Ugwummadu
This position paper sets out to examine the crucial place of an organic constitution in consolidating the logic of democracy as the best known mechanism for effective regulation and coordination of human affairs in any given political setting. It emphasizes the early faith that the founding fathers of Nigeria had in the philosophy of federalism and presents the dangers inherent in a dysfunctional federation in the management of a heterogeneous and plural society. It traces the journey of constitutionalism in Nigeria and appreciates that, at best, and till this moment, Nigeria has only had legal and valid constitutions but certainly not legitimate ones. It examines the constant character and processes towards a people’s constitution and argues that the conspiracies of the Colonial Masters in the first instance, the Nigerian Military thereafter and now their elite political collaborators in imposing Constitutions on the people of Nigeria have remain both a travesty and a t
Introduction
This position paper sets out to examine the crucial place of an organic constitution in consolidating the logic of democracy as the best known mechanism for effective regulation and coordination of human affairs in any given political setting. It emphasizes the early faith that the founding fathers of Nigeria had in the philosophy of federalism and presents the dangers inherent in a dysfunctional federation in the management of a heterogeneous and plural society. It traces the journey of constitutionalism in Nigeria and appreciates that, at best, and till this moment, Nigeria has only had legal and valid constitutions but certainly not legitimate ones. It examines the constant character and processes towards a people’s constitution and argues that the conspiracies of the Colonial Masters in the first instance, the Nigerian Military thereafter and now their elite political collaborators in imposing Constitutions on the people of Nigeria have remain both a travesty and
OgbamosaThe crises arising from the recent EndSARS protests have again brought to the fore the need to have a government that will address socio-economic inequalities in the society and be accountable to the people.
This has not been the case. Most of our governments since political independence in 1960 have neither addressed socio-economic inequalities nor shown any reasonable level of accountability to the people. This has resulted in a society where the governed feel alienated from the government; where patriotism is lacking; where material deprivation is to the extreme; where there is a high level of unemployment; where education is not considered a priority; where there is profligacy in government and where there is an increasing level of crime and criminality.