| THE EXECUTIVE
Part I
FEDERAL
EXECUTIVE
A - The President of
the Federation
130.
(1) There shall be for the
Federation a President.
(2) The President shall be the
Head of State, the Chief Executive of the Federation
and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed
Forces of the Federation.
131. A person shall be qualified for
election to the office of the President if -
(a) he is a citizen of
Nigeria by birth;
(b) he has attained the age
of forty years;
(c) he is a member of a
political party and is sponsored by that political
party; and
(d) he has been educated up
to at least School Certificate level or its
equivalent.
132.
(1) An election to the office of
President shall be held on a date to be appointed by
the Independent National Electoral
Commission.
(2) An election to the said office
shall be held on a date not earlier than sixty days
and not later than thirty days before
the expiration of the term of office of the last holder
of that office.
(3) Where in an election to the
office of President one of the two or more candidates
nominated for the election is the only
candidate after the close of nomination, by reason
of the disqualification, withdrawal,
incapacitation, disappearance or death of the other
candidates, the Independent National
Electoral Commission shall extend the time for
nomination.
(4) For the purpose of an election
to the office of President, the whole of the
Federation shall be regarded as one
constituency.
(5) Every person who is registered
to vote at an election of a member of a legislative
house shall be entitled to vote at an
election to the office of President.
133. A candidate for an election to the
office of President shall be deemed to have been duly
elected to such office where, being the only
candidate nominated for the election -
(a) he has a majority of YES
votes over NO votes cast at the election;
and
(b) he has not less than
one-quarter of the votes cast at the election in
each of at least two-thirds of all
the States in the Federation and the
Federal Capital Territory, Abuja
134.
(1) A candidate for an election to
the office of President shall be deemed to have be
been duly elected, where, there being
only two candidates for the election -
(a) he has the majority of
votes cast at the election; and
(b) he has not less than
one-quarter of the votes cast at the election in
each of at least two-thirds of all
the States in the Federation and the
Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
(2) A candidate for an election to
the office of President shall be deemed to have
been duly elected where, there being
more than two candidates for the election-
(a) he has the highest number
of votes cast at the election; and
(b) he has not less than
one-quarter of the votes cast at the election
each of at least two-thirds of all
the States in the Federation and the
Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
(3) In a default of a candidate
duly elected in accordance with subsection (2) of this
section their shall be a second election
in accordance with subsection (4) of this
section at which the only candidate
shall be -
(a) the candidate who scored
the highest number of votes at any
election held in accordance with
the said subsection (2) of this section;
and
(b) one among the remaining
candidates who has a majority of votes in
the highest number of States, so
however that where there are more than
one candidate with majority of
votes in the highest number of States, the
candidate among them with the
highest total of votes cast at the election
shall be the second candidate for
the election.
(4) In default of a candidate duly
elected under the foregoing subsections, the
Independent National Electoral
Commission shall within seven days of the result of the
election held under the said
subsections, arrange for an election between the two
candidates and a candidate at such
election shall be deemed elected to the office of
President if -
(a) he has a majority of
votes cast at the election; and
(b) he has not less than
one-quarter of the votes cast at the election in
each of at least two-thirds of all
the States in the Federation and the
Federal Capital Territory, Abuja
(5) In default of a candidate duly
elected under subsection (4) of this section, the
Independent National Electoral
Commission shall, within seven days of the result of the
election held under the aforesaid
subsection (4), arrange for another election between
the two candidates to which the
subsection relates and a candidate at such election
shall be deemed to have been duly
elected to the office of President, if he has a majority
of the votes cast at the election.
135.
(1) Subject to the provisions of
this Constitution, a person shall hold the office of
President until -
(a) when his successor in
office takes the oath of that office;
(b) he dies whilst holding
such office; or
(c) the date when his
resignation from office takes effect; or
(d) he otherwise ceases to
hold office in accordance with the provisions
of this Constitution.
(2) Subject to the provisions of
subsection (1) of this section, the President shall
vacate his office at the expiration of a
period of four years commencing from the date,
when -
(a) in the case of a person
first elected as President under this
Constitution, he took the Oath of
Allegiance and the oath of office; and
(b) in any other case, the
person last elected to that office under this
Constitution took the Oath of
Allegiance and oath of office or would, but for
his death, have taken such Oaths.
(3) If the Federation is at war in
which the territory of Nigeria is physically involved
and the President considers that it is
not practicable to hold elections, the National
Assembly may by resolution extend the
period of four years mentioned in subsection (2)
of this section from time to time; but
no such extension shall exceed a period of six
months at any one time.
136.
(1) If a person duly elected as
President dies before taking and subscribing the Oath
of Allegiance and oath of office, or is
for any reason whatsoever unable to be sworn in,
the person elected with him as
Vice-President shall be sworn in as President and he
shall nominate a new Vice-President who
shall be appointed by the President with the
approval by a simple majority of the
National Assembly at a joint sitting.
