OVERVIEW, CHECKS AND CONTROLS OF LEGISLATIVE POWERS UNDER NIGERIA’S 1999 CONSTITUTION

Abstract

Legislative power connotes the authority behind law-making and incidental matters thereto as a constitutionally guaranteed role of the legislature - the arm of government charged with the duty of law-making. In acting for the masses, the legislature codifies the rules and norms regulating either the entire federation or the federating units. The aims of this Article are to identify and properly define the various legislative organs in Nigeria, the Legislative Lists, law-making procedures with and without Legislative Lists; who makes and how laws are made in a military junta and, the fate of existing laws after the coming into effect of the Constitution. Others are legislative powers and retrospective laws, impeachment proceedings and, the role of the Judiciary in the exercise of legislative powers in Nigeria. Doctrinal analysis is adopted in this Article since Case laws, Statutes and other legal sources are predominantly analysed. The Article finds that despite practice of separation of powers, there are still giant loopholes in our law-making. The Article ends with policy driven recommendations.