General provisions of the pre-Independence constititutions, including the Richard, Macpherson and Lyttelton constitutions.

• The Richard's Constitution of 1946
• The Macpherson Constitution of 1951
• The Lyttelton Constitution of 1954

 Richard's Constitution of 1946 

The objectives of the Richard's Constitution were :

1. To promote the unity of Nigeria. 2. To provide within that desire for the diverse elements which make up the country. 3. To secure greater participation by Africans in the discussion of their own affairs.

Provisions of the Richard's Constitution:

Under the Richard's Constitution a legislative council was established for the whole Nigeria and it consisted of: The Governor - as the President; 16 official members of which 13 were ex-officio and 3 nominated; and 28 unofficial members.

Out of the 28 unofficials, 24 were indirectly elected while 4 members were elected. Two officials represented the Northern Provinces of the country and nine out of the 24 were unofficial members. Two officials and six nominated members represented the Western Province, while the Eastern Province was represented by two officials and were nominated members.

One elected member represented Calabar while the colony of Lagos was represented in addition to three elected members by one official and one nominated unofficial member.

Regional Councils:

The Northern House of chiefs - This consisted of the: Chief Commissioner as President; All First Class Chiefs: and Not less than 10 Second Class Chiefs.

 

The Northern House of Assembly - This consisted of the:- Senior Resident as President, 18 other official members, and 20 - 24 unofficial provincial members. Out of these 14 - 18 were selected by the Native Authorities and 6 were appointed by the Governor to represent interests not adequately represented.

 

The Western House of Assembly - This consisted of the:- Chief Commissioner as President, 13 other official members, and 15 - 19 unofficial provincial members. Three Head Chiefs were nominated by the Governor. 7 - 11 were selected by the Native Authorities and 5 were nominated from interests and communities not adequately represented.

 

The Eastern House of Assembly - It comprised the:
Chief Commissioner as President, 13 other official members, and 15 - 18 provincial members, out of which 10 - 13 were selected by the Native Authorities and 5 nominated by the Governor from interests and communities not adequately represented.

FUNCTIONS OF REGIONAL COUNCILS:

The Regional Councils served as a link between the Native Authorities and the Legislative Council. The Regional Councils considered and advised the Governor by resolution on any matter referred to them by the Governor or introduced by member of the council.

In addition, the Regional Houses examined estimates of expenditure, both annual and supplementary, and also bills that were applicable to the regions; but the Governor was not bound to accept the recommendations of the Regional Councils.

It should be noted that the Regional Houses had no constitutional powers to make laws. They were in fact only deliberative and advisory councils.

WEAKNESSES OF THE RICHARD'S CONSTITUTION:

The nationalist leaders criticised the Constitution on the ground that they were not consulted. They strongly criticised the arbitrary manner in which the Constitution was introduced without consulting them.

The N.C.N.C. in a memorandum not only denounced the constitutional proposals as autocratic in origin, but also as designed to create a false impression of providing for an unofficial majority when in fact the 'unofficials' were either Chiefs who were officials appointed by the governor, or their nominees.

Chief Obafemi Awolowo believed that the Constitution fell below expectations and that it contained same weakness as the previous Constitution. On June 1947, a delegation of the N.C.N.C. leaders left Nigeria for London to protest against the Richard's Constitution before the Secretary of State for the Colonies. They demanded among other things the immediate revision of the Constitution.

The Constitution allowed the nationalist leaders only discussions and not actual participation in running the affairs of the country and for this the objective of the Constitution was not achieved.

This was because the Regional Councils had only deliberative and advisory functions to perform and the Governor was not bound to accept the recommendations of the legislative council.

THE ADVANNTAGES OF THE RICHARD'S CONSTITUTION:

One of the greatest achievements of the Richard's Constitution was that it brought the North and the South in a common legislative council. It allowed the whole country to meet as a body and deliberate on the affairs of the country. Therefore, the Constitution achieved one of its objectives of promoting the unity of the country.

Secondly, the Constitution introduced the concept of regionalism into the political history of the country. Besides, the Constitution sharpened nationalism in Nigeria. As a result of the N.C.N.C. tour of the country to explain the deficiencies of the Richard's Constitution, many people in the country became politically conscious and even some became members of political parties in order to fight against coloninsm and imperialism.

Thirdly, the Richard's Constitution represented a constitutional advance and paved the way for further rapid constitutional developments in the country. A highly centralised unitary constitution was not suitable to a country of the size and diversity of Nigeria.

 

The Macpherson Constitution of 1951

The Macpherson Constitution established a central legislative council and a central executive council for the country. The central legislative council known as the House of Representatives consisted of:

A President,
Six ex-official members;
One hundred and thirty-six representative members elected from the Regional House, and Six special members appointed by the Governor to represent interests not adequately represented in the House.

In the centre there was also an executive council otherwise known as the council of ministers. It consisted of the Governor as President, six ex-official members and twelve ministers.

Each region was represented by four ministers appointed by the Governor on the recommendation of regional legislatures. But the ministers were not made in-charge of departments.

