CIVIL-MILITARY RELATIONS IN NIGERIA: THE CASE OF PARLIAMENTARY OVERSIGHT OF THE DEFENCE SECTOR-1999 TO 2004
CIVIL-MILITARY RELATIONS IN NIGERIA: THE CASE OF PARLIAMENTARY OVERSIGHT OF THE DEFENCE SECTOR-1999 TO 2004
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Date
2014-03-05
Authors
Garba, Mohammed Kabeer
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Abstract
In this study, we examined Civil-Military Relations in Nigeria within the
context of the phenomenon of Parliamentary Oversight of the Defence
Sector within the first trench of the forth Republic. The study establishes
the importance of democracy as a theory that empowers the ruled to
determine the nature of operation of their government and participate
directly or indirectly in the running of the government. It also stresses the
importance of the concepts of Separation of Powers and Checks and
Balances to explain the relevance of Parliamentary Oversight.
In addressing the main problem leading to the study, we are concerned
with the existence of a powerful military, which in the immediate past,
had total control over the machinery of government, now subjecting itself
to near total Parliamentary control. We are also concerned about the
workability of getting the Parliament to effectively oversee the defence
sector in terms of its Authority and Ability as well as the right Attitude by
individual members of Parliament.
In view of the nature of the topic, our main methodology is the conduct of
elite interviews. Here we set up questions that were responded to by our
target persons, mostly Members of Parliament (especially Committee
Chairmen), staff of Parliament, staff of the Ministry of Defence as well as
any other person deemed to be involved in the area under focus. The
Author however also used secondary data to complement the Interviews
conducted.
Findings
In terms of reforms in the defence sector, this research has revealed that
present reforms are based on Re-positioning and Re-professionalising the
armed forces. Re-Positioning is meant to ensure the modernisation of the
forces and also lead to the acquisition of skills through training. Reprofessionalisation
on the other hand is aimed at addressing role
orientation by impressing on the military the need to concentrate on its
constitutional role as the defender of the territorial integrity of the
country. It is however important to point out that the desire for the
military to attain a compact force has remained a mirage considering that
it is yet to demobilise since the commencement of the reform process.
The study used as a tool of analysis Authority, Ability and Attitude, to
examine the issues associated with the topic. By Authority we refer to the
legal and constitutional provisions for oversight. By Ability we refer to
the technical, human and financial resources available to Members of
Parliament to conduct oversight. By Attitude we refer to the political will
and motivation that enables Members of Parliament conduct oversight.
We found out that the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,
1999 has made significant provisions empowering Parliament to conduct
oversight. These provisions are however not exhaustive. We also found
out that Members of Parliament and their staff, particularly those
servicing the committees, donot have adequate facilities to work. The
staff are mostly civil servants who have not received any special training
to assist the various Defence Committees. In addition, the committees
donot have befitting secretariats with adequate facilities, while from
2003, Standing Committees ceased to have independent budgets.
Furthermore, we found out that Members of Parliament lack the right
attitude to conduct oversight and are in most cases influenced by their
selfish desires towards getting material benefits.
Thus there are several challenges facing Parliamentary Oversight of the
Defence Sector in Nigeria, which therefore led to this Author drawing the
conclusion that there is no effective Parliamentary Oversight of the
Defence Sector in Nigeria. For although there is significant authority,
there is poor ability and the attitude of Members of Parliament remains
negative.
The study therefore recommends the amendment of the constitution to
provide more authority to Members of Parliament to effectively oversight
the sector. It also recommends the provisions of all human, material and
technical resources to enable parliament and Parliamentary Committees
work more effectively. The study also recommends significant increase in
the remuneration for Members of Parliament to enable them meet their
material needs and hence improve their attitude towards effective
oversight.
Description
A Disertation is presented to the Department of Political Science,
Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, in partial fulfillment of the
requirements for the award of a Doctor of Philosophy degree in
Political Science.
Keywords
CIVIL-MILITARY,, RELATIONS,, NIGERIA, CASE,, PARLIAMENTARY,, OVERSIGHT,, DEFENCE,, SECTOR