STRENGTHENING THE LEGISLATIVE INSTITUTION FORDEMOCRATIC CONSOLIDATION IN NIGERIA

By

*Olufemi Patrick ADELUSI, Ph.D.Department of Political Science,Joseph Ayo Babalola, University,Ikeji-Arakeji, Osun State,Nigeria.e-mail:adelusifemi@yahoo.com; Tel: (+234)8083831583

and **Ajinde OLUWASHAKIN, Ph.DDepartment of Political Science and Public Administration,AdekunleAjasin University,Akungba – Akoko, Ondo State,Nigeria.oajinde@yahoo.com ; Tel: ( +234)8060328426

and***Ayodeji Awopeju, MscDepartment of Political Science,Joseph Ayo Babalola, University,Ikeji-Arakeji, Osun State,Nigeria. ayoawopeju@yahoo.comTel: (+234)8034482689

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STRENGHENING THE LEGISLATIVE INSTITUTION FOR DEMOCRATIC

CONSOLIDATION IN NIGERIA

ABSTRACT

The Legislature is about the weakest of the three arms of government in newdemocracies, hence, the imperative for its strengthening. Therefore, the paperargues that one of the salient ways of strengthening the Legislative institutionfor democratic consolidation is the creation of awareness of the dual roles ofparliament both as a representative assembly and as an arm of government. Itposits that Democratic Consolidation entails the affirmation of the right of thepeople to development through political participation and emancipated civilsociety. The paper then explores the various forms in which the Parliament atthe Federal level could work with other arms of government to achieve forNigerians the desired social, political and economic developments. The paperconcludes on the premise that harmonious working relationship between theParliament and the other arms of government is very essential for the neededelite consensus on the developmental goals within the context of a reformationagenda. As it should be realized that there is no perfect democracy, rathereffort is required to have a workable democracy that would require exigentialreformative agenda for consolidation.

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1. INTRODUCTION

Between 1945 and 1990, the period generally referred to as

the Cold War, many countries in Eastern Europe, Latin

America, Asia, and Africa were mostly under authoritarian

regimes. However, the wave of change brought down many of

these regimes in the 1990s to the spread of democracy in

many countries, particularly in Africa. Most developing

countries, like Nigeria that embrace democracy, often face

many challenges as they shake off authoritarian past, to

consolidate their democratic gains. In 2009, Freedom House

reported that 116 countries out of 194 qualified as

“partially free”; meaning that those countries have not

fully consolidated their democracies

(http://www.ehow.com/list-7270625_issues_democratic-

consolidation-html, accessed 11/4/2011). The 51 years of

Nigeria’s existence as a State in the process of becoming

a nation had witnessed less than 19years of democratic

rule. What constitutes the 19 years is the uninterrupted

years of the current fourth republic and the aller-retour of

military dispersed uncoordinated civilian rule. The

military being no firm believer in the principles of

separation of powers or checks and balances saw in the

legislature one of its primary targets of assault whenever2

power is seized. The Legislature was in abeyance for 30

years as a result of prolonged military rule.

The twelve years of civilian rule (1999-2012) have

witnessed an attempt at democratic consolidation. The

democratic institutions created by the 1999 Constitution

have been working, to so some extent, but the pluralistic

nature of the Nigerian society has not made its impact

felt by the imposed 1999 Constitution. In other words, the

provisions of the 1999 Constitution are wantonly inimical

to democratic culture and consolidation.

The executive arm strengthened by legacy of military rulecarried out the arm-twisting tactics into the democraticspace during the early stage of the Fourth Republic from1999-2007. However, the legislature as the elected body toarticulate the people’s opinions, hopes and aspirationshad become progressively exposed to and stronger in law-making and oversight capacities. The advent of PresidentYar’Adua’s administration in 2007 attenuated the over-bearing attitude of the Executive. Hence there is need forcreating enabling environments to ensure that legislaturescan adequately perform their mandated functions andresponsibilities (http://www.packworld.org

3

/cs/international_legislative_strengthening_thml. Accessed11/18/2011). Our understanding of Democratic Consolidation is that in

which the democratic institutions which are put in place

for political participation of all segments of the country

are allowed to freely work in order that the resolution of

developmental problems are achieved, and the rule of law

is adhered to. The paper begins from the premise that one

of the salient paths to strengthening the legislative

institution for democratic consolidation is the creation

of awareness of the dual roles of the parliament both as a

representative assembly and as an arm of government.

