during the short period of regional
government based on federalism.

Federalism brings competition, competition drives productivity,
productivity inspires innovation, innovations drives development. This
is exactly what Nigeria lacks; competition, productivity, innovation,
efficient and sustainable development.

The unitary system has not only distorted the necessary ingredients
for growth but it has also entrenched an entitlement mentality in the
populace and among the federating units, making them less aggressive
towards self-sufficiency. Recent statistics has shown that over 95% of
the federating units (states and LGAs) are not sustainable without
federal allocations. What this basically implies is that if the federal
government suffers a major economic sabotage in its revenue generating
base, the entire country will likely run into crisis.

In summary, Nigeria is in crisis because it was built on a faulty foundation whose existence is now threatened.

Federalism comes with certain principles that guarantees
sustainability of economic and political  inclusive institutions.
Nigeria does not have electricity today is not because she does not have
the resources to have electricity, it is simply because of the
centralization policy by law which forbids the federating units from
competing, generating and distributing their own electricity without
federal interference. And many others.

How then will Federalism fix Nigeria’s problem?

There are basic frameworks that come with federalism and that is
necessary for the establishment of inclusive institutions that Nigeria
currently needs to attain greatness. These frameworks are as follows;

  • Federalism guarantees the autonomy of the federating units thereby
    making the centre (central authority) undesirable for local development
    issues. Under federalism, marginalization will become unnecessary as
    every state and community will be solely responsible for their own
    development or underdevelopment (its their choice to make).

  • Federalism eliminates over-centralization of political and economic
    powers thereby empowering the local people and their communities to take
    charge of their own development. States will no longer have to depend
    on federal allocations to survive and local communities will no longer.

  • Federalism has an in-built mechanism that promotes transparency and
    accountability. One reason why there is massive corruption in today’s
    Nigeria is simply because the people are not necessarily involved in the
    revenue generating process thereby making them less concerned about how
    the revenue is spent. The federal government simply ‘steals’ crude oil
    money from the people, collect customs taxes and goes about to spend it
    as it pleases. There is no real tax based revenue system where the
    people are expected to fund the government. As long as the crude oil
    keeps flowing, there is revenue for the government. This is the root
    cause of corruption in Nigeria. Federalism ensures that no tier of
    government has access to free natural resources without first going
    through the people who would then demand for accountability afterward.
    Under federalism, there is a bottom-up approach towards peoples
    relationship with the government. The local communities and their people
    control their resources and pays taxes to the various tiers of
    government. The communities and towns fund the state government and the
    state government funds the federal government. Each would naturally
    demand for transparency and accountability. In a nutshell, federalism
    will fix corruption in Nigeria!

  • Federalism will bring a new ‘think home’ philosophy among Nigerians
    in diaspora. With every community having a community based government to
    handle its most basic needs, Nigerians in diaspora will be excited and
    willing to support their annual community based budgets for both
    recurrent and capital projects. Development will be centred around
    people and places. The local people and their communities will become
    the biggest beneficiary of a restructured Nigeria.

  • Abuja (federal government) will no longer be blamed for the
    underdevelopment of the states and local communities. Everybody will
    simply be in charge of their own development.

Like Professor Claude Ake once said, development is a process of
social transformation in which the people themselves are in charge of
the process. Federalism puts the needed economic and political powers in
the hands of the local people and away from the politicians.

There are basically three revolutionary movements in Nigeria
today and each of them have a different perspective on how to solve the
Nigerian problem. The first group, lets call them the Unitarians. They
believe that there is nothing wrong with the present unitary system of
Nigeria. What is wrong with Nigeria is Nigerians. There is a moral
decadence that must be tackled, there is need for reorientation and
values. Nigerians have become corrupt and have equally corrupted the
political system. In summary, the Unitarians believe that it is
Nigerians that needs to be restructured and not Nigeria’s political
system.