(2) Where the persons duly elected
as President and Vice President die or are
unable for any reason whatsoever to
assume office before the inauguration of the
National Assembly, the Independent
National Electoral Commission shall immediately
conduct an election for a President and
the Vice-President.
137.
(1) A person shall not be
qualified for election to the office of President if -
(a) subject to the provisions
of section 28 of this Constitution, he has
voluntarily acquired the
citizenship of a country other than Nigeria or,
except in such cases as may be
prescribed by the National Assembly, he
has made a declaration of
allegiance to such other country; or
(b) he has been elected to
such office at any two previous elections; or
(c) under the law in any part
of Nigeria, he is adjudged to be a lunatic or
otherwise declared to be of unsound
mind; or
(d) he is under a sentence of
death imposed by any competent court of
law or tribunal in Nigeria or a
sentence of imprisonment or fine for any
offence involving dishonesty or
fraud (by whatever name called) or for any
other offence, imposed on him by
any court or tribunal or substituted by a
competent authority for any other
sentence imposed on him by such a
court or tribunal; or
(e) within a period of less
than ten years before the date of the election
to the office of President he has
been convicted and sentenced for an
offence involving dishonesty or he
has been found guilty of the
contravention of the Code of
Conduct; or
(f) he is an undischarged
bankrupt, having been adjudged or otherwise
declared bankrupt under any law in
force in Nigeria or any other country;
or
(g) being a person employed
in the civil or public service of the
Federation or of any State, he has
not resigned, withdrawn or retired from
the employment at least thirty days
before the date of the election; or
(h) he is a member of any
secret society; or
(i) he has been indicted for
embezzlement or fraud by a Judicial
Commission of Inquiry or an
Administrative Panel of Inquiry or a Tribunal
set up under the Tribunals of
Inquiry Act, a Tribunals of Inquiry Law or any
other law by the Federal or State
Government which indictment has been
accepted by the Federal or State
Government, respectively; or
(j) he has presented a forged
certificate to the Independent National
Electoral Commission.
(2) Where in respect of any person
who has been -
(a) adjudged to be a lunatic;
(b) declared to be of unsound
mind;
(c) sentenced to death or
imprisonmen; or
(d) adjudged or declared
bankrupt
(e) any appeal against the
decision is pending in any court of law in
accordance with any law in force in
Nigeria, subsection (1) of this section
shall not apply during a period
beginning from the date when such appeal
is lodged and ending on the date
when the appeal is finally determined or,
as the case may be, the appeal
lapses or is abandoned, whichever is
earlier.
138. The President shall not, during
his tenure of office, hold any other executive office or paid
employment in any capacity whatsoever.
139. The National Assembly shall by an
Act make provisions as respects -
(a) persons who may apply to
the Court of Appeal for the determination
of any question as to whether;
(i) any person has been
validly elected to the office of
President or Vice-President
(ii) the term of office
of the President or Vice President
has cease, or
(iii) the office of the
President or Vice-President has
become vacant
(b) circumstances and manner
in which, and the conditions upon which
such application may be made; and
(c) powers, practice and
procedure of the Court of Appeal in relation to
any such application.
140.
(1) A person elected to the office
of President shall not begin to perform the functions
of that office until he has declared his
assets and liabilities as prescribed in this
Constitution and he has taken and
subscribed the Oath of Allegiance and the oath of
office prescribed in the Seventh
Schedule to this Constitution.
(2) The oaths aforesaid shall be
administered by the Chief Justice of Nigeria or the
person for the time being appointed to
exercise the functions of that office.
141. There shall be for the Federation
a Vice-President.
142.
(1) In any election to which the
foregoing provisions of this Part of this Chapter relate,
a candidate for an election to the
office of President shall not be deemed to be validly
nominated unless he nominates another
candidate as his associate from the same
political party for his running for the
office of President, who is to occupy the office of
Vice-President and that candidate shall
be deemed to have been duly elected to the
office of Vice-President if the
candidate for an election to the office of President who
nominated him as such associate is duly
elected as President in accordance with the
provisions aforesaid.
(2) The provisions of this Part of
this Chapter relating to qualification for election,
tenure of office, disqualification,
declaration of assets and liabilities and oaths of
President shall apply in relation to the
office of Vice-President as if references to
President were references to
Vice-President.
143.
(1) The President or
Vice-President may be removed from office in accordance with
the provisions of this section.
(2) Whenever a notice of any
allegation in writing signed by not less than one-third of
the members of the National Assembly:-
(a) is presented to the
President of the Senate;
(b) stating that the holder
of the office of President or Vice-President is
guilty of gross misconduct in the
performance of the functions of his office,
detailed particulars of which shall
be specified,
the President of the Senate
shall within seven days of the receipt of the
notice cause a copy thereof to be
served on the holder of the office and on
each member of the National
Assembly, and shall also cause any
statement made in reply to the
allegation by the holder of the office to be
served on each member of the
National Assembly.