Accordingly, the paper is divided into the following

parts, namely: first, this introductory part; second, a

theoretical focus; third, the parliament as an arm of

government with the areas of challenges; fourth, the

parliament as a representative assembly, with the areas of

challenges, and the conclusion.

2. A Theoretical Focus

The term democratic consolidation, was originally coined to

describe the challenge “of making new democracies secure,

of extending their life expectancy beyond the short term,

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of making them immune against the threat of authoritarian

regression, of building dams against eventual ‘reversal

waves.’” (Schelder, 1964).

Consolidation by itself revolves round theoretical

templates, namely, institutionalisation, informal rules,

and civic culture. As the main focus of this paper is on

the Legislative institution, the institutionalisation

aspect is closely examined. Some writers reason that the

process through which a democracy attains consolidation

entails the creation and improvement of secondary

institutions of the democracy. Linz and Stephen assert

that democracy is consolidated by the presence of the

institutions supporting and surrounding elections (for

instance, the rule of law).

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_consolidation).

By democratic consolidation, therefore, we mean the

process of strengthening the democratic institutions, by

heading off any reversal to authoritarianism. In this

regard, there are several issues in democratic

consolidation, notably credible elections, respect for

human rights, maintaining a robust economy, among others.

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Strengthening democratic institutions, particularly the

Legislature, goes beyond mere bricks and mortar

buildings, rather it involves the ways and norms of doing

things. It is not enough for a country to give the people

the liberty of expression and holding regular elections,

but more so in adherence to the rule of law.

In this respect, the legislature as an institution

requires fortification to in turn consolidate the

democratic process. The need to strengthen the

Legislature is borne out of the fact that “the fragmented

character of assemblies weakens their capacity to provide

leadership and take concerted action.” This has become

more acute in an age in which the people look to

government to solve social and economic problems, and in

which states have no choice but to play crucial roles in

global affairs and politics. How then can the Legislature

be strengthened to become stronger, more effective,

democratic institution in playing its expected roles?

3.Strengthening the Parliament as an Arm of Government

with the Areas of Challenges

The Parliament in the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria

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The 1999 amended Constitution of Nigeria in Chapter V, Part I

Section, A 47 – 51 prescribes the composition and staff of the

National Assembly. Section B 52-64 states the Procedures

for summoning and dissolution of National Assembly.

Section C 65-70 prescribes the Qualifications for membership

of National Assembly and Right of Attendance, while

Section E 80-89 states its Powers and control over Public

funds.

It has to be stated that the roles of the parliament

prescribed above are similar to those of the Houses of

Assembly at the State level. The National Assembly,

however, is the concern in this study, with the

understanding that the analysis may be applied at the

other levels. It is note worthy that all the five sections

of the Part 1 of the Chapter V elaborately stated above

need a second look with the expectation for recommendation

on their consolidation.

The items under Section A which are about the Composition

and staff of the National Assembly, Sections 47-49 are in

order. Nigeria adopts a National Assembly which is bi-

camera as stipulated in section 47; while the composition, of

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three senators from each state or 109 senators as

presently constituted for the red chamber; and the Three

Hundred and Sixty (360) members that make up the House of

Representatives – the green chamber, will add up to Four

Hundred and sixty nine (469) members, representing 167

million Nigerians. Given this composition of the membership of

National Assembly, what is desirable is not to allow the

representatives remain without agenda setting – with civil society

groups working along with them.

Section B with items on the Procedures for summoning and

dissolution of National Assembly would need some attention

given to its contents. Indeed, section B64 on Dissolution

and Proclamation needs to have a specified date inputted;

the 5th of June of the year can be retained as it is

presently. Sections C and D on Qualifications for membership

of National Assembly and Right of Attendance, and those

items on Elections to National Assembly are still valid

and democracy friendly; though 66 (f) may be modified to

include leave of absence for interested public sector

workers who have indicated willingness to participate in

partisan politics.