The Constitution divided the country into three uneven regions - Northern Region, Western Region and Eastern Region, and in each region there existed a Regional Legislature and an Executive Council.

In the Northern and Western Regions there were houses of Chiefs and Houses of Assembly, but in the Eastern Region, there was only one House - House of Assembly.

THE REGIONAL LEGISLATURES:

The Northern House of Chiefs - It consisted of the Lieutenant Governor who presided, all first class chiefs, 37 other chief, 3 official members and an adviser on Moslem Laws.

The Northern House of Assembly - It consisted of the President, 90 indirectly elected members, 4 official members and not more than 10 members nominated by the Governor to represent interests not adequately represented.

The Eastern House of Assembly - It consisted of the Lieutenant Governor as President, 80 elected members, 5 official members and 3 members nominated to represent interests and communities not adequately represented.

The Western House of Assembly - It comprised a President, 80 elected members, 4 official members and 3 members to represent interests and communities not adequately represented. The Western House of Chiefs was made up of the Lieutenant Governor as President, 50 chiefs, 3 official members and not more than 3 special members appointed by the Lieutenant-Governor.

The regional legislatures legislated only with respect to certain specified subjects and the list included Agriculture, Education, Local Government and Public Health, while the central legislature legislated on all subjects including those on which the regional legislatures legislated.

In addition, the Constitution established a Public Service Commission for Nigeria which advised the Governor on any question relating to appointment or dismissal or other disciplinary control of public officers, or any other matter affecting public service.

DEFECTS OF THE CONSTITUTION:

The introduction of regionalism had the effect of artificially dividing the country - a division which was beneficial to the colonial masters because the regions were given greater autonomy.

The principle of indirect election and the inclusion of special interests in the legislature was bitterly criticised by the nationalist leaders. The nationalist leaders wanted the abolition of special interests.

The N.C.N.C. leaders wanted direct elections as to give the electorate the opportunity to participate in the selection of their representatives.

In addition, the ministers in the central executive council were not in control of government departments but were in charge of specific government business. This made the government in the centre not responsible. Since the ministers were regionally selected, they were regional conscious instead of being national conscious.

The Constitution made no provision for the appointment of a Prime Minister in the centre and on account of this the cabinet did not perform as a team. Each of the ministers received instructions from their respective regions.

Besides, none of the political leaders of the three major political parties was in either the House of Representatives or in the central executive council.

Finally, the Constitution was undemocratic in the sense that it was the Governor that provided questions to whose answers formed the Constitution. The Constitution made no provision for the establishment of a Second Chamber in the centre and it did not provide for the House of Chiefs in the Eastern Region.

The retention of official members in the centre and in the Regions was a defect. Also the Constitution did not provide for a uniform electoral system, for in the Northern Region there was an indirect election while in both the Eastern and Western Regions there was direct election.

The Constitution also retained both reserved, veto powers and the Governor might even legislate for the whole country in the interest of good government.

REVENUE ALLOCATION UNDER THE 1951 CONSTITUTION:

Revenue allocation was based on the principles of Needs, Derivation and of National Interests.

Principle of Derivation:

The Constitution provided that the central government would return to the regional governments all the taxes that their citizens had paid. To achieve this, it was agreed that half of the revenue from taxes on tobacco and cigarettes should be given to the regions with respect to their respective consumption.

This in effect, means that the tobacco consumed in cities like Kano, Lagos and Port Harcourt which formed one half of the taxes on the, be given to the Northern, Western and Eastern Regions.

Principle of Needs:

This meant that grants be related to the needs of the people in each region without regards to the output or consumption of the region. To achieve this, the central government should make a substantial grant to regions in respect of every adult male tax payer in each region.

Principle of National Interest:

This meant that revenue should be spent be spent for the purposes of national importance. To give effect to this, it was agreed that education should be given hundred per cent grant because it was considered of national importance.

Because of differences in the rate of education among the three regions, the Northern Region had a lion share of the grants on education.

BREAKDOWN OF THE MACPHERSON CONSTITUTION:

Many factors were responsible for the breakdown of the Macpherson Constitution:

Firstly, under the Constitution there was no country-wide political party commanding a majority of all the three regions. Unlike the Gold Coast, now Ghana, where the Convention Peoples Party won a country-wide victory, three different political parties were in power in each region in Nigeria.

Secondly, the three most important political leaders in the country were not in the central legislative council. Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, leader of the National Council of Nigeria and Cameroons, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, leader of the Action Group, and Alhaji Ibrahim Ahmadu Bello, the Sarduana of Sokoto, the leader of the Northern Peoples Congress were not in the central Representative Council.

The absence of the political leaders of the country in the central legislative council coupled with the absence of a country-wide political party with majority certainly weakened the central legislative council. As a result of no country-wide political parties, the work of the council ministers was made very difficult.

The ministers coming from different regions felt that their responsibility was to their respective regions. This was as a result of the method of selecting them.