(3) Within fourteen days of the
presentation of the notice to the President of the
Senate (whether or not any statement was
made by the holder of the office in reply to
the allegation contained in the notice)
each House of the National Assembly shall
resolve by motion without any debate
whether or not the allegation shall be
investigated.
(4) A motion of the National
Assembly that the allegation be investigated shall not be
declared as having been passed, unless
it is supported by the votes of not less than
two-thirds majority of all the members
of each House of the National Assembly.
(5) Within seven days of the
passing of a motion under the foregoing provisions, the
Chief Justice of Nigeria shall at the
request of the President of the Senate appoint a
Panel of seven persons who in his
opinion are of unquestionable integrity, not being
members of any public service,
legislative house or political party, to investigate the
allegation as provide in this section.
(6) The holder of an office whose
conduct is being investigated under this section
shall have the right to defend himself
in person and be represented before the Panel by
legal practitioners of his own choice.
(7) A Panel appointed under this
section shall -
(a) have such powers and
exercise its functions in accordance with
such procedure as may be prescribed
by the National Assembly; and
(b) within three months of
its appointment report its findings to each
House of the National Assembly.
(8) Where the Panel reports to
each House of the National Assembly that the
allegation has not been proved, no
further proceedings shall be taken in respect of the
matter.
(9) Where the report of the Panel
is that the allegation against the holder of the office
has been proved, then within fourteen
days of the receipt of the report at the House the
National Assembly shall consider the
report, and if by a resolution of each House of the
National Assembly supported by not less
than two-thirds majority of all its members,
the report of the Panel is adopted, then
the holder of the office shall stand removed from
office as from the date of the adoption
of the report.
(10) No proceedings or
determination of the Panel or of the National Assembly or any
matter relating thereto shall be
entertained or questioned in any court.
(11) In this section -
"gross misconduct" means a grave
violation or breach of the provisions of this
Constitution or a misconduct of such
nature as amounts in the opinion of the National
Assembly to gross misconduct.
144.
(1) The President or
Vice-President shall cease to hold office, if -
(a) by a resolution passed by
two-thirds majority of all the members of
the executive council of the
Federation it is declared that the President or
Vice-President is incapable of
discharging the functions of his office; and
(b) the declaration is
verified, after such medical examination as may be
necessary, by a medical panel
established under subsection (4) of this
section in its report to the
President of the Senate and the Speaker of the
House of Representatives.
(2) Where the medical panel
certifies in the report that in its opinion the President or
Vice-President is suffering from such
infirmity of body or mind as renders him
permanently incapable of discharging the
functions of his office, a notice thereof signed
by the President of the Senate and the
Speaker of the House of Representatives shall
be published in the Official Gazette of
the Government of the Federation.
(3) The President or
Vice-President shall cease to hold office as from the date of
publication of the notice of the medical
report pursuant to subsection (2) of this section.
(4) the medical panel to which
this section relates shall be appointed by the
President of the Senate, and shall
comprise five medical practitioners in Nigeria:-
(a) one of whom shall be the
personal physician of the holder of the
office concerned; and
(b) four other medical
practitioners who have, in the opinion of the
President of the Senate, attained a
high degree of eminence in the field of
medicine relative to the nature of
the examination to be conducted in
accordance with the foregoing
provisions.
(5) In this section, the reference
to "executive council of the Federation" is a
reference to the body of Ministers of
the Government of the Federation, howsoever
called, established by the President and
charged with such responsibilities for the
functions of government as the President
may direct.
145. Whenever the President transmits
to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the
House of Representatives a written
declaration that he is proceeding on vacation or that he is
otherwise unable to discharge the functions
of his office, until he transmits to them a written
declaration to the contrary such functions
shall be discharged by the Vice-President as Acting
President.
146.
(1) The Vice-President shall hold
the office of President if the office of President
becomes vacant by reason of death or
resignation, impeachment, permanent incapacity
or the removal of the President from
office for any other reason in accordance with
section 143 of this Constitution.
(2) Where any vacancy occurs in
the circumstances mentioned in subsection (1) of
this section during a period when the
office of Vice-President is also vacant, the
President of the Senate shall hold the
office of President for a period of not more than
three months, during which there shall
be an election of a new President, who shall hold
office for the unexpired term of office
of the last holder of the office.
(3) Where the office of
Vice-President becomes vacant:-
(a) by reason of death or
resignation, impeachment, permanent
incapacity or removal in accordance
with section 143 or 144 of this
Constitution;
(b) by his assumption of the
office of President in accordance with
subsection (1) of this section; or
(c) for any other reason,
the President shall nominate and,
with the approval of each House of the National
Assembly, appoint a new Vice-President.
147.
(1) There shall be such offices of
Ministers of the Government of the Federation as
may be established by the President.