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Central to our discussion on strengthening the parliament

as an arm of government, is section E of this part I, contains

power and control over public funds. This power which is often

referred to as “the chief power”of the powers of Congress

of the United States of America, has also been referred to

as “power over purse”. Section E 80 (1) – (4) expressly

established a Consolidated Revenue Fund for the

federation, which simply can be referred to as the Public

Funds from where all the activities of the Federal

government could be funded. Section 80(3)-(4) gave this

power, thus:

Section 80(3): No moneys shall bewithdrawn from any public funds of thefederation, other than the ConsolidatedRevenue Fund of the Federation, unlessthe issues of those moneys have beenauthorized by an Act of the NationalAssembly.

Section 80 (4): No moneys shall bewithdrawn from the Consolidated RevenueFund or any other public fund of thefederation except in the mannerprescribed by the National Assembly.(FGN Printer, 1999).

Accordingly, the Constitution placed the power of

authorisation of expenditure from the Consolidated Revenue9

Fund on the shoulders of the Parliament in Section 81 (1)

– (2). It made it mandatory for the Executive, headed by

the President, to cause the Appropriation Bill to be

prepared and laid before the Legislature.

(The Appropriation Bill is the instrument of the Executive’s

plans for the running of government within the relevant

fiscal year).

The power of authorisation of expenditure is followed by

the power to conduct investigations where:

Section 88 1(a) & (b and 2 (a) & (b), states subject tothe provisions of this constitution eachHouse of the National Assembly shall havepower by resolution published in its Journalor in the official Gazette of the Governmentof the Federation to direct or cause to bedirected an investigation into the conduct ofaffairs of any person, authority, ministry orgovernment department charged or intended tobe charged, with the duty of orresponsibility for disbursing oradministering moneys appropriated or to beappropriated by the National Assembly (FGNPrinter, 1999).

The role and power of the legislature over appropriations

have served to illustrate how important the legislature is

as an arm of government. It is expected to make laws for10

the peace, order and good government of the state as

appropriate. The above illustration exposes Nigerian

National Assembly to some critical deficiencies in

carrying out these roles, which can be referred to as

areas of challenges.

4. Areas of Challenges in the Exercise of the

Parliamentary Role as an Arm of Government

Political Situation

The political context of the first Parliament of the

Fourth Republic is instructive. As there was a rush for

military disengagement, this necessitated elections

without adequate provision for the individual legislator’s

office accommodation and staff officers. Accordingly,

remuneration, emolument, and housing accommodation issues

dominated the discourse. The National Assembly complex

barely had offices for principal officers. This lacuna may

have been overcome with new buildings added to the initial

edifice hosting the National Assembly under the second

administration of the Fourth Republic, from 2007. During

the period, there was preponderance of motions being

passed instead of Bills. Crash programmes on legislative11

studies were half hazardlyorganised internally and

externally. The obvious consequences of these

infrastructure deficiencies were the bickering among the

legislators in each house / chamber and between the

National Assembly and the Executive.

Power of Appropriation

The power over purse accorded the legislature could not be

exercised effectively as the executive carried over the

military government experience of diktat into democratic

space. The first and second administrations under the

Fourth Republic, shared this same attribute. There has

never been a rancorous free Appropriation Bill passage and

added to this context was open charges and counter charges

of corruption between the Parliament and the Executive. It

is noteworthy that if there is urgent need for elite

consensus, it is most needed at this level of Executive –

Legislative relations on the passage of the Appropriation

Bills, and more rigorous oversight for appropriate Acts,

particularly budgetary implementations.

Concentration of Power at the Centre

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Another area of challenge is the over concentration of

legislative powers at the centre, in which 68 items have

been attracted to the centre. The Centre need not have

more than 32 items for a balanced Federation. It is elite

consensus that can really appreciate the need to avoid

over concentration of Legislative powers at the centre in

a federation. What can be described as Nigeria’s pseudo and

unbalanced federation may rather weaken than strengthen

the legislature.

Legislative Image

The National Assembly marked the end of its ninth session

in the 10 years of unbroken democratic / civilian rule, in

the third term of the PDP –led Federal Government in June

2009. Moreover, the unbroken string continued into the

fourth term of the PDP – led Federal Government which

ushered in the Seventh National Assembly in April 2011.

