WHAT WERE THE FEATURES OF THE

1960INDEPENDENT CONSTITUTION OF NIGERIA

Introduction
Finally, the long colonial administration of the British over Nigeria, spanning about 100 years, came to an end on
the 1st of October, 1960. This feat was accompanied by the introduction of a new constitution, called the
independent constitution of Nigeria. On this very day, Nigeria became an internationally recognized sovereign
nation. There were several salient features of the new Nigerian constitution which shall be discusses below.
One of the features of the new Nigerian independent constitution of 1960 was that it retained the federal system of
administration. By the time of independent, the country had already divided into three regions, the North, East and
Western regions. These three regions formed the federating units, in addition to which a central government was
created to administer the entire country.
The new constitution made provisions for a parliamentary system of government. The constitution created the
position of a Head of State and a Head of Government. The Head of State was the Queen of England, represented
by the Governor-General. The three federating units were headed by Regional Governors. The Head of Government
was the Prime Minister. He was a Nigerian in the person of Alhaji Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa. He
was responsible for the day-to-day administration of the country.
Bicameral Legislature
Another feature of the constitution was that it made provision for the establishment of a bicameral legislature. There
were two houses of legislature, both at the federal level and at the regional level. At the federal level, there was the
House of Senate and the House of Representatives, constituting the Upper House and Lower House respectively.
The House of Senate was made up of 44 members and the House of Representatives was made up 312 members.
At the regional level too, there was a House of Assembly and a House of Chiefs in all the three regions.
Judicial Service Commission The constitution made provisions for the establishment of a Judicial Service
commission. The main responsibility of the Judicial Service commission was to recommend qualified people who
could be appointed as judges.

Fundamental Human Rights

The new independent constitution also made provisions for the citizens to enjoy their fundamental human rights.
The rights of the people were entrenched in the constitution. No clause on the fundamental human rights of the
people could be easily amended, except through a cumbersome process.

Privy Council
At independence, the judicial structure was still subservient to the Judiciary in London. The highest court of appeal
did not reside in Nigeria. The Privy Council in London constituted the highest court of appeal.
Division of Powers

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The new constitution allocated powers to both the central government and the regional governments. The exclusive
powers were allocated to the federal government and the residual powers were allocated to the
THE MAIN FEATURES OF THE 1963 REPUBLICAN CONSTITUTION OF NIGERIA
Introduction
On the 1st of October, 1963, Nigeria became a federal republic. This was the result of the All-Party Conference held
in Lagos in the latter days of the month of July, 1963. With the republican status came a new constitution to reflect
the new Nigeria.
MAIN FEATURES
His new constitution retained the parliamentary system of government where there was a Head of State and a Head
of Government. President Nnamdi Azikiwe became the first Head of Government, that is, president of the new
republic and Abubakar Tafawa Balewa became the Head of Government and therefore, the Prime Minister.
The Queen of England was removed from her position as the Head of State. In the 1960 independent constitution,
she was made the Head of State, represented by the Governor-General in Nigeria.
National Assembly to elect President
The republic constitution provided that the president of the Republic of Nigeria must be elected by a joint sitting of
the National Assembly, voting through the secret ballot. The majority votes of the members of the joint National
Assembly must carry the day. Thus, President Nnamdi Azikiwe was elected as the Head of State by the 1963
National Assembly.
Senate President acting as President
The new constitution made provisions for the temporary replacement of the president. The constitution stated that,
where the president suddenly dies, is removed from office, resigns him/herself or becomes physically incapacitated
and cannot therefore perform the functions of his office, the Senate President must act in his stead. This must only
last for a maximum of six months, within which a new president must be elected.
Creation of Mid-western Region
The new constitution made provision for the creation of an additional region. The Mid-western region was created
to make the total number of regions in Nigeria, at the time, four. As a direct consequence of the creation of the
fourth region, the number of seats in the new Senate increased to 56, from the previous 44.
Appeals Court in Nigeria
Unlike the previous constitution where the Appeals Court was the Privy Council in London, the republican
constitution provided that the Supreme Court of Nigeria should become the final court of ad judicature in the land.
Declaration of state of emergency
The constitution also provided that the federal government could declare a state of emergency in any of the four
constituent regions if that could guarantee the interest of the entire federation. Cuba’s Constitution of 1976: An
Historic Setback / Dimas Castellano
Dimas Castellano, 1 March 2016 — “Two Benchmarks of the Cuban Republic” — an article by Pedro Antonio
Garcia which appeared in the journal Granma on February 24 — makes a comparison between the 1901 and 1976
constitutions that merits further discussion. Let us look further at three of the author’s main points.