(2) Any appointment to the office
of Minister of the Government of the Federation
shall, if the nomination of any person
to such office is confirmed by the Senate, be
made by the President.
(3) Any appointment under
subsection (2) of this section by the President shall be in
conformity with the provisions of
section 14(3) of this Constitution:-
provided that in giving effect to the
provisions aforesaid the President shall appoint at
least one Minister from each State, who
shall be an indigene of such State.
(4) Where a member of the National
Assembly or of a House of Assembly is
appointed as Minister of the Government
of the Federation, he shall be deemed to have
resigned his membership of the National
Assembly or of the House of Assembly on his
taking the oath of office as Minister.
(5) No person shall be appointed
as a Minister of the Government of the Federation
unless he is qualified for election as a
member of the House of Representatives.
(6) An appointment to any of the
offices aforesaid shall be deemed to have been
made where no return has been received
from the Senate within twenty-one working
days of the receipt of nomination by the
Senate.
148.
(1) The President may, in his
discretion, assign to the Vice-President or any Minister
of the Government of the Federation
responsibility for any business of the Government of
the Federation, including the
administration of any department of government.
(2) The President shall hold
regular meetings with the Vice-President and all the
Ministers of the Government of the
Federation for the purposes of -
(a) determining the general
direction of domestic and foreign policies of
the Government of the Federation;
(b) co-ordinating the
activities of the President, the Vice-President and
the Ministers of the Government of
the Federation in the discharge of their
executive responsibilities; and
(c) advising the President
generally in discharge of his executive
functions other than those
functions with respect to which he is required
by this Constitution to seek the
advice or act on the recommendation of
any other person or body.
149. A Minister of the Government of
the Federation shall not enter upon the duties of his office,
unless he has declared his assets and
liabilities as prescribed in this Constitution and has
subsequently taken and subscribed the Oath of
Allegiance and the oath of office for the due execution
of the duties of his office prescribed in the
Seventh Schedule to this Constitution.
150.
(1) There shall be an
Attorney-General of the Federation who shall be the Chief Law
Officer of the Federation and a Minister
of the Government of the Federation.
(2) A person shall not be
qualified to hold or perform the functions of the office of the
Attorney-General of the Federation
unless he is qualified to practise as a legal
practitioner in Nigeria and has been so
qualified for not less than ten years.
151.
(1) The President may appoint any
person as a Special Adviser to assist him in the
performance of his functions.
(2) The number of such Advisers
and their remuneration and allowances shall be as
prescribed by law or by resolution of
the National Assembly.
(3) Any appointment made pursuant
to the provisions of this section shall be at the
pleasure of the President and shall
cease when the President ceases to hold office.
152. A person appointed as Special
Adviser under section 151 of this Constitution shall not begin
to perform the functions of his office until
he has declared his assets and liabilities as prescribed in
this Constitution and has subsequently taken
and subscribed the Oath of Allegiance and oath of office
prescribed in the Seventh Schedule to this
Constitution.
B - Establishment of certain
federal executive bodies
153.
(1) There shall be established for
the Federation the following bodies, namely:
(a) Code of Conduct Bureau;
(b) Council of State;
(c) Federal Character
Commission;
(d) Federal Civil Service
Commission;
(e) Federal Judicial Service
Commission;
(f) Independent National
Electoral Commission;
(g) National Defence Council;
(h) National Economic
Council;
(i) National Judicial
Council;
(j) National Population
Commission;
(k) National Security
Council;
(l) Nigeria Police Council;
(m) Police Service
Commission; and
(n) Revenue Mobilisation
Allocation and Fiscal Commission.
(2) The composition and powers of
each body established by subsection (1) of this
section are as contained in Part 1 of
the Third Schedule to this Constitution.
154.
(1) Except in the case of ex
officio members or where other provisions are made in
this Constitution, the Chairman and
members of any of the bodies so established shall,
subject to the provisions of this
Constitution, be appointed by the President and the
appointment shall be subject to
confirmation by the Senate.
(2) In exercising his powers to
appoint a person as Chairman or member of the
Council of State or the National Defence
Council or the National Security Council, the
President shall not be required to
obtain the confirmation of the Senate.
(3) In exercising his powers to
appoint a person as Chairman or member of the
Independent National Electoral
Commission, National Judicial Council, the Federal
Judicial Service Commission or the
National Population Commission, the President
shall consult the Council of State.
155.
(1) A person who is a member of
any of the bodies established as aforesaid shall,
subject to the provisions of this Part,
remain a member thereof -
(a) in the case of an ex
officio member, whilst he holds the office by
virtue of which he is a member of
the body;
(b) in the case of a person
who is a member by virtue of his having
previously held an office, for the
duration of his life; and
(c) in the case of a person
who is a member otherwise than as ex
officio member or otherwise than by
virtue of his having previously held an
office, for a period of five years
from the date of his appointment.