Along the arguments posited by this paper, the leaders of

the bi-cameral legislature- President of the Senate, Ken

Nnamani and the Speaker of the House of Representatives,

Aminu Bello Masari, both of 1999-2007 administration and

BankoleDimeji of 2007-2010 administration, respectively

stressed “the need for the nation to have an independent13

and virile legislature to safeguard democracy in the

country.” (The Punch, November 12, 2007:4). In the same

vein, the Seventh Assembly under the leadership of

President of the Senate, David Mark (2007-2015) and the

Speaker, House of Representatives, AminuTambuwal (2011-

2015), all would concur on the need to have an independent

and strong legislature to consolidate democratic gains

thus far in Nigeria.

Specifically speaking, during his tenure, Senator Ken

Nnamani urged his colleagues to safeguard the integrity of

the legislature, because the demise of the legislature

would mark the death of democracy. The Speaker of Osun

State House of Assembly, Adejare Bello, (2007-2010)

administration spoke in the same vein that “Democracy is

about the parliament. If you remove parliament, then there

is no democracy” (Sunday Punch, April 19, 2009:1).

The position of the legislators was founded on the knee-

Jerk and denigration the National Assembly was subjected

to by one of President Obasanjo’s broadcasts in which

members of the National Assembly were accused of

corruption.

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Moreover, it must be mentioned here that the Senate

reacted negatively to the refusal of the Executive to

implement the 2005 Appropriation Act as passed. This made

the Executive to accept the wisdom of the Senate that it

could not unilaterally tamper with the budget without

legislative permission.

Epilepsy Funding

Another one area of challenge to be considered for

strengthening the Parliament is “the area of epileptic

release of funds.” According to Hon. Bello Masari, “the

epileptic release of funds to the National Assembly had in

many ways adversely affected the work of the House.”

Expatiating further, he said that the existing practice of

charging the emoluments of the National Assembly on the

Consolidated Revenue Fund of the federation, subject to

the discretionary approval of the executive arm of the

government, contradicts that principle of separation of

powers and continues to militate against the full growth

and maturity of the parliament (The Punch, June 3, 2005:7).

It has been advocated that a law be made by the National

Assembly, creating its own service commission autonomous

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of the Federal Civil Service Commission, to be known as

“the National Assembly Service Commission”. Accompanying

this law also is that which seeks the charging of the

funds allocated to the National Assembly direct to

consolidated fund without the Executive control and

supervision. However, the creation of the National

Assembly Service Commission should enjoy autonomy of the

Federal Civil Service. This and the first charge on

consolidated fund for direct funding of the National

Assembly might involve constitutional amendment.

Corruption and the Cost of Governance

The issue of corruption in the Assembly must be taken

seriously, both administrative and financial corruption.

Legislators must be persons of credible credentials and

above board in handling monetary matters. Some members of

the Legislature between 1999 and 2009 have been charged

for certificate forgery and financial misappropriation, or

outright embezzlement. Equally indicting is the charge by

the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) that the overhead for

the National Assembly was about 25 per cent of the

National Budget. Regardless of the denials by the

Assembly, other notable authorities have corroborated the

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financial recklessness associated with the Nigerian

Legislature. (The Legislative Assembly and You, 2011, pp. 27-29).

This will require curtailment to truly make the

Legislature honourable and strengthen its capacity as

democratic institution.

In this respect, some experts have advocated for a “Part-

time Legislature.” In an address entitled: “A call for the

Abolition of Full-Time Legislature,” TyodzaAtim said:

“Nigeria should redefine and restructure her democracy by

making the legislative arm of government part-time. The

sitting of various Houses at the National, State and Local

Council levels should only be five times in a year.” (The

Guardian (Lagos), December 12, 2010).

Although Atim did not limit his advocacy to the

Legislature alone, however, the focus of this paper is on

this arm of government. Broadly though, the high cost of

governance is not too helpful for the sustenance of

democracy. It is hard to imagine how a democracy can be

consolidated when resources that would have been invested

in improving decayed infrastructure and the development of

basic socio-economic amenities are “wastefully expended on

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salaries and allowances of legislators.” (The Guardian,

December 12, 2010). A Legislature considered by the people

as a leech has no place of honor or strength. Moreover,

where there is socioeconomic discontent among the people

there is bound to be disruption and instability within the

polity.

In a more critical sense, how can Nigeria “restructure her

democracy by making the legislative arm of government

part-time” without weakening the legislative institution

rather than strengthening it? And if the legislative

institution is rendered weak, as working on part-time

could be a disincentive to hard work, and invariably

weaken democracy instead of consolidate it, then a new

snag in democratic consolidation is lurking. Therefore,

the path of honor and fairness is the way to go by

appropriating what is right for all by “legislative re-

design.”