The second movement; lets call them the secessionists. This group of
Nigerians believe that Nigeria is in fact a lie and that a lie cannot be
restructured! They admit that Nigeria is badly structured and they
doubt that it can ever be restructured. So far, they have opted for a
complete dismemberment of he union as the only way to save themselves,
their tribe, communities and region. They want Nigeria dissolved because
they fear Nigeria has never worked and will never work. The last group
is where we belong here; the Federalists. The federalist movement
believes that something is obviously and fundamentally wrong with
Nigeria. After an interesting research, the federalist has reached the
conclusion that what is wrong with Nigeria is the structure of its
defective federal system and that the solution will be to restructure
the country and entrench true federalism.

Tony Osborg
Tony Osborg

Popular Misconceptions about Federalism & Restructuring in Nigeria

When you hear the phrase ‘Restructure Nigeria’ and ‘True Federalism’ what comes to your mind?

For many, ‘restructure’ and ‘true federalism’ have become a
suspicious phrase. This is due to the misconceptions,
misinterpretations, misunderstanding, and ignorant understanding of the
concept. For some, true federalism means resource control and therefore
should not be accepted. For others, restructuring means creating an
opportunity for secession and must therefore not be accepted. These two
major misinterpretations have greatly hindered the general acceptance of
the concepts and have made it difficult for Nigerians across divide to
accept it as a pragmatic solution. What then is federalism and
restructuring and how is it different from what antagonists think it is.

What is the relationship between federalism and resource control?

If you have understood what federalism is, by now you should know
that federalism is not resource control but however resource control is a
feature of federalism. When you say a people should be autonomous, it
also entails that they should  have the right to control their resources
too. This is a basic principle of federalism. You cannot give the local
people more responsibilities and yet deny them access to to exploit
their resources and take advantage of their comparative natural
advantages.

What exactly is Resource Control?

Prof.
Itsey Sagay gives us an interesting understanding of the concept.
Resource control in his view involves three major components:

  • The
    power and right of a Community or State to raise funds by way of tax on
    persons, matters, services and materials within its territory.

  • The exclusive right to the ownership and control of resources, both natural and created within its territory.

    • The right to customs duties on goods destined for its territory and excise duties on goods manufactured in its territory.

Resource
control, which in certain circumstances can be referred to as fiscal
federalism, goes hand in hand with true federalism. This was recognized
and implemented faithfully in the Independence and Republican
Constitution (1960 and 1963).
 
The
Regional Constitutions, in the 1960 and 1963 Constitutions, described
each Region as “a self-governing Region of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria.” To buttress the self-governing status of each Region, adequate
provision were made to guarantee the economic independence of the
Regions, thus avoiding the hollowness of a declaration of self-governing
status totally undermined by economic dependence. Moreover,
consistently with the Federal character of the country, i.e. country of
many nations, the basis of revenue allocation was strictly derivative.
 
Section
140 which made provision for the sharing of the proceeds of minerals,
including mineral oil, stated that: “There shall be paid by the Federal
Government to a Region, a sum equal to fifty per cent of the proceeds of
any royalty received by the Federation in respect of any minerals
extracted in that Region and any mining rents derived by the Federal
Government from within any Region.” For the purposes of this section,
the continental shelf of a Region was deemed part of that Region. This
is totally consistent with international law which characterizes the
continental shelf as a seaward extension of the land of the coastal
state.
 
By
Section 136(1) 30 per cent of general import duties were paid into a
distributable pool for the benefit of the Regions. With regard to import
duties on petrol, diesel oil and tobacco, the total sum of import duty
collected less administrative expenses, were fully payable to the Region
for which the petrol or diesel oil or tobacco was destined. A similar
provision was made for excise duty on tobacco.
 
With
regard to produce, i.e. cocoa, palm oil, groundnuts, rubber and hides
and skin, the proceeds of export duty were shared on the basis of the
proportion of that commodity that was derived from a particular Region.
As noted above, the derivative bases of the allocation of revenue and
the proportionate share of such proceeds that went to the Region it
originated from, clearly buttressed the operating base of.
 
From the above historical account, we can see that resource control has
been an integral aspect of Nigeria’s short lived federalism.

What is the relationship between federalism and secessionism?

Another popular misconception about federalism is that it will lead
to the dismemberment of Nigeria. This is not true. In fact, a
restructured Nigeria will lead to a united Nigeria as all issues of
marginalization, exploitation and the likes been perpetuated by the
federal government will be completely eradicated.