(2) A member of any of the bodies
shall cease to be member if any circumstances
arise that, if he were not a member of
the body, would cause him to be disqualified for
appointment as such a member.
156.
(1) No person shall be qualified
for appointment as a member of any of the bodies
aforesaid if -
(a) he is not qualified or if
he is disqualified for election as a member of
the House of Representatives;
(b) within the preceding ten
years, he has been removed as a member
of any of the bodies or as the
holder of any other office on the ground of
misconduct.
(2) any person employed in the
public service of the Federation shall not be
disqualified for appointment as Chairman
or member of any of such bodies:
Provided that where such person has
been duly appointed he shall, on his appointment,
be deemed to have resign his former
office as from the date of the appointment.
(3) No person shall be qualified
for appointment to any of the bodies aforesaid if,
having previously been appointed as a
member otherwise than as an ex officio member
of that body, he has been re-appointed
for a further term as a member of the same
body.
157.
(1) Subject to the provisions of
subsection (3) of this section, a person holding any of
the offices to which this section
applies may only be removed from that office by the
President acting on an address supported
by two-thirds majority of the Senate praying
that he be so removed for inability to
discharge the functions of the office (whether
arising from infirmity of mind or body
or any other cause) or for misconduct.
(2) This section applies to the
offices of the Chairman and members of the Code of
Conduct Bureau, the Federal Civil
Service Commission, the Independent National
Electoral Commission, the National
Judicial Council, the Federal Judicial Service
Commission, the Federal Character
Commission, the Nigeria Police Council, the
National Population Commission, the
Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal
Commission and the Police Service
Commission.
(3) All members of the National
Population Commission shall cease to be members
if the President declares a National
Census Report as unreliable and the report is
rejected in accordance with section 213
of this Constitution.
158.
(1) In exercising its power to
make appointments or to exercise disciplinary control
over persons, the Code of Conduct
Bureau, the National Judicial Council, the Federal
Civil Service Commission, the Federal
Judicial Service Commission, the Revenue
Mobilisation and Fiscal Commission, the
Federal Character Commission, and the
Independent National Electoral
Commission shall not be subject to the direction or
control of any other authority or
person.
(2) The National Population
Commission shall not be subject to the direction or
control of any other authority or
person:-
(a) in appointing, training
or arranging for the training of enumerators or
other staff of the Commission to
assist it in the conduct of any population
census;
(b) in deciding whether or
not to accept or revise the return of any officer
of the said Commission concerning
the population census in any area or
part of the Federation;
(c) in carrying out the
operation of conducting the census; and
(d) in compiling its report
of a national census for publication.
159.
(1) The quorum for a meeting of
any of the bodies established by section 153 of this
Constitution shall be not less than
one-third of the total number of members of that body
at the date of the meeting.
(2) A member of such a body shall
be entitled to one vote, and a decision of the
meeting may be taken and any act or
thing may be done in the name of that body by a
majority of the members present at the
meeting.
(3) Whenever such body is
assembled for a meeting, the Chairman or other person
presiding shall, in all matters in which
a decision is taken by vote (by whatever name
such vote may be called) have a casting
as well as a deliberative vote.
(4) Subject to its rules of
procedure, any such body may act or take part in any
decision notwithstanding any vacancy in
its membership or the absence of any
member.
160.
(1) Subject to subsection (2) of
this section, any of the bodies may, with the approval
of the President, by rules or otherwise
regulate its own procedure or confer powers and
impose duties on any officer or
authority for the purpose of discharging its functions.
(2) In the exercise of any powers
under subsection (1) of this section, any such body
shall not confer powers or impose duties
on any officer or authorities of a State except
with the approval of the Governor of the
State.
The President, upon the receipt of
advice from the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and
Fiscal Commission, shall table before
the National Assembly proposals for revenue
allocation from the Federation Account,
and in determining the formula, the National
Assembly shall take into account, the
allocation principles especially those of
population, equality of States, internal
revenue generation, land mass, terrain as well as
population density.`
161. In this Part of this Chapter,
unless the context otherwise requires -
(a) any reference to "ex
officio member" shall be construed as a
reference to a person who is a
member by virtue of his holding or
performing, the functions of an
office in the public service of the
Federation;
(b) "office" means an office
in the public service of the Federation;
(c) any reference to "member"
of a body established by section 153 of
this Constitution shall be
construed as including a reference to the
Chairman of that body; and
(d) "misconduct" means a
breach of the Oath of Allegiance or oath of
office of a member or a breach of
the provisions of this Constitution or
bribery or corruption or false
declaration of assets and liabilities or
conviction for treason or
treasonable felony.
C - Public
Revenue
162.