Such a legislative re-design or reformation will take

cognizance, first and foremost the well-being of the

people they represent in the people’s parliament. The

legislative re-design will take the form of ethical

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rebirth, regeneration devoid of the spirit of greed and

senseless accumulation. Elected or selected

representatives have no right to lord it over their

electors. Rather, there should be a form of egalitarian

interaction and balance between the representatives

(legislators) and their constituencies (electorates). Such

interaction and balance would ensure strength and

consolidation of electoral democracy. A United Nations

Development Programme and National Democratic Institute

(UNDP/NDI) discourse had focused on this aspect of

Strengthening the Legislature – Challenges and Techniques. It takes a

process-oriented approach to representation by looking at

three all-important components: “the capacity of

representatives to engage constituents, the capacity of

constituents to engage their representatives, and the

legal and political framework within which this engagement

takes place.”

(http://www.gsdrc.org/go/topic-guides/political-systems/ef

fective-legislature-legislatures) (Accessed 11/18/2011).

5. Strengthening the Parliament as a Representative

Assembly within the Areas of Challenge

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We have stated at the beginning of this discourse that the

parliament serves dual purposes, namely: as an arm of a

government and as a representative assembly. Most times,

the first role occupied the parliament to the exclusion of

the other. There is basically no mutual exclusivity in the

two tasks. By carrying out effectively its role as an arm

of government, the aspect of being a responsive

representative assembly could also have been taken care

of. It is important for us to throw light on the

representative assembly role of the parliament and how it

could be strengthened the more, in terms of the quality of

leadership they provide.

Leadership

A statement credited to John Stuart Mill in 1862 describes

the legislature as the people’s representatives. He

stated:

The proper office of a representativeassembly is to watch and control thegovernment, to throw the light ofpublicity on its acts, to compel a fullexposition and justification of all ofthem which any one considers questionable,to censure them if found condemnable …. Inaddition to this, the Parliament has anoffice … to be at once the nation’s

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committee of Grievances and its Congressof opinions. (Leautier F.A, 2002: 180).

One can deduce from the above that the legislator is a

leader of his people. This kind of leadership entails

among other functions, being in touch with the people,

that is, the constituency. It is expected that legislators

need to have functional/operational offices in their

constituencies. The purpose for which such an office is

mandatory is to allow legislators to stay in constant

touch with the people. It is from among the constituents

that the legislators got elected. There is an evolving

relationship between the legislature and the constituency.

At present, of the 109 Senators and the 360

representatives, few of them could their constituencies

attest to having been mobilised towards a cause that is

central to resolving their welfare problems. The

constituency offices should serve as people’s parliament

and address issues that have direct impact on their lives

and the overall development of the area.

Just as the question keeps popping up as to whether the

National Legislator is responsible to the country, the

state or even the party, so does the question of relevance

of the legislators to solving individual, group or party21

problems still disturbing the minds of electorates at the

constituency level. Indeed, other questions arise as to

how does the legislator handles the differences in the

constituency and resolve the potential conflicts between

competing interests in the nation and even within his own

constituency? Again, if he / she loses the confidence of

the constituency, is he/she obliged to resign? How

empowered is the constituency in the principle of recall?

Section 69 of the 1999 Constitution provides a right to

recall a member of the National Assembly. This provision

could be said to demonstrate the practical application of

the impact of the constituency on the activities of the

Legislature. It is the members of the Legislator’s

constituency that are empowered to set in motion the

process for recalling a legislator.

Section 69 provides that a legislator may be recalled, if,

(a) There is petition to the chairman of the

Independent National Electoral Commission a petition

in that behalf signed by more than one-half of the

persons registered to vote in that member’s

constituency alleging their loss of confidence in that

member, and

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(b) The petition is thereafter in a referendum

conducted by the Independent National Electoral

Commission within 90 days of the date of receipt of

the petition, approved by a simple majority of the

votes of the persons registered, to write in that

member’s constituency (FGN Printer, 1999).

It must be borne in mind that the above area of recall

came from the Political Bureau instituted in 1987. The

rationale for such clauses was informed by the fact that a

“a culture of consultation and reciprocal control with

regard to law making and the use of power and privileges,”

is critical to responsive democratic practice.

