Being an address delivered by the Governor of Ondo State Arakunrin Oluwarotimi O. Akeredolu, SAN, at the Annual General Meeting of Loyola College, Ibadan with the Theme: Redesigning The Nigerian Constitution For National Development And Inclusiveness held on Saturday August 7, 2021

I thank the organisers of this event, most profusely, for keeping the tradition of excellence for which our alma mater has been reputed over the ages. I salute the resilience and focus, two virtues, which ensure success and without which nothing remarkable and abiding can be achieved.
I consider myself to be highly privileged indeed to have been a partaken of a lavish feast where knowledge and wisdom were served, most liberally. Any good product of our great school, Loyola College, must have drunk from this Fount. Our mission remains going into the world to showcase the exceptional qualities in us, the trained and chosen few, among many, with the charge to make the difference and shine, to the glory of God and edification of mankind.
Wherever and whenever duty beckons, we must be prepared to justify this huge trust. We must be courageous. We must seek knowledge. We must defend the truth, always. We must love our fatherland and be ready, at all times, to make sacrifice for it. We must respect our neighbours and strive to maintain peace. We must resist the temptation to embrace compromise as a veritable option in the face of adversity, unless when it promotes peace which, ultimately, engenders progress.
We must protect the weak, support the poor and be resolute in the defence of our fatherland. It is our bounden duty to help the polity navigate the turbulent tides in our quest for nationhood. Our training is adequate; the expectations of our school are not misplaced in us. Our presence here today is an affirmation of that enviable upbringing. The choice of the topic of the lecture is instructive. It attests to the quality of training we received in the glorious past. And for this, we are immensely grateful.
A Loyolan must be concerned with issues of development. He cannot be a passive on-looker in an environment where ignorance and confusion thrive. He is expected to ask questions for clarity with a view to joining others who share the belief in the possibility of redemption to take necessary action. He must fight for equity and justice. He is a complete person, decent, sociable, enterprising, focused and, above all, patriotic. It is not a mistake that we are found in virtually all fields of human endeavour. Our school is indeed a model for other institutions interested in excellence.
The history of this country is known fairly by many members of the elite class. Anyone in this audience should have no difficulty following the historical trajectory as I attempt to lay the foundation for my argument for a recourse to a true constitutional order in a multi-ethnic and religious political space. There can be no meaningful progress achieved with the current situation. There has to be a fundamental shift in service delivery to the people of this country.
The onus to bring to bear on the polity a qualitative difference lies on members of this class. The alternative is anarchy which, inexorably, leads to disaster, as we are beginning to witness in the country at present. The silence of those who should know is disquieting. There appears to be an agreement among the truly educated to yield the public space entirely to the rabble and their minders. The speed at which the country slides into a state of hopelessness and helplessness is confounding.
We must not feign ignorance of the reasons for the self-inflicted socio-economic challenges currently facing the country. Applying cosmetic remedies to a chronic malady can only give momentary relief. We must resist the attempt to reduce all issues arising from gross mismanagement of human and material resources over the years to struggles among the ethnic nationalities and religious organisations.
Let no one be deluded into embracing the fantasy of a “Republic” existing only on the social media or the likelihood of having a “Nation”, which takes pride in fabled homogeneity and commonalty of interests and aspirations, contrary to the stark realities, so glaring, to admit any room for any doubt or denial, without appearing funny. The current secessionist agitations are, at best, products of simple minds, fed constantly with malcontents in the polity. These are mere symptoms of a disease of a most virulent strain.
This country must pause and take a deep breath to analyse the current issues which threaten her very existence. There is the need for introspection. We must endeavour to ask questions about the evolution of the Nigerian state as a geo-political fact. We must proceed to resolve the conundrum which has turned the facts of heterogeneity and diversity, veritable sources of strength and wealth, to an albatross. We must be able to determine the best way to attain nationhood from the present amalgam, rancor free.
Beyond the observance of mere processes which, necessarily, aid the nascence of a nation-state, there must be the resolve to deepen the understanding between and among the ethnic nationalities and other sub groups, which make up the country, for amity, through the creation of abiding institutions. There must be an agreement ad idem, unforced and devoid of all trappings of coercion or suborned compromises.
We cannot continue to uphold a manifestly unstainable system, which threatens to tear us apart. The Constitution, the grundnorm in any country, must be the aggregate reflection of the expectations and aspirations of a country. The offices and institutions designed to make this happen must be captured in its provisions. All interests must be accommodated in the document for general acceptability. No part of the union must feel inferior or be made to have justifications which excite deep suspicion. Since development is not an event but a long, arduous process, there will be the need to permit each of these units to determine the best way possible to achieve it. Creating wealth must not be uniform in a federation. The central authority must only be willing and able to guide and protect at all times.
