Resource Control and Federalism in Nigeria
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Date
2023-12
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Lead City University
Abstract
The practice of federalism in Nigeria has elicited several reactions and thus generated critical debates by scholars, politicians, journalists, commentators and more particularly the oil producing communities of the Niger Delta Region. A recurring decimal in Nigerian federalism is the issue of resource allocation and sharing of revenue between the federal.' government and the component units. The Nigeria physical federal arrangement is unique
because by the nature of the Nigerian arrangement, the federal government controls all the resources, hence distributes revenue to the states and local governments based on criteria, which she determines. The problem, has always been there with which criteria should take precedence in the revenue allocation formula, public expression for a new formula that will favor them. Therefore, this study analysed the challenges of resource control and practice of federalism in Nigeria. The study utilized the Frustration - Aggression theory to describe the challenges federalism and resource control in Nigeria. The research adopted a descriptive research design. The findings of this research revealed that, leadership crisis, elite interest, revenue allocation formula, as well as corruption are some of the challenges of true federalism and resource control in Nigeria. The study concluded that fiscal federalism is very crucial for the functioning of any federal system. It is one of the key features of balanced federalism. The study recommended that, there should be a redefinition of the statutory roles of each tier of government and a modification of the current fiscal jurisdiction. The changes must be reflected in a new Nigerian Constitution if the country is to achieve fiscal sustainability, balanced development, and equitable
distribution of the federation revenue in the years ahead.
Keywords: Federalism, Financial Autonomy, Resource Control, Political Restructuring
Word Count: 273
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Keywords
Federalism, Financial Autonomy, Resource Control, Political Restructuring