Nigeria

I

Communications

The first Nigerian newspaper was established in the 1830s in Lagos. Since then numbers of daily and weekly newspapers, published in local languages and in English, have been established. About 20 English-language daily newspapers and more than 30 weekly newspapers and magazines are in regular publication. Even though the federal government has an interest in several newspapers, including Nigeria’s largest, the Daily Times of Lagos, government censorship was sporadic rather than sustained until the 1993 coup introduced a more coherent attempt at control through the closure of some newspapers.

The national government has been active in broadcasting since 1957, when a chain of radio stations was established. In 1976 the federal government established control over all television stations, placing them under the Nigerian Television Authority. Radio and television programmes are broadcast in English and the major Nigerian languages. Some 24 million radios and 8 million television receivers were in use in 1997. The telecommunications network is being expanded and around 9 telephones per 1,000 people are in use.

V

Government

The central reality of Nigeria’s political life since independence in 1960 has been the rivalry and suspicion between the more traditionalist Muslim north, dominated by Hausa and Fulani, and the more Westernized south led by Yoruba and Igbo politicians—and continual military interventions in politics. Following military rule from 1966 to 1979, civilian government was restored on October 1, 1979, under a western-style constitution promulgated in 1978. This constitution was suspended following a military coup on December 31, 1983.

A new constitution in 1989 was expected to pave the way for a return to civilian rule in the early 1990s. Executive powers were vested in the president, acting in consultation with the 29-member Armed Forces Ruling Council (AFRC). However, following a new military coup in 1993, all political activity was banned, the two official political parties were disbanded, parliament was dissolved, and the 30 elected state governors were dismissed to be replaced by a transitional council. Defence Minister General Sani Abacha assumed the functions of head of state and set up an 11-member Provisional Ruling Council, headed by himself. A 33-member Cabinet, the Executive Council, was appointed, also chaired by Abacha.

A National Constitutional Conference was established in May 1994. In April 1995 it formally adopted a new draft constitution. This envisaged a rotating presidency, with the post alternating between northerners and southerners. It also specified the creation of new states and local government areas, new electoral agencies, and the lifting of the ban on politics. However, on October 1, 1995, Abacha announced that the transitional stage would take at least three years to complete, and that the military government would remain in office until 1998. He paid lip service to international demands for democracy in Nigeria by holding legislative elections in April 1998 and scheduling presidential elections for October. He carefully orchestrated the electoral process to make sure that his followers were elected to the legislature and that he would be elected president. After Abacha died suddenly in June 1998, his successor, Major-General Abdulsalam Abubakar, promoted a transition to democratic, civilian rule and appointed a constitutional commission to draft a new constitution.

A

Executive and Legislature

The new constitution took effect in May, 1999, when President Olusegun Obasanjo was sworn in after winning the February presidential elections with 63 per cent of the vote. This constitution is Nigeria's fourth since the country gained independence from Britain in 1960, and adopts the provisions of the 1979 constitution, with some amendments. In the 1979 constitution, the government was to have been modelled on a modern democratic republic, with a president, a bicameral legislature, and an independent supreme court. The president, who is both head of state and head of government, must gain at least a quarter of the vote in at least two thirds of the states and is limited to two four-year terms. The president’s running mate becomes vice-president for the same term. Cabinet appointments are made by the president and approved by the Senate. The constitution gives extensive self-governing powers to Nigeria's constituent states.

The constitution calls for a two-chamber National Assembly with members elected to four-year terms. The upper chamber, or Senate, contains three seats for each of Nigeria’s 36 states and one seat for the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. In the lower chamber, or House of Representatives, the number of seats representing each state is based on the state’s population. Legislative elections were held in April 2003 for 109 Senate seats and 360 seats in the House of Representatives.

B

Political Parties

Before independence, Nigeria’s political life was dominated by the Northern People’s Congress (NPC); the National Convention of Nigerian Citizens (NCNC), an Igbo-led party that was prominent in the south-east; and the Action Group (AG), which was controlled by Yoruba politicians and directed the government of the south-west. At independence the NPC and the NCNC formed a coalition. Splits within the southern parties led to violence and allegations of corruption during federal and regional elections in 1964 and 1965. In 1966 political parties were abolished; since independence, political parties have been variously banned and allowed, according to the whim of the leaders in power.

In the elections of 1979, the relatively new National Party of Nigeria (NPN) gained the greatest support. The other registered parties were the Unity Party of Nigeria, the Nigerian People’s Party, the People’s Redemption Party, and the Greater Nigeria People’s Party. A second round of elections in 1983 gave control to the NPN. However, many of the results were contested amid allegations of vote-rigging and corruption. The politicians were widely accused of mismanagement of the economy, and in December of that year the military launched a successful coup. All political parties were banned.

The military government announced a resumption of political activity in 1989, but disallowed all 13 parties that applied for registration. Instead, it established two new groups, the Social Democratic Party and the National Republican Convention, which were slightly left and right of centre, respectively. The Social Democrats won majorities in the House of Representatives and the Senate—the lower and upper chambers of the National Assembly—in the 1992 elections.

In June 1993 a presidential election between the two parties was annulled by the military president, General Ibrahim Babangida. In August he stepped down and handed power to a non-elected interim national government. Three months later, in December 1993, Abacha seized power and immediately banned both parties. Opposition to Abacha and the military government was expressed through unofficial political organizations, such as the National Democratic Coalition (Nadeco). Many former political leaders as well as political activists were subjected to harassment and imprisonment. In early 1996 the military government promised to allow a resumption of approved political activity. About 70 political groups were founded, 23 applied for official approval, and 5 were approved. Abacha was nominated to represent all 5 approved parties in the elections planned for 1998, which would have ensured his victory. After Abacha’s death, Abubakar allowed the free formation of political parties, and the five parties approved by Abacha disbanded voluntarily. In the 1999 legislative elections, all the seats in the National Assembly were divided between Obasanjo’s People’s Democratic Party (which won the majority of seats), the All People’s Party, and the Alliance for Democracy. In the 2003 elections the People’s Democratic Party once again won a majority of seats, with the All People’s Party and the Alliance for Democracy represented in both the National Assembly and the Senate.

C

Judiciary

The highest tribunal of Nigeria is the federal supreme court. It is made up of a chief justice and up to 15 other judges, all appointed by the country’s president. Other important courts include the federal court of appeal, the federal high court, and a high court in each state. In addition, ten states have Islamic Shari’ah courts and courts based on traditional law.