Federalism and the Quest for National Restructuring in Nigeria: Issues and Prospects

Namso Ekpo Mbon, Atairet Clifford Atairet and Dr David Aniefiok Titus
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Namso Ekpo Mbon: Dept. of Public Administration, Faculty of Management Sciences, Akwa Ibom State University, Nigeria
Atairet Clifford Atairet: Dept. of Public Administration, Faculty of Management Sciences, Akwa Ibom State University, Nigeria
Dr David Aniefiok Titus: Dept. of Political Science and Public Administration, Faculty of Social Sciences Federal University Otuoke, Bayelsa State, Nigeria

International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation, 2024, vol. 11, issue 11, 264-275

Abstract: Federalism is the theory or advocacy of a federal political order where final authority is divided between the subunits and a center. Structurally, Nigeria exemplifies a federal state but in practice, what is obtained is far from what federalism represent. The Nigeria federal system of government was founded not on economic, geographical basis rather on the option of colonial administrative conveniences imposed by the British. The adoption of federalism in Nigeria with its plurality therefore, negates utilitarian and pragmatic principle permitted by negotiation, consultation in the federal state. This entrenched ethnic rivalry and conflict in the country federal polity and the manifestation of creation of many states with no viability and less fiscal independent with very powerful center, plague the country to the ills of consolidation and national building with plethora of agitation for restructuring. Very worrisome is that Nigeria federalism lacks the basic minimal requirements to claim its position to have attained the practice of federalism as postulated by K. C. Wheare since 1966. Therefore, the main objective of the study was to analyze issues of federal practice hatching on restructuring the Nigeria federal polity. The study adopted qualitative method of analyses while data were collected from secondary sources and the study was anchored on system theory as unit of analysis.. The study argues that the incessant frictions in Nigeria federalism is due to derailment on the constitutional provisions on the powers of the component units which negates of the principles of federalism. Therefore, the study recommended the need to build strong institutions, most importantly political institution, embark on consultative constitutional review and renegotiate the bonds of federalism possibly return to dual federalism by reintroduction of regional government in the country.

Date: 2024
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