(1) The Federation shall maintain
a special account to be called "the Federation
Account" into which shall be paid all
revenues collected by the Government of the
Federation, except the proceeds from the
personal income tax of the personnel of the
armed forces of the Federation, the
Nigeria Police Force, the Ministry or department of
government charged with responsibility
for Foreign Affairs and the residents of the
Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
(2) The President, upon the
receipt of advice from the Revenue Mobilisation
Allocation and Fiscal Commission, shall
table before the National Assembly proposals
for revenue allocation from the
Federation Account, and in determining the formula, the
National Assembly shall take into
account, the allocation principles especially those of
population, equality of States, internal
revenue generation, land mass, terrain as well as
population density;
Provided that the principle of
derivation shall be constantly reflected in any approved
formula as being not less than thirteen
per cent of the revenue accruing to the
Federation Account directly from any
natural resources.
(3) Any amount standing to the
credit of the Federation Account shall be distributed
among the Federal and State Governments
and the local government councils in each
State on such terms and in such manner
as may be prescribed by the National
Assembly.
(4) Any amount standing to the
credit of the States in the Federation Account shall
be distributed among the States on such
terms and in such manner as may be
prescribed by the National Assembly.
(5) The amount standing to the
credit of local government councils in the Federation
Account shall also be allocated to the
State for the benefit of their local government
councils on such terms and in such
manner as may be prescribed by the National
Assembly.
(6) Each State shall maintain a
special account to be called "State Joint Local
Government Account" into which shall be
paid all allocations to the local government
councils of the State from the
Federation Account and from the Government of the
State.
(7) Each State shall pay to local
government councils in its area of jurisdiction such
proportion of its total revenue on such
terms and in such manner as may be prescribed
by the National Assembly.
(8) The amount standing to the
credit of local government councils of a State shall be
distributed among the local government
councils of that State on such terms and in
such manner as may be prescribed by the
House of Assembly of the State.
(9) Any amount standing to the
credit of the judiciary in the Federation Account shall
be paid directly to the National
Judicial Councils for disbursement to the heads of courts
established for the Federation and the
States under section 6 of this Constitution.
(10) For the purpose of subsection
(1) of this section, "revenue" means any income
or return accruing to or derived by the
Government of the Federation from any source
and includes -
(a) any receipt, however
described, arising from the operation of any
law;
(b) any return, however
described, arising from or in respect of any
property held by the Government of
the Federation;
(c) any return by way of
interest on loans and dividends in respect of
shares or interest held by the
Government of the Federation in any
company or statutory body.
163. Where under an Act of the National
Assembly, tax or duty is imposed in respect of any of the
matters specified in item D of Part II of the
Second Schedule to this Constitution, the net proceeds of
such tax or duty shall be distributed among
the States on the basis of derivation and accordingly -
(a) where such tax or duty is
collected by the Government of a State or
other authority of the State, the
net proceeds shall be treated as part of
the Consolidated Revenue Fund of
that State;
(b) where such tax or duty is
collected by the Government of the
Federation or other authority of
the Federation, there shall be paid to each
State at such times as the National
Assembly may prescribe a sum equal
to the proportion of the net
proceeds of such tax or duty that are derived
from that State.
164.
(1) The Federation may make grants
to a State to supplement the revenue of that
State in such sum and subject to such
terms and conditions as may be prescribed by
the National Assembly.
(2) The Federation may make
external grants to a foreign State or any international
body in furtherance of the foreign
policy objectives of Nigeria in such sum and subject to
such terms and conditions as may be
prescribed by the National Assembly.
165. Each State shall, in respect of
each financial year, pay to the Federation an amount equal to
such part of the expenditure incurred by the
Federation during that financial year for the purpose of
collection of taxes or duties which are
wholly or partly payable to the State pursuant to the provisions
of this Part of this Chapter or of any Act of
the National Assembly as is proportionate to the share of
the proceeds of those taxes or duties
received by the State in respect of that financial year.
166.
(1) Any payment that is required
by this Part of this Chapter to be made by the
Federation to a State may be set-off by
the Federation in or towards payment of any
sum that is due from that State to the
Federation in respect of any loan made by the
Federation to that State.
(2) The right of set-off conferred
by subsection (1) of this section shall be without
prejudice to any other right of the
Federation to obtain payment of any sum due to the
Federation in respect of any loan.
167. Any payment that is required by
this Part of this Chapter to be made by the Federation to a
State shall be a charge upon the Consolidated
Revenue Fund of the Federation and any payment that
is so required to be made by a State to the
Federation shall be a charge upon the Consolidated
Revenue Fund of that State.
168.
(1) Where any payment falls to be
made under this Part of this Chapter, the amount
payable shall be certified by the
Auditor-General for the Federation;
Provided that a provisional payment
may be made before the Auditor-General has given
his certificate.
(2) The National Assembly may
prescribe the time at and manner in which any
payment falling to be made under this
Part of this Chapter shall be effected and provide
for the making of adjustments and
provisional payment.
D - The Public Service
of the Federation
169. There shall be a civil service of
the Federation.
