Posted by Chester Morton / Wednesday 7 December 2016 / No comments
The weaknesses of the 1951 Macpheson Constitution of Nigeria
Introduction
The Macpherson constitution of Nigeria became effective in 1951
in response to the agitations of the political elements in Nigeria at the time
led by Herbert Macaulay and Nnamdi Azikiwe.
No clarity on type of
Legislature
One of the weaknesses of the Macpherson constitution is that it
was not able to clearly determine whether the country was to have a bicameral Legislature
or a unicameral Legislature. This is because while the Northern and the Western
Regions were given a bicameral Legislature, the Eastern Region on the hand was
given a unicameral Legislature. Apart from that, the constitution did not make
room for a Second Chamber at the national level.
The position of a Prime Minister
Another flaw in the Macpherson constitution is the fact that
it did not provide for the post of a Prime Minister at the centre. The drawback
of this lack of provision was that it affected national cohesion in a country
with diverse ethnic groups, languages and cultures.
It was divisive
The Macpherson has also been criticized on the grounds that
it did not allow for team work in the Cabinet that it created. For one thing,
the members of the cabinet were chosen from the three regions into which the
country had been divided and received instructions from their respective
regions and therefore tend to owe allegiance to the regions.
It did not decide the federal question
Another demerit of the Macpherson constitution is that it was
not decisive on whether the country should be a federal state or a unitary
state. Consequently, the two systems were employed in the running of the
country.
Semi-responsible government
The Macpherson constitution was also criticized for its
inability to grant a full responsible government to the people of Nigeria. This
was so because the British were still in charge of External Affairs and Defense,
for example.
Governor to decide constitutional questions
Another flaw in the Macpherson constitution is that it did
not create a constitutional court to which conflicts arising out of the
provisions of the constitution could be referred. Rather it gave the Governor
the powers to determine constitutional questions that may arise.
SAMPLE QUESTIONS
1. Highlight six disadvantages of the Macpherson constitution
of Nigeria.
2. What were the disadvantages of any pre-independent
constitution in your country?