It is not in order to think that there is a belief that

Nigerians have by now an idea of the goals of nationhood

and the objectives of representatives. The inclusion of

the section above in the 1999 Constitution found support

in the observation of Tip O’Neil, a one time Speaker of

the United State House of Representatives, when he spoke

of the vital truth in which “the whole point of having a

Congress is that the representatives of the people are

accountable to their constituencies.” (Ornstein N, 1992).

Thus, the power of recall should serve:

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(a) As a constant reminder to the legislator of the

people whose interest is mandatedly represented and

(b) To develop a culture of consultation with the

constituency.

Essence of Legislative Strengthening

The essence of the advocacy on legislative strengthening

is to make the legislature become stronger, more

effective, democratic institution. And this can be done

through programmes and activities which are designed to:

Increase transparency,

Accountability,

Strengthen public participation and representation,

Build public policy,

Law-making, and

Oversight capacities.

For legislatures to properly perform the above mandated

functions and responsibilities, enabling, environments are

required that would:

Support efforts to create a constitutional and legal

framework

Build broad public support for the legislature through

working with civil society and media groups.24

Promote recognition on behalf of other government

bodies, of the critical role of representative bodies

in a democratic society.

Towards achieving these goals, the United States Agency

for International Development (USAID) identifies and seeks

to promote three primary functions of democratic

legislature: “representation of the wishes of the citizens

in policymaking, lawmaking and oversight of the

implementation of laws, policies and programs,” of

government(http://www.pactworld.org/cs/international_

legislative_strengthening_thml) (Accessed 11/18/2011).

This, we believe, is part of the efforts of the overall

strengthening of legislature for democratic consolidation,

particularly in new democracies.

Information Imperative

Information is power and this cannot be over emphasised in

the issue of democratic consolidation. The passage of the

Freedom of Information Bill (FOI) was a great stride

towards democratic consolidation. The Bill was signed into

law by President Goodluck Jonathan on May 30, 2011, and

thus becoming an Act. According to a member of the Federal

House of Representatives, MrsAbikeDabiri – Erewa:

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The FOI Act instigates key democraticfunctioning, by forcing government tooperate more efficiently and transparently,while simultaneously inspiring citizens tobecome active participants in the civicprocess … . So we have to learn how to makeour government accountable, because thisAct makes it possible for every Nigerian toseek information on how our government isusing our resources. (The Punch (Lagos)July 21, 2011, p.14).

She affirms that the Freedom of Information Act will

deepen democracy if fully implemented.

In addition, when the legislative institution is

strengthened to perform its constitutional

responsibilities, particularly the power of appropriation

and oversight of policy implementations will go a long way

in prompting the Executive to deliver on implementation of

policies and goals such as achieving growth and welfare

for the Nigerian people (Bankole, 2009). Such will help to

curb the high incidents of ethno–religious and communal

violence, stem the tide of violent extremism like the Boko

Haram phenomenon, and give democracy the resilience it

possesses to thrive in a fluid political and social

environment like ours.

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Finally, the print and electronic media have to devote

greaser attention to issues raised at the public hearings

on Bills in the Parliament. This would enhance the

parliament’s publicity and also increase the interest of

the public in matters slated for hearing that concern them.

Certainly, the willingness of a growing number of

Assemblies to open up their proceedings to television

cameras has helped to raise their public profiles and

strengthen them as fora of debate and agencies of

oversight (Heywood, 2000:354). Scholars and researchers

should not be left out as repertoire of data for prompt

analysis of policy formation and implementation. The

actualisation of the power of recall of legislators cited

in Section 69, for example, poses a challenge here. The

major challenge is that of the relevance of an accurate

voters’ register by which appropriate members of the

electorate can be identified. (Guobadia D.A. 2001). There

is no gain saying of the fact that the whole process of

recall could be bedeviled by fraud, victimisation and

undue influence on the process of getting the machinery in

motion.

Conclusion27

In this discourse, we have highlighted the areas of

challenges in the dual roles of the parliament that are

worthy of consideration and suggestions for strengthening

the legislature towards democratic consolidation. It was

stated that democratic consolidation deals with people’s

participation in governance. The institutional mechanism

for people’s participation is the parliament. The fact was

demonstrated that the constituency sends representative to

the parliament and that the lack of organised and

sustainable relationship between the representatives and

their constituencies is a major setback to democratic

consolidation (Guobadia D.A. 2001).