170. Subject to the provisions of this
Constitution, the Federal Civil Service Commission may, with
the approval of the President and subject to
such conditions as it may deem fit, delegate any of the
powers conferred upon it by this Constitution
to any of its members or to any officer in the civil service
of the Federation.
171.
(1) Power to appoint persons to
hold or act in the offices to which this section
applies and to remove persons so
appointed from any such office shall vest in the
President.
(2) The offices to which this
section applies are, namely -
(a) Secretary to the
Government of the Federation;
(b) Head of the Civil Service
of the Federation;
(c) Ambassador, High
Commissioner or other Principal Representative
of Nigeria abroad;
(d) Permanent Secretary in
any Ministry or Head of any
Extra-Ministerial Department of the
Government of the Federation
howsoever designated; and
(e) any office on the
personal staff of the President.
(3) An appointment to the office
of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation
shall not be made except from among
Permanent Secretaries or equivalent rank in the
civil service of the Federation or of a
State.
(4) An appointment to the office
of Ambassador, High Commissioner or other
Principal Representative of Nigeria
abroad shall not have effect unless the appointment
is confirmed by the Senate.
(5) In exercising his powers of
appointment under this section, the President shall
have regard to the federal character of
Nigeria and the need to promote national unity.
(6) Any appointment made pursuant
to paragraphs (a) and (e) of subsection (2) of
this section shall be at the pleasure of
the President and shall cease when the
President ceases to hold office;
Provided that where a person has been
appointed from a public service of the Federation
or a State, he shall be entitled to
return to the public service of the Federation or of the
State when the President ceases to hold
office.
172. A person in the public service of
the Federation shall observe and conform to the Code of
Conduct.
173.
(1) Subject to the provisions of
this Constitution, the right of a person in the public
service of the Federation to receive
pension or gratuity shall be regulated by law.
(2) Any benefit to which a person
is entitled in accordance with or under such law as
is referred to in subsection (1) of this
section shall not be withheld or altered to his
disadvantage except to such extent as is
permissible under any law, including the Code
of Conduct.
(3) Pensions shall be reviewed
every five years or together with any Federal civil
service salary reviews, whichever is
earlier.
(4) Pensions in respect of service
in the public service of the Federation shall not be
taxed.
174.
(1) The Attorney-General of the
Federation shall have power -
(a) to institute and
undertake criminal proceedings against any person
before any court of law in Nigeria,
other than a court-martial, in respect of
any offence created by or under any
Act of the National Assembly;
(b) to take over and continue
any such criminal proceedings that may
have been instituted by any other
authority or person; and
(c) to discontinue at any
stage before judgment is delivered any such
criminal proceedings instituted or
undertaken by him or any other
authority or person.
(2) The powers conferred upon the
Attorney-General of the Federation under
subsection (1) of this section may be
exercised by him in person or through officers of
his department.
(3) In exercising his powers under
this section, the Attorney-General of the
Federation shall have regard to the
public interest, the interest of justice and the need to
prevent abuse of legal process.
175.
(1) The President may -
(a) grant any person
concerned with or convicted of any offence created
by an Act of the National Assembly
a pardon, either free or subject to
lawful conditions;
(b) grant to any person a
respite, either for an indefinite or for a
specified period, of the execution
of any punishment imposed on that
person for such an offence;
(c) substitute a less severe
form of punishment for any punishment
imposed on that person for such an
offence; or
(d) remit the whole or any
part of any punishment imposed on that
person for such an offence or of
any penalty or forfeiture otherwise due to
the State on account of such an
offence.
(2) The powers of the President
under subsection (1) of this section shall be
exercised by him after consultation with
the Council of State.
(3) The President, acting in
accordance with the advice of the Council of State, may
exercise his powers under subsection (1)
of this section in relation to persons
concerned with offences against the
army, naval or air-force law or convicted or
sentenced by a court-martial.
PART II
A-STATE
EXECUTIVE
176-
(1) There shall be for each State
of the Federation a Establishment of the Governor.
office of Governor.
177. A person shall be qualified for
election to the office Qualification for of Governor of a State if
election as Governor.
(a) he is a citizen of
Nigeria by birth;
(b) he has attained the age
of thirty-five years;
(c) he is a member of a
political party and is sponsored by that political
party; and
(d) he has been educated up
to at least School Certificate level or its
equivalent.
178
(1) An election to the office of
governor of a State Election of shall be held on a date
to be appointed by the Independent
Governor: general. National Electoral Commission.
(2) An election to the office of
Governor of a State shall be held on a date not earlier
than sixty days and not later than
thirty days before the expiration of the term of office of
the last holder of that office.
(3) Where in an election to the
office of Governor of a State one of the two or more
candidates nominated for the election is
the only candidate after the close of
nomination, by reason of the
disqualification, withdrawal, incapacitation, disappearance
or death of the other candidates, the
Independent National Electoral Commission shall
extend the time for nomination.
(4) For the purpose of an election
under this section a State shall be regarded as one
constituency.