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1. It was not the Cuban Revolution that brought down representative democracy but rather the coup d’etat, led by
Fulgencio Batista on March 10, 1952, which interrupted the constitutional rhythm of the country. Batista
dismissed the president-elect, dissolved Congress and abolished both the constitution of 1940 and the electoral
statutes of 1943.
The constitution of 1940 had retained the separation of powers and the rights recognized by the 1901 constitution
while adding several others, such as the right to organize public protests and to form political associations which
opposed the regime. It also guaranteed the autonomy of the University of Havana, declared any attempt to
prohibit or limit citizen participation in the nation’s political life a criminal offense, and recognized the legitimacy
of opposition intended to protect the rights of individuals. The coup d’etat that led to the suspension of this
constitution in 1952 is an historical fact. But thanks to actions by civilian and military leaders — including Fidel
Castro’s assault on the Moncada Barracks — Fulgencio Batista restored it in 1955.
Rather than being fully restored after the 1959 revolution, however, it was replaced with the Fundamental Law of
the Cuban State, some of whose statutes conferred on the head of state, the prime minister and the Council of
Ministers responsibilities previously held by Congress. This modification was similar to one carried out by
Batista in 1952, when he implemented the Constitutional Statutes. The Fundamental Law remained in effect until
1976, when the first revolutionary constitution was adopted. This constitution was slightly modified in 1992 and
became a means of preserving the status quo when in 2002 it declared that the political system, as it existed at that
time, was irrevocable and would no longer reflect the kinds of changes that regularly occur in any society. Thus,
the people — who supposedly are sovereign — cannot amend this Law of Laws, which declares eternal a system
that those born after 1992 as well as those yet unborn did not choose.
As a member of the constitutional assembly of 1901, Juan Gualberto Gomez — a man Garcia acknowledges as a
key figure of Cuba’s struggle for independence — opposed an attempt to constitutionally codify anything that
might act as a brake on social change. Juan Gualberto Gomez stated, “I consider this to be an anti-liberal
document. Having been given a specific mandate, we are taking advantage of our presence here by trying to toy
with the future, by cutting off the people’s right to tomorrow and hindering their momentum.” He was referring to
a counter-productive and harmful attempt to legislate in place of others, something we forget we when we deem
the current political system to be irrevocable.
2. The articles of the constitution of 1901 established the principle of independence and sovereignty, and nullified
other existing laws that undermined this principle. It excluded women from voting while extending universal
suffrage to men. It granted the President of the Republic powers formerly held by the Spain’s colonial governor.
Obviously, it protected private property.
The constitution of 1901 endorsed fundamental rights. Article 16 restored habeas corpus: “All those detained will
be released or remanded to the competent judge or tribunal within twenty-four hours of their detention.” Article
25 granted freedom of expression “in speech and in writing, through the press or any other method.” Article 28
allowed freedom of association “for all lawful purposes.” And Article 29 enshrined freedom of movement. These
universal, indivisible, sacred and inalienable rights and freedoms form the foundation for civic participation and
popular sovereignty.
The constitution of 1901 was so ahead of its time that the rights it encompassed were not universally recognized
until the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948, almost half a century later. Notably, the