It has been advocated that the focused areas of challenges

confronting the legislative institution in its dual roles

of serving as an arm of government and a representative

assembly need to be resolved. It has been argued that

surmounting the challenges, would in part strengthen the

legislative institution and help consolidate democracy

which is a means towards achieving an all round stability

and developmental goals for the country.

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One may ask: whose duty would the strengthening of the

legislative institution be for democratic consolidation?

The answer is not a simple one. Without being pretentious

of other likely answers, we might look at the issue this

way: The civil society at the level of the constituencies

would need greater sensitisation, call it advocacy, on the

values of electing acceptable community-based individuals

who have proven their commitment to their communities and

their development. Clearly, the non-governmental agencies,

devoted to socio-economic and human rights are in a better

position to sensitise the civil society into electing

representatives that would be close to actualising their

aspirations. The political parties are also to recruit its

membership along the same lines. The essence of this is to

guarantee the election of people who live and share the

aspirations of their communities (Guobadia, D.A. 2001).

Next to the contributions of the civil society, is that of

the media. The media has a great role to play. It can

start with great agenda setting. The various sessions of

local council assemblies, State Houses of Assembly and

those of the National Assembly chambers could be covered

for public interest. In fact, dedicated print and

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electronic media programmes, and publications are needed

for reaching out to the constituents and from them shall

all their demands and support be passed on or reflected

upon. With the instrument of FOI Act at their disposal,

the media as the Fourth Estate of the realm, a watchdog,

has the responsibility to investigate and publish accurate

information necessary for good governance and development.

The organised private sector working in collaboration with

specialised faculties of social sciences of tertiary

institutions, training and management centers can uplift

the level of debates and proceedings coming out from the

various legislative institutions in the country. Research

findings into behavioural (political, economic and social)

patterns likely to foster democratic practices could be

disseminated to the public at large through sponsored

publications and news bulletins and programmes. In

pursuance of this, whenever there appears an erosion of

democratic values, this will necessarily call for a reform

agenda in the system. Reform invigorates, making democracy

to become better, freer, more participatory, more

accountable, more competitive, and more responsive

(Diamond, 2008:369).

30

Finally, strengthening the legislative institution for

democratic consolidation would be realisable only if the

main areas of challenges observed with regards to its dual

roles as an arm of government and as a representative

assembly are tackled holistically.

31

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Bankole, Dimeji (2009), “The Role of the Legislature inthe Consolidation of Democracy in Nigeria.”(http://www.themaceonline.com/pub/index.php?view=articleαcatiα=5:a...) (Accessed 11/18/2011).

Diamond, Larry (2008), The Spirit of Democracy,New York: TimesBooks/Henry Holt and Company, p. 369.

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT PRINTER, Lagos, (1999), FederalRepublic Nigeria Official Gazette. No 27, Vol. 86. 5th

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“International Legislative Strengthening TechnicalAssistance Service.”Pact2011.(http://www.pactworld.org/cs/international_legislative_strengthenig _a.) (Accessed 11/18/2011).

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Ladipo, A. (2004).www.cpahq.org/LADIPOPAPRESENTATIONOCTOBER 2004pdfmed. P. 2.

Leauther, F.A. (2002). “Parliaments and Poverty: Buildingthe Capacity to tackle the Problems” in TheParliamentarian: Journal of the Parliaments of theCommonwealth. Issue Two. LXXXIII p. 180.

Linz and Consolidated Democracies(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_conslidation) (Retrieved August 12, 2011).

Na’abba, Ghali Umar (2003). “The Valedictory Address bythe Honourable Speaker of House of Presentatives tomark the end of the first Assembly of the fourthRepublic” 2 June.http://www/speaker-nass-nig.org.

Ornstein, N. (1992). “The Role of the Legislature inDemocracy” in Freedom Papers USIA.

“Role and Status of National Legislature.”The LegislativeAssembly and You.Vol. 1 Issue 1,2011.thelegislativeassemblyandyou@gmail.com.

Schedler, Andreas (1998), “What is DemocraticConsolidation?” Journal of Democracy, Volume 9, November2, April 1998, pp. 91-107.

THE PUNCH (Lagos) (2005); “Nnamani, Masari Call for virileLegislature” 3 June; p.7.

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