(5) Every person who is registered
to vote at an election of a member of a legislative
house shall be entitled to vote at an
election to the office of Governor of a State.
Election:
179
(1) A candidate for an election to
the office of single candidate Governor of a State
shall be deemed to have been duly
elected and two or more to such office where, being
the only candidate nominated for
candidates, the election-
(a) he has a majority of YES
votes over NO votes cast at the election;
and
(b) he has not less than
one-quarter of the votes cast at the eleciton in
each of at least two-thirds of all
the local government areas in the State,
but where the only candidate fails
to be elected in accordance with this
subsection, then there shall be
fresh nominations.
(2) A candidate for an election to
the office of Governor of a State shall be deemed to
have been duly elected where, there
being two or more candidates -
(a) he has the highest number
of votes cast at the election; and
(b) he has not less than
one-quarter of all the votes cast in each of at
least two-thirds of all the local
government areas in the State.
(3) In default of a candidate duly
elected in accordance with subsection (2) of this
section there shall be a second election
in accordance with subsection (4) of this
section at which the only candidates
shall be -
(a) the candidate who secured
the highest number of votes cast at the
election; and
(b) one among the remaining
candidates who secured a majority of
votes in the highest number of
local government areas in the State, so
however that where there are more
than one candidate with a majority of
votes in the highest number of
local government areas, the candidate
among them with the next highest
total of votes cast at the election shall
be the second candidate.
(4) In default of a candidate duly
elected under subsection (2) of this section, the
Independent National Electoral
Commission shall within seven days of the result of the
election held under that subsection,
arrange for an election between the two candidates
and a candidate at such election shall
be deemed to have been duly elected to the
office of Governor of a State if -
(a) he has a majority of the
votes cast at the election; and
(b) he has not less than
one-quarter of the votes cast at the election in
each of at least two-thirds of all
the local government areas in the State.
(5) In default of a candidate duly
elected under subsection (4) of this section, the
Independent National Electoral
Commission shall within seven days of the result of the
election held under that subsection,
arrange for another election between the two
candidates to which that sub-paragraph
relates and a candidate at such election shall
be deemed to have been duly elected to
the office of governor of a State if he has a
majority of the votes cast at the
election.
180.
(1) subject to the provisions of
this Constitution, a Tenure of office person shall hold
the office of Governor of a State until
- Governor.
(a) When his successor in
office takes the oath of that office; or
(b) he dies whilst holding
such office; or
(c) the date when his
resignation from office takes effect; or
(d) he otherwise ceases to
hold office in accordance with the provisions
of this constitution.
(2) Subject to the provisions of
subsection (1) of this section, the Governor shall
vacate his office at the expiration of
period of four years commencing from the date
when -
(a) in the case of a person
first elected as Governor under this
Constitution, he took the Oath of
Allegiance and oath of office; and
(b) the person last elected
to that office took the Oath of Allegiance and
oath of office or would, but for
his death, have taken such oaths.
(3) If the Federation is at war in
which the territory of Nigeria is physically involved
and the President considers that it is
not practicable to hold elections, the National
Assembly may be resolution extend the
period of four years mentioned in subsection (2)
of this section from time to time, but
no such extension shall exceed a period of six
months at any one time.
181 -
(1) If a person duly elected as
Governor dies before taking and subscribing the Oath
of Allegiance and oath of office, or is
unable for any reason whatsoever to be sworn in,
the person elected with him as Deputy
governor shall be sworn in as governor and he
shall nominate a new Deputy-Governor who
shall be appointed by the Governor with the
approval of a simple majority of the
House of Assembly of the State.
(2) Where the persons duly elected
as Governor and Deputy Governor of a State die
or are for any reason unable to assume
office before the inauguration of the house of
Assembly, the Independent National
Electoral Commission shall immediately conduct
an election for a Governor and Deputy
Governor of the State.
Disqualification.
182 -
(1) No person shall be qualified
for election to the office of Governor of a State if -
(a) subject to the provisions
of section 28 of this Constitution, he has
voluntarily acquired the
citizenship of a country other than Nigeria or,
except in such cases as may be
prescribed by the National Assembly, he
has made a declaration of
allegiance to such other country; or
(b) he has been elected to
such office at any two previous elections; or
(c) under the law in any part
of Nigeria, he is adjudged to be a lunatic or
otherwise declared to be of unsound
mind; or
(d) he is under a sentence of
death imposed by any competent court of
law or tribunal in Nigeria or a
sentence of imprisonment for any offence
involving dishonesty or fraud (by
whatever name called) or any other
offence imposed on him by any court
or tribunal or substituted by a
competent authority for any other
sentence imposed on him by such a
court or tribunal; or
(e) within a period of less
than ten years before the date of election to
the office of Governor of a State
he has been convicted and sentenced for
an offence involving dishonesty or
he has been found guilty of the
contravention of the code of
Conduct | 