THE BEGINNING OF A CONSTITUTIONAL ORDER IN NIGERIA
Lagos Colony came under the influence of the British in 1861. The other parts of what later became Nigeria were still autonomous to a great extent. There had been intra and inter-tribal and ethnic wars which lasted till the late 19th Century. There was little cooperation among the divergent and disparate ethnic conglomeration in both the Northern and Southern parts of the vast lands which became Nigeria by colonial fiat in 1914. Presenting this simple fact becomes necessary for the mischievous and simple-minded who make fallacious claims to mobilise to achieve a parochial end.
The pacification of the colonial territories in both the Northern and Southern parts was complete by the end of the 19th Century. By the Southern Nigeria Order-in-Council and the Northern Nigeria Order-in-Council, both of 1899, which became operative on the 1st January, 1900, Nigeria became a political reality. Lagos still enjoyed the status of the Colony until it was merged with the Southern Protectorate in 1906. A Supreme Court was established for Southern Nigeria. Commissioners’ and Native Courts were also established. A Supreme Court, Cantonment Courts and Native Courts were established in the Northern Protectorate. All of these reforms ended in 1914.
The two Protectorates were merged with the Lagos Colony to become one geo-political entity on the 1st January, 1914. The Colonial Administration had as its head Sir Frederick Lord Lugard, who acted as the Governor General. His Administration established a National Supreme Court which was headed by a Chief Judge. There were also Provincial and Native Courts to attend to the indigenous people of the North. The Indirect Rule system was adopted to give a semblance of freedom to administer their territories in accordance with their traditional belief system. The primary consideration was British interest and it was of no moment whether a potentate oppressed his people or not.
There was no serious judicial reform to reflect the facts of existence. The British colonial administration administered the country, mainly, through the traditional rulers and the warrant chiefs, created by them. There was an advisory Council of 36 which was ineffectual. It wielded no real authority to do anything or effect any change. The buck stopped on Lord Lugard’s table. The only higher authority to which he deferred was the Colonial Secretary. He was in the saddle until 1922 when Sir Clifford became the Governor General.
The 1922 Clifford’s Constitution
This Constitution was not of general application. It was not applicable to the Northern part of the country. This was the Constitution which introduced an electoral system in Nigeria. The Constitution established a Legislative Council had 46 members. 19 of these members were Ex-officio and white. The Executive committee had 14 members. 12 members were British while 2 Nigerians were Ex-officio members of the Council. It was still, essentially, a British affair.
The 1946 Richard’s Constitution
This Constitution came into force on January 1st, 1946. This was the first time when a legal instrument would be applied to the whole country as against what obtained before. The Northern part of the country had representatives for the first time. The Legislative Council had 18 members of which there were 17 foreigners and 1 Nigerian.
This Constitution can be said to be the document which laid the foundation for the pre-independence advancement of Nigeria. Regionalism was established as a system of government for the first time and many Nigerians were permitted to participate in the affairs of their country. Three Regions were created from the two Protectorates. There were the West, North and the East Regions. Each Region was permitted to have a Regional Council. The Laws of these regions were made by the Legislative Council sitting in Lagos. Representatives were sent from the Regions to participate in legislative deliberations in the Council. If there was any conflict between the legislation of the Regional and National Councils, the British Colonial Secretary resolved same. Regional Councils were still not free to legislate on most matters of concern to the people of the nascent country.
McPherson’s Constitution of 1951
Nigerian nationalists joined issues with the Governor General on the 1946 Constitution. They were of the firm view that this law was too exclusive and there was no pretence to involve the people, especially the elites in the running of the British Colony. It failed to grant Legislative status to the Regional Councils. A delegation was sent to London to meet the Colonial Secretary on it. The result was the McPherson’s Constitution of 1951 which came into existence after the call for memoranda from members of the public.
Thus, for the first time, Nigerians were availed of the opportunity to participate in the political affair of their country. As limiting as the scope of participation appeared, it was very significant. Any constitution-making process must involve the people for whom it is meant to serve and on whom its provisions must be applied. It is anomalous, if not treasonable, to exclude the people while pretending to be making laws for them in a democratic political system.
This Constitution established the Central House of Representatives as against the so called National Legislative council. There were 136 members. There was also the Executive Council which had 19 members. 12 of these members were British. This was the constitution which heralded the federal structure upon which subsequent political arrangements were built. The three Regions were granted limited legislative powers and control over fiscal matters. Each region also had the power to appoint ministers.
Lyttleton’s constitution of 1954
The agitations of Nigerian politicians prompted the Colonial Secretary, Oliver Lyttleton, to summon the notable ones in the three Regions to a meeting in London with a view to harmonizing the opposing views to reflect the areas of concern which elicited protests from the conscious layer of the society. A truly federal Constitution was enacted after the London and Lagos Conferences. The new Constitution, which came into force on 1st October, 1954, granted autonomy to the Regional Courts, regionalized civil service, qualified regional financial autonomy and the grant of independence to Southern Cameroon.