Let us take a look at history, after
the debate on Chief Anthony Enahoro’s motion for independence in 1956
which pitched the Northern and Southern Legislators sharply against each
other, the Northerners issued an 8-point demand as a condition for
remaining in Nigeria as follows:

  • This
    region shall have complete legislative and executive autonomy with
    respect to all matters except the following: defence, external affairs,
    customs and West African research institutions.

  • That there shall be no Central Legislative body and no Central Executive or policy making body for the whole of Nigeria.

  • There
    shall be a Central Agency for all Regions which will be responsible for
    the matters mentioned in paragraph one and other matters delegated to
    it by a Region.

  • The Central Agency shall be at a neutral place preferably Lagos.

  • The
    composition and responsibility of the Central Agency shall be defined
    by the Order-in-Council establishing the constitutional arrangement. The
    Agency shall be a non-political body.

  • The
    services of the railway, air services, posts and telegraphs,
    electricity and local mining shall be organised on an inter-Regional
    basis and shall be administered by public corporations. These
    corporations shall be independent bodies covered by the statute under
    which they are created. The Board of the Coal Corporation shall be
    composed of experts with a minority Representation of the Regional
    Government.

  • All
    revenue shall be levied and collected by the Regional Government except
    customs revenue at the port of discharge by the Central Agency and paid
    to its treasury. The administration of the Customs shall be so
    organised as to assure that goods consigned to the Region are separately
    cleared and charged to duty.

    • Each Region shall have a separate Public Service!

The above historical account explains everything we need to know
about federalism and secession. Secession becomes unnecessary when
autonomous federating units are in charge of their people and
development.  It is in fact, the present unitary system that breeds
secessionism.

There is a lesson from Ethiopia and their recent attainment of
federalism that we should learn from. Let us put it here in verbatim.

“…Politically, the era of centralization seems to have come to
an end, and this is as it should be. A multi-ethnic, multi-lingual and
multi-religious society such as ours cannot and should not be
administered in a highly centralized manner. That people in their
respective localities have the right to administer themselves, exercise a
degree of command over their own resources, and develop their own
cultures and languages must be taken as axiomatic…But there must also be
unity within diversity. In the past we emphasized unity at the expense
of diversity, and we have paid dearly for it. Let us hope that now we
will not move to the other extreme and emphasize diversity at the
expense of unity.” [Eshetu Chole, “Ethiopia At the Crossroads…”, DIALOGUE, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia].

Politically, the era of centralization seems to have come to an
end, and this is as it should be. A multi-ethnic, multi-lingual and
multi-religious society such as ours cannot and should not be
administered in a highly centralized manner. That people in their
respective localities have the right to administer themselves, exercise a
degree of command over their own resources, and develop their own
cultures and languages must be taken as axiomatic…But there must also be
unity within diversity. In the past we emphasized unity at the expense
of diversity, and we have paid dearly for it. Let us hope that now we
will not move to the other extreme and emphasize diversity at the
expense of unity.
Eshetu Chole, Ethiopia At the Crossroads…
Eshetu Chole, Ethiopia At the Crossroads…

What will a restructured Nigeria look like?

The most important question before us is envisaging what a
restructured Nigeria would look like. We have agreed that Nigeria needs
restructuring based on the principles of federalism. The next big
question should be; what should a restructured Nigeria look like? This
is what we have set out now to answer in this article.

How should responsibilities be shared between the federal and state
governments? To answer these questions, we have drawn up twenty rules
that should guide us in our debate. Find below the twenty rules that we
consider as fundamental to a two-tier system of federal structure and
which we think is best suitable for a country like Nigeria. These twenty
rules highlight the basic principles of true federalism.

  1. There should be two tiers of government recognized by the federal
    constitution; a federal and state government. Each of them should have a
    separate constitution. The state government should have the exclusive
    right to create another tier of government as it wishes. We suggest that
    a community/city based government be recognized and established by the
    state as the last tier of government. Community/City based government
    should therefore replace the existing local government style tier of
    government. The constitutions must guarantee the autonomy of each tier
    of government. The community based government should have full control
    over the most basic things that affect the community. Issues like basic
    education (management and funding of basic schools), security, water,
    maintenance, health care, etc should be done by the community based
    governments. It should also have the right to raise its own taxes to
    fund its needs. The community based government should be the most
    empowered tier of government.

