Abstract
Relations between and among arms of government, particularly executive-legislature, is discussed within the context of democratic system of governance. This is because in other forms of government, the three arms of government are hardly separated. In non-democratic governments, executive and legislative functions and powers are mostly fused and interlocked. In other words, the powers of the arms of government, particularly the executive and legislature are mostly exercised by one institution, be it the king (in an absolute monarchy), the military ruler (in a military regime) or even members of the communist party (in a socialist regime). This is not however, to suggest that all forms of democracies guarantee separation of executive and legislative functions and powers. Essentially, some democratic systems of government also fuse the executive and legislative functions and powers as well as the personnel of government. The parliamentary system of government, for instance, typically assigns overlapping and concurrent functions to both the executive and the legislature. More so that members of the executive can also serve as legislators concurrently. This kind of arrangement, it is argued, does not institutionalize checks and balances required for accountability, transparency and probity in the management of public affairs.
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Notes
- 1.
See 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria Section 58 (3).
- 2.
Ibid Section 58(4).
- 3.
Ibid Section 58(5).
- 4.
Eme-Ezeoke, Edwin was the Speaker of the House of Representatives in the Second Republic, Vice President of the ANPP Presidential flag bearer in the 2007 elections and the chairman of the party.
- 5.
Pius Anyim Pius was the Senate President from 2000 to 2003. He succeeded Senator Chuba Okadigbo after the latter’s impeachment on the account of financial misappropriation.
- 6.
Faruk Lawan is member is one of the longest serving members of the House of Representatives in the Fourth Republic. He was first elected in 1999 and re-elected in the 2003 and 2007 elections. He is currently the Chairman House Committee on Education.
- 7.
Mahmud Kanti Bello is a Senator and currently the Majority Chief Whip of the Senate.
- 8.
In addition to standing committees, there are also various categories of committees in NASS which perform similar functions to that of standing committees. These include: special committees; joint committees; conference committees; ad-hoc committees and committee of the whole. For elaborate discussion of these categories of committees, see Handbook of Legislative Procedures and The Law Maker, vol. 8 no. 174.
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Baba, Y.T. (2019). Executive–Legislature Relations: Evidence from Nigeria’s Fourth Republic. In: Fashagba, J., Ajayi, OR., Nwankwor, C. (eds) The Nigerian National Assembly. Advances in African Economic, Social and Political Development. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-11905-8_9
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