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first proposal submitted to the United Nations’ Social and Economic Council for further consideration was
presented by the Cuban delegation at this constitutional event.
The Protest of the Thirteen; the peasant struggles at San Felipe de las Uñas, Realengo 18 and Vents de Casanova;
student protests and university autonomy; the strikers movement from 1902 until the overthrow of Machado; the
repeal of the Platt Amendment; the ultimate consensus of various factions at the 1939 Constituent Assembly.
These historic struggles are examples of the blossoming of Cuban civil society, whose foundations were laid by
the 1901 constitution.
The article’s author points out two limitations to the 1901 constitution: denying women the right to vote and
extending the powers of the colonial governor to the President of the Republic.
Regarding the first issue, it is certainly true that the 1901 constitution did not grant universal suffrage. However,
by taking advantage of the liberties recognized in this founding document, women founded multiple associations
and media outlets, and organized meetings and gatherings to promote their rights. In 1917 women were granted
custody of their children and control of their financial resources. In 1918 the Divorce Law was approved. The
First National Women’s Congress was held in 1923, followed in 1925 by the Second National Congress, which
led to a promise by President Gerardo Machado to grant women the right to vote.
After the overthrow of Machado in 1933, the National Feminist Alliance appealed to the interim president, Carlos
M. de Cespedes (son), demanding the right to vote. As a result of those negotiations in January 1934, during the
government of Ramon Grau San Martin, a Constitutional Convention was convened which recognized the right of
women to vote and to be elected. During the presidency of Colonel Carlos Mendieta an interim constitution was
approved, whose Article 38 formally extended the vote to women and in February 1939, prior to the Constituent
Assembly that drafted the Constitution of 1940, the Third National Women’s Congress called for “a constitutional
guarantee of equal rights for women.” This demand was endorsed in the constitution adopted in 1940. As a result
Cuban women legally exercised the right to vote in the elections of 1940, 1944, 1948, 1954 and 1958.
Regarding the latter — in other words the powers granted to the President of the Republic, which had formerly
been those of the Captain General — one need only compare the powers of an executive branch, which are
limited by legislative and judicial branches, with the powers established after 1959, which are those of a
totalitarian, one-party state with monopoly control and ownership of the means of production. Need I say more?
As we can see, while the republic founded in 1902 was not exactly what Cubans had fought for, the undeniable
fact is that Cuba was able to join the international community of nations with its own legal framework, close the
door on annexation, disentangle itself from the Platt Amendment and convene a constitutional convention, which
drafted the glorious constitution of 1940, the same constitution that provided the legal foundation of Dr. Fidel
Castro’s defense at his trial for the assault on the Moncada Barracks.
3. By 1975, a time when country was undergoing profound transformations, the constitution of 1940 was no
longer applicable to that moment in history. A new Law of Laws was needed for this new stage of the revolution.
A group of jurists, appointed by the political and mass movement organizations, produced a draft constitution. In
every school, workplace, military unit, city block, farm and rural village people discussed the document and made
corrections and additions.
If Cuba was without a constitution from 1959 until 1976, it was not necessary to draft a new constitution. Since
the 1959 statutes did not provide such a framework, what was needed was simply a constitution.

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 THE 1976 CONSTITION OF NIGERARIAN
The 1976 constitution recognized rights and freedoms such as equality under the law, suffrage for both sexes,
freedom of speech, of the press, of association and the right to protest. Where it differed from the constitutions of
1901 and 1940 was that these rights were subordinate to Article 5, which recognized the communist party as the
dominant driving force of the state and society, whose goal was to build socialism and advance towards
communism. This was summed up in an address by Fidel Castro to Cuban intellectuals: Within the revolution,
everything; outside the revolution, nothing. Subsequently, articles six and seven stipulate which organizations are
to be recognized, protected and fostered by the communist party, which led Cuba’s constitutional traditions to
suffer an historic setback.

Indispensable in a Federation:
A rigid constitution is useful for a federation. A federation in the ultimate analysis is a political cooperation
among different states. The constitution of a federation is a solemn agreement among the states. The spirit of this
agreement must be kept intact. Rigidity of the constitution does not allow its spirit to be violated easel
Demerits:
A rigid constitution does not allow free scope for growth and development. A rigid constitution cannot easily
adapt itself to the changing social and economic conditions. A rigid constitution may break but it cannot bend
easily. It does not provide for flexibility. In times of stress and popular excitement, the difficulty of changing a
rigid constitution may bring about a revolution. Experience shows that rigid constitutions have been responsible
for revolutions. France, during the last 150 years, had to face repeated revolutions because of the rigidity of its
constitution. Macaulay aptly remarks, “One important cause of revolution is that while nations move onward the
constitutions stand”. A rigid constitution is compared to garment made to fit a child’s body without any regard to
its physical growth. It is impossible to foresee all developments and conditions which may arise in future at the
time of framing the constitution. Some scope for growth must, therefore, be kept by introducing an element of
flexibility in the constitution. When a constitution does not provide for an easy amendment new circumstances
would necessitate a new constitution.

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