1979 Nigerian Constitution

1979 Nigerian Constitution
Name	1979 Nigerian Constitution
Long title	Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (1979)
Date approved	1979
System	Presidential federal republic
Branches	Executive; Legislative; Judicial
Executive	President
Legislature	National Assembly
Courts	Supreme Court of Nigeria
Preceded by	1963 Constitution of Nigeria
Succeeded by	1993 Constitution of Nigeria

1979 Nigerian Constitution The 1979 Nigerian Constitution inaugurated a presidential system that reshaped relations among the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Nigerian Armed Forces, Supreme Court of Nigeria, National Assembly (Nigeria), and the State governments of Nigeria. Drafted during military rule led by Olusegun Obasanjo and enacted under a transition supervised by the Constitution Drafting Committee (Nigeria), it replaced the Parliamentary system of the First Nigerian Republic and aimed to stabilize post‑Civil War political arrangements involving Eastern Region, Northern Region, Western Region, and Mid-Western Region constituencies.

Background and Drafting

The constitution emerged from a process involving the Armed Forces Ruling Council (AFRC), the Constitution Drafting Committee (Nigeria), legal scholars from University of Lagos, consultants from Commonwealth of Nations legal missions, and contributions from political figures such as Shehu Shagari and Nnamdi Azikiwe-era activists. Following the Nigerian Civil War and successive decrees by the Supreme Military Council (Nigeria), the document reflected comparative models including the United States Constitution, the Constitution of the Republic of India, and precedents from the Constitution of the United Kingdom tradition applied in British West Africa. Public hearings invoked inputs from traditional authorities like the Emirs of Northern Nigeria, labour organizations such as the Nigeria Labour Congress, business groups including the Nigerian Employers Consultative Association, and ethnic associations from the Igbo people, Yoruba people, and Hausa people blocs.

Structure and Key Provisions

The text established a written charter organized into Chapters addressing the Executive (Nigeria), the National Assembly (Nigeria), the Judiciary (Nigeria), public finance, and transitional arrangements. It created a directly elected President of Nigeria with powers of appointment over the Federal Executive Council (Nigeria), created procedures for impeachment modeled on mechanisms from the United States House of Representatives and United States Senate, and defined federal revenue allocation linked to standards from the Intermediate Revenue Allocation Commission (Nigeria). The document specified legislative competence lists, reserved certain matters to the Federal Capital Territory (Nigeria), and entrenched the status of institutions such as the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Independent National Electoral Commission, and the Police Service Commission.

Federal System and State Powers

The constitution articulated a three‑tier design centering the Federal Republic of Nigeria and constituent States of Nigeria with delineated legislative lists: exclusive, concurrent, and residual, drawing analogy to the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the Federation of Malaysia. It recognized state prerogatives in areas including state legislation, state public service, and state revenue collection subject to arbitration by the Supreme Court of Nigeria and adjudication by the Federal High Court (Nigeria). Provisions addressed the role of the Federal Capital Territory (Nigeria) and set mechanisms for state creation processes that echoed antecedents from the Mid-West Region reorganization and the 1967 Nigerian state creation episodes.

Fundamental Rights and Citizenship

The Bill of Rights in the constitution guaranteed individual protections against unlawful detention under doctrines reminiscent of decisions from the West African Court of Appeal and principles invoked in cases like Gani Fawehinmi v. Chief of Defence Staff-era litigation. It defined citizenship by birth, descent, and naturalization, aligned with precedents from the Nigerian Citizenship Act and comparative statutes in the Commonwealth of Nations. The text afforded safeguards for property rights, freedom of movement associated with the Internal Migration patterns of Nigeria, and protections for cultural groups including Ijaw people and Kanuri people, while providing exceptions for emergency powers exercised under conditions similar to declarations by military councils such as the Supreme Military Council (Nigeria).

Political Institutions and Electoral Provisions

Electoral architecture was established through provisions creating an independent electoral body, electoral registration rules, and schedules for presidential, senatorial, and gubernatorial contests influenced by models from the United States Electoral College absence and direct presidential election norms. It specified representation in the Senate of Nigeria and the House of Representatives (Nigeria), seat allocation among states, and eligibility criteria referencing officeholders like Nnamdi Azikiwe, Shehu Shagari, and Obafemi Awolowo legacies. Party formation rules, campaign finance limits, and dispute resolution channels anticipated litigations before the Election Petition Tribunals and higher review by the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

Implementation, Amendments, and Repeal

Implementation required transition plans overseen by the Military Administration of Nigeria (1976–1979), coordination with civil service bodies such as the Federal Civil Service Commission (Nigeria), and synchronization with security organs including the Nigeria Police Force and the Nigerian Army. Amendment procedures were prescribed through special majorities in the National Assembly (Nigeria), reflecting amendment practices in the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of India. Political crises, contested interpretations in cases before the Supreme Court of Nigeria, and the 1983 electoral aftermath involving figures like Shehu Shagari culminated in the constitution’s abrogation following the 1983 Nigerian coup d'état by elements of the Nigerian Armed Forces, and subsequent replacement by interim instruments leading to the 1993 Nigerian Constitution process.

Category:Constitutions of Nigeria