Nigeria gained independence from Britain in 1960 and has experienced periods of both civilian and military rule. The current president is Umar Musa Yar'Adua. Nigeria has a bicameral legislature and its judicial system blends English common law with customary and Islamic law. Nigerian politics is divided along ethnic lines and the military has dominated. Corruption is also widespread. The dominant political parties are the People's Democratic Party and the All Nigerian Peoples Party.

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2. HISTORY Brief (few months) of civilian rule in 1993 OlusegunObasanjo elected President in 1999 restoring democracy. Obasanjo reelected President in election of 2003. Gained independence from Britain on October 1st, 1960. Military coup ended the First Republic of Nigeria in January 1966. Re-achieved civilian rule from 1979-1984

3. Constitution Constitution first drafted in 1979. Constitution redrafted in 1995. In 1999 the constitution was revised and published.

4. Executive Branch President Umar Musa Yar’Adua Chief of State & Head of Government Cabinet: Federal Executive Council President elected by popular vote. Can serve up to 2 four-year terms.

5. Legislative Branch Bicameral and called the National Assembly. Senate: 3 seats per state; 1 seat for capital. Elected by popular vote to serve 4 year terms. House of Representatives: 360 seats. State’s population determines how many seats it will get. Members elected by popular vote to serve 4 year terms.

6. Judicial Branch/National Law Supreme Court Federal Court of Appeal All Federal level judges recommended by the National Judicial Council and appointed by the federal government (direct appointment by President for Supreme Court) State Courts High Courts- functions as a State Supreme Court Sharia Court of Appeal- Muslim Law courts Customary Court of Appeal Lower Courts Customary Magistrates

7. Judicial Branch/National Law (2) English Law- from Nigeria’s colonial past with England. Most of all that remains of it is the idea of Common Law which is the idea that previous rulings in court cases set precedence for future rulings Customary Law- from indigenous tribal norms and practices. Sharia Law- Adopted by 12 states in 1999, it is an Islamic law that was implemented to accommodate the Muslim north of Nigeria.

8. Political Culture Nigerian politics is divided by ethnicities Hausa-Fulani (North) Ibo (East and South) Yoruba (West) Because of federal political structure each region that was dominated by a certain people remained somewhat autonomous and led to a weakening in the thought of a unified national political identity. Eventually the ethnic conflictions led to civil war when the Ibo populated southeastern region accused the military government (primarily made up of Northerners) for unfair distribution of federal oil revenues. The southeast seceded to become Biafra. After 3 years of violent civil war Biafra was reintegrated into Nigeria.

9. Political Culture (2) The military dominates Nigerian politics Northerners make up the majority of the military partly because it has roughly the same population as the East and West combined, thus explaining why so many of Nigeria’s leaders came from the North. Almost all state governors and National-offices are filled with high ranking military officials Because of corruption the government skims money from all Federal revenues (primarily oil) and has overwhelming power, thus making military service the most potentially fruitful career path for most Nigerians.

10. Political Parties/Process People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Majority party Current President 223 of 360 (62%) seats in the House of Representatives 76 of 109 (70%) seats in the Senate All Nigerian Peoples Party (ANPP) PDP’s biggest political threat Popular Party in the North 62 seats in the House of Representatives 27 seats in the Senate Action Congress (AC) Formed from a merger of parties such as the Alliance for Democracy, the Justice Party, and the Advanced Congress of Democrats Relevant as a 3rd party because it controls Lagos. 32 seats in the House of Representatives 6 seats in the Senate

11. Political Parties/Process (2) The Independent National Election Commission (INEC) Founded in 1998 Run into recent controversy Disqualified Vice President Abubakar from running in 2007 Presidential election.

12. Politics in the Economy Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Prevent, investigate, prosecute, penalize economic and financial crimes. EFCC often accused of selective prosecution by rivals of the President.

13. Political Socialization Political socialization comes from the family Media influence is limited due to 1/3 of the adult population being illiterate Radio is main form of media Radio and Television is controlled by the State. Newspapers aren’t run by State so they are least biased form of media. Journalists often are imprisoned and attacked

14. Interest Aggregation Religious and ethnic associations dominate special interest groups. Trade unions important due to oil production. Nigerian Mafia (powerful Northerners) maintain strong influence over military and politics.

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