  2. The federal constitution should limit the federal government
    responsibilities to only defense, monetary policy, foreign policy,
    immigration and customs. All duties not given to the federal government
    should become the duties of the state governments.

  3. The federal constitution should be written by the representatives of
    the already existing autonomous states that now wish to create a
    federal government.  In the same manner, the state constitution should
    be written by the representatives of the the people, tribes and
    communities that would make up the state.

  4. Ownership of all federal owned assets and institutions that are no
    longer under federal jurisdiction should be transferred to the states
    where they are located. Arrangement should be made to ensure that the 
    there is a fair balance of payment for the transferred assets. Where the
    states fail to offer a fair bargain for the new assets, the general
    public should be invited to take ownership of the assets. Federal
    institutions (i.e federal universities) capable of being autonomous
    should be declared as autonomous institutions and free from federal
    interference.

  5. The federal government will no longer build hospitals, universities,
    rail lines, refineries, power stations, etc. These shall become
    exclusive duties of the state governments. The federal government duty
    shall be limited to the items listed in number 2.

  6. The federal constitution shall forbid both the federal and state
    governments from embarking on business ventures and shall limit their
    sources of revenue to only taxation and royalties.

  7. The federal constitution should recognize the right of ownership of
    land and natural resources as belonging to communities and individuals
    and should therefore forbid both the state and federal governments from
    upturning this inalienable right. The implication of this rule is that
    resource control will now be in the hands of the individuals and
    communities and not the state or federal government as it currently is.

  8. The state and federal governments should have two independent judiciary with each having its own Supreme court.

  9. Right to secession should be enshrined in the federal constitution.
    Communities/towns should have the right to secede from a state and seek
    membership of another state within Nigeria while states should have the
    right to secede from Nigeria and seek membership of another country or
    form an independent country of their choice. The process of doing this
    must be by referendum.

  10. States should be entitled to receive irregular annual grants from
    the federal government in the same way communities/towns should be
    entitled to receive irregular grants from their state governments upon
    meeting certain conditions. There shall be no more monthly allocations.

  11. Parliamentary democracy could be adopted to replace the present
    presidential executive system. The House of tribes (House of Reps)
    should be abolished and a single parliament retained comprising of
    tribesmen, professionals, and town/city/state representatives.

  12. The federal constitution shall guarantee the decentralization of the civil service.

  13. The federal constitution shall recognize indigeneship and residency
    as qualification for occupying public offices in both state and federal
    offices.

  14. Taxation shall be the major source of revenue for both the federal
    and state governments. Federal taxes shall be limited and deducted from
    the state governments while state taxes shall be unlimited and deducted
    at source

  15. Both basic and tertiary education shall be the exclusive rights of
    the state and community based governments. The federal government shall
    have no business with building and managing basic or tertiary
    institutions. Power generation and distribution shall also be the
    exclusive rights of the state and city governments. The federal
    constitution shall guarantee the autonomy and need for federal, state,
    community and institutional police system.

  16. Federal regulations should be unlimited on matters of security, environment, economy, etc.,.

  17. Issuance of licenses (whatever kind be it exploration or social
    license) should be the exclusive right of the state governments while
    regulations of such licenses should be jointly done by both the state
    and federal governments.

  18. The federal and state constitution shall guarantee the autonomy of
    every tier of government in conducting their own elections. Each tier of
    government shall be solely responsible for the conduct of its own
    elections without interference. The people of the communities, towns and
    cities that make up a state shall be solely responsible for electing
    the state government officials in the same way the people of the state
    government shall be solely responsible for electing the officials of the
    federal government.

  19. The federal constitution shall separate religion from the state and state from religion.

  20. The federal parliament shall be structured in such a manner that a
    bill can only become law if and only if it receives support from a
    minimum of 2/3 representatives from each state and not a 2/3 of the
    general House.