Making some quick comments at this point becomes imperative, considering the current multi-faceted discontents in the polity. Any keen follower of the history of this country cannot miss the deplorable fact of retrogression, with respect to many issues. The most striking of the decisions of the two Conferences held before the enactment of the Lyttleton’s Constitution had to do with the decision of the people of Southern Cameroon to leave Nigeria to join Cameroon. The process was seamless and devoid of rancor as against the current cacophonous outpourings of threats and counter recriminations.
The unmistakable impression created by the on-going rabble-rousing indicts the elites in the land. Secession is not an issue to be left in the hands of the uneducated and impetuous. Self-determination is political, no doubt. Politicking requires deep reasoning. It should not be about hate. It concerns socio-economic interests of a group of people which must be protected and defended. It does not permit of infantile zest, the quick, unthinking recourse to anarchy to make a point. Any given people should enjoy an inalienable right to choose its association with other groups and should also be at liberty to opt out of a relationship considered exploitative and oppressive.
Let no one assert, with condescending arrogance, that staying together in a political arrangement, heavily skewed against some people, or designed to promote and protect the interests of a section of the country, is not negotiable. The dynamism inherent in human affairs exposes the lie in the position which holds that some groups are, inexorably, glued together till eternity even in an existence of dominance and subjugation. Any superstructure erected on a faulty foundation is doomed to collapse.
The other regrettable issue concerns the civil service rendered moribund, unproductive and, largely, parasitic. The regional civil service was very efficient, productive and patriotic. The Western Region Civil Service was rated as the best in the whole of the country as well as the whole West African sub-region in terms of service delivery at this period. It is painful to note the progressive slide into infamy and mediocrity of the entire structure designed to serve the people. It has become largely redundant, incompetent, downright corrupt and destructive.
This Constitution built on the foundation laid by the McPherson’s Constitution of 1951 on the federal system of government. It brought into existence the Federal House of Representatives consisting of 188 members including the Speaker. Of this number, 185 members were elected while there were 3 Ex-officio members. It was from this House of Representatives that members of the Council of Ministers were appointed. The Governor-General headed the Ministerial Council.
There was an unambiguous delineation in the functions and scope of authorities of the Federal and Regional Governments. The Federal Government made laws on all matters on the Exclusive Legislative List, while the Regional Governments were permitted to legislate on matters which fell within the purview of the Residual List. Both Governments made laws on the Concurrent List. The major feature of this Constitution was that the adoption of the parliamentary system of Government. It, however, failed to create the office of the Prime Minister.
One can conclude, safely, that the foundation of the remarkable progress recorded during the pre-independence era and immediately after the grant of independence in 1960, was laid with the courageous steps taken by the nationalists to ensure full participation of Nigerians in their own affairs via the enactment of the 1954 Constitution. All the achievements of the defunct Western Region could not have been realised if it were to be under the current socio-political cum legal dispensation in Nigeria. The current 1999 Constitution, as amended, pretends to accommodate and promote some federalist tendencies. This is patently false in reality.
1957-1958 Pre- Independence Conferences
It is incumbent on all those who know to remind those general averse to discussions and dialogues on important national issues of the landmark achievements of the 1957-1958 Conferences held in London to discuss the future of independent Nigeria. The first was held in 1957 at the instance of the Colonial Secretary, Allan Boyd. The Conference decided to retain the House of Representatives and create the office of the Prime Minister. The House had 320 members in addition to 12 senators, representing 4 from each Region, and 4 from the Colony of Lagos and 4 other Special Senators.
This was the composition of the federal legislature shortly before independence. The newly created office of the Prime Minister was to be filled by a member of the House of Representatives with the majority in the parliament. This office was, consequently, occupied by Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa of the Northern People’s Congress, NPC, in 1957.
Another very significant resolution of the Conference to allow Southern Cameroon to be severed from Nigeria, permanently. This was done without any opposition as the people themselves, through their leaders opted to break from Nigeria. Their decision was respected without blood-letting. The other most remarkable resolution of the Conference the clause for self-rule granted any Region which wanted it.
The Western and Eastern Regions grabbed this opportunity with both hands. This Western Region demonstrated, convincingly, the possibility of achieving greatness if given the needed legal latitude to excel. The enactment of the law setting the limiting date of received English to 1st October, 1960, and the Conveyancing Law of 1959 are exemplary, among several other innovations. Self-rule was reflected in the three tiers of government satisfactorily. Another major decision of the 1958 Conference was the grant of independence to Nigeria on 1st October, 1960.
With this, the stage was set finally for the disengagement of the British from the political scene in Nigeria. A general election was held in 1959 and the candidate of the NPC, Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, was elected as Prime Minister, while Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe became the Governor General, holding the office in trust for Her Majesty, the Queen of England, on Nigeria’s independence on 1st October, 1960. The Conference also deliberated on the 1960 Constitution which came into force at independence.