Thirdly, there was no provision under the Constitution either at the centre or in the regions for the appointment of a Prime Minister of Premier. The doctrine of collective responsibility was also partially responsible for bringing about the collapse of the Macpherson Constitution, because the central ministers coming as they did from each region and under different political parties could not regard one of them as the Prime Minister.

There was, therefore, the inherent danger that the ministers support for government policies was likely to be less emphatic.

Fourthly, there was inter-regional friction. Issues at the centre were viewed upon from regional view point. The Eastern regional crisis of 1953 contributed also in the collapse of the Constitution.

Besides, the self-government motion introduced by Chief Anthony Enahoro, sparked off the already laid mines, hence, the Constitution's total collapse. When the self government motion was introduced, the central ministers wanted to put into force the doctrine of collective responsibility and in order to participate in the debate, all the Action Group ministers in the council of ministers resigned and all efforts to bring them back failed.

The Northern delegates that opposed the independence motion were back at by the Lagos crowd and they threatened to secede from Nigeria. The Kano riot of May 1953 was as a result of the treatment given to the Northern delegates. The riot started when Chief S.L. Akintola toured Northern Nigeria for campaigns.

 

 The Lyttelton Constitution of 1954

The Federal House of Representatives, this consisted of a Speaker, three ex-officio members and 184 representative members. The 184 members were elected independently of the Regional Legislatures.

The Northern Region had 92 seats, the Eastern Region had 42, the Western Region had 42, Southern Cameroons 6, and 2 from the Federal territory of Lagos. The central legislature no longer gave directions to the regional legislatures and the regional legislatures did not need to get the approval of the central legislature of their bills before enactment.

The Federal Council of Ministers - This consisted of the Governor-General as President, three official - Chief Secretary, Financial Secretary and the Attorney General, and three Ministers from each Region and one from the Cameroons appointed by the Governor-General on the advice of the Regional Executive. It was in the Council of Ministers that there was equality of representation.

 

The Regional Legislatures:

The Western House of Assembly - This consisted of a Speaker who presided; there was also the provision for the appointment of a Deputy Speaker and 80 directly elected members.

The Western House of Chiefs - It consisted of important Chiefs and a President elected from the members of the House.

The Northern House of Assembly - This consisted of four ex-officio members, ten nominated members, ninety indirectly elected members and a President nominated by the Governor.

The Northern House of Chief - This consisted of all the influential chiefs, three official members and the Governor as its President.

The Eastern House of Assembly - It consisted of a Speaker who presided and eighty-four members who were directly elected. The Speaker of the Eastern House of Assembly was appointed by the Governor after consultation with the leaders of the majority and opposition parties.

He was to be appointed from among the members of the House or from outside. There was also a provision for the appointment of a Deputy Speaker by the Governor.

The Regional Executive:

The Governors of the Regions appointed the leader of the majority party as the Premier of that Region and Regional Ministers were appointed by the Governors on the advice of the Premiers. The Constitution still retained the Governor's veto powers.

Firstly, the Constitution established Federal House of Representatives in which its members were elected directly from a single member constituencies and in the Council of Ministers, it's members were selected from the Federal House of Representatives.

Secondly, there was no provision for the establishment of a second chamber in the centre. In both the Western and Northern Regions, bicameral legislature was set up.

Thirdly, the Constitution made provisions for the appointment of Premiers in the Regions, Speakers in both the Federal House of Representatives and in the Western and Eastern Regions.

There was also a provision for the appointment of Deputy Speakers. There was in addition, constitutional provisions for the posts of Permanent Secretaries and Parliamentary Secretaries both in the Centre and in the Regions.

 

Fourthly, in both the Centre and in the Regions, Executive Councils were set up. There was a clear division of power between the Central Legislature and the Regional Legislatures. The Central Legislature no longer gave directions to the Regional Houses of Assembly.Also ministers were made responsible for government departments as well as accountable to the electorate through the legislature.

Finally, there was a provision for the establishment of Public Service Commission both in the Federal level and in the Regions, and the main functions were the promotion, transfer, recruitment and discipline of civil servants. The Judiciary was regionalised.

Besides, Regional High Courts, Federal Court of Appeal, and Supreme Court were set up. Appeals then went straight to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council and not again through the West African Court of Appeal. The status of Lieutenant-Governors was raised to Governors while Governor became Governor-General and the Cameroons was raised to the status of a Region.

THE DEFFECTS OF THE LYTTELTON CONSTITUTION:

The Lyttelton Constitution did not provide a uniform country-wide electoral system. The Governors of the regions were empowered to make electoral regulations for their regions.

In the Northern Region, elections were indirect, while in both the Eastern and Western Regions there were direct elections. In addition, the Constitution failed to provide for a second chamber in the Centre and did not make provision for the House of Chiefs in the Eastern Region.

Another defect was that both the Governor-General and the Governors still retained veto and reserved powers and were still empowered to legislate in the interest of good government. The retention of official members in the Northern House of Assembly and in the Central Executive was also a great defect.

Finally, there was no provision for the office of the Prime Minister in the Centre to provide the much needed leadership and this made the Central Ministers to look for directions from their respective regions.