The above twenty rules are what we consider as fundamental
principles of true federalism as may be applicable to the Nigerian
society. Once we are able to establish these rules in Nigeria, Nigeria
has become a true federal state! The rules will expand as time goes.


img

There should be two tiers of government recognized by the
federal constitution; a federal and state government. Each of them
should have a separate constitution. The state government should have
the exclusive right to create another tier of government as it wishes.
We suggest that a community/city based government be recognized and
established by the state as the last tier of government. Community/City
based government should therefore replace the existing local government
style tier of government. The constitutions must guarantee the autonomy
of each tier of government. The community based government should have
full control over the most basic things that affect the community.
Issues like basic education (management and funding of basic schools),
security, water, maintenance, health care, etc should be done by the
community based governments. It should also have the right to raise its
own taxes to fund its needs. The community based government should be
the most empowered tier of government.
The Federalists
The Federalists

How can we Restructure and entrench Federalism in Nigeria?

In truth, the people who oppose restructuring are stronger than
those who propose restructuring.  This implies that (for now),
restructuring is a minority call. To restructure Nigeria and entrench
federalism, this pattern must change. The Federalists must become the
majority!

Certain steps must be taken to achieve this. These steps are in fact
what makes up  our philosophy as a movement. The steps are contained in
our three cardinal objectives towards restructuring Nigeria which are
as follows;

  1. We must begin to sensitize and educate Nigerians on the defects of
    the present system and the need for them to support the campaign for a
    restructured system.

  2. We must proceed to mobilize the now enlightened Nigerians to get
    involved in the demand for a restructured system. This demand will
    include persuading the legislature and executives through overwhelming
    grassroots mobilizations.

  3. And finally, we must participate in the restructuring process. We
    cannot allow the restructuring process to be hijacked by the same
    marauding political class who have held the country hostage for the past
    decades. We the ordinary people must participate in the restructuring
    process.

Legally, it is the duty of the legislature to begin the
restructuring process. Unfortunately, the legislature has become one of
the biggest beneficiaries of the present skewed unitary system, they
will therefore be opposed to any structural change which will likely
threaten their existence.

It is on this basis that Nigerians must unite to overwhelm the
legislature with their demand for federalism. We cannot depend on and
expect the beneficiaries of the present system to change the system,
certainly, not without a fight! The kind of restructuring Nigeria needs
is not cosmetic. For a fact, we do not need a constitutional amendment
but an entirely new constitution.  At the end of the day, what we desire
is a Sovereign National Conference (SNC). To get this, we must unite.
Every tribe, every community, every state and every ethnic nationality
must unite to demand for a system that works.

 

The time to Restructure Nigeria & entrench true Federalism is NOW!

The time is NOW!

We have seen several political leaders (including those who
previously opposed restructuring ) give support the federalism campaign
in Nigeria. They now know better. Nigeria might never work without some
structural re-engineering. We have said a lot on social media. We have
talked, we have written. What is left is for us to ACT.

Those who oppose restructuring might (for now) be in the majority,
however, a majority of this majority are actually ignorant of what they
oppose. If we are able to sensitize them, we the Federalists could
become the new majority! We have a whole lot of work to do. The most
important focus s is that it is possible.

Our three cardinal objectives towards restructuring Nigeria are as follows;

  1. Sensitize and educate Nigerians on the defects of the present system and the need for a restructured system

  2. Mobilize the now enlightened Nigerians to get involved in the demand for a restructured system based on true federalism

  3. Participate in the restructuring process. We cannot allow the
    restructuring process to be hijacked by the same marauding political
    class who have held the country hostage or the past decades. We the
    ordinary people must participate in the restructuring process.

The task ahead is surmountable. We must begin the debate.
Disagreements may arise, compromises will be reached and progress will
be made. If only we agree to begin the debate.

Join the conversation

Use the hashtags #RestructureNigeria & #TrueFederalism to promote the campaign on social media. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to learn more about the campaign. Check out our Event section to see when we shall be having a sensitization rally in your neighborhood and city. Visit our online Shop and purchase any of our campaign wears. Purchase for your friends, co-workers and everyone around you.

Be proud to be a Federalist and demand that Nigeria be restructured on the principle of true Federalism.

 

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