JAMB Government 1997

C: mandate to exercise power over others

Authority involves an accepted mandate or right to exercise power. Mere strength or the ability to compel behaviour describes power without necessarily establishing authority.

A: it has legitimate power over citizens

Government exercises legitimate public authority over citizens within its jurisdiction. Other organizations may make internal rules, but do not possess this general governmental mandate.

A: Hansard

Hansard is the official report of parliamentary proceedings. It records debates and related business, rather than serving as a general government gazette.

D: multiple tiers of government

Federal government involves constitutionally established levels of government, each with assigned responsibilities. Multiple tiers are fundamental, while a presidential veto is not required in every federation.

C: contains customary laws and conventions

An uncodified constitution includes conventions and customary practices alongside written legal sources. It need not be collected in a single constitutional document.

A: totalitarianism

Totalitarianism seeks to control all significant sources of political and social power. Liberalism and democracy preserve independent institutions and limits on government.

C: parliamentary system

A shadow cabinet is formed by the opposition in a parliamentary system. Its members examine the work of corresponding government ministers and present alternative policies.

B: cabinet is part of the legislature

In the parliamentary model, cabinet ministers are members of the legislature and remain accountable to it. This connects the executive to parliament rather than requiring equal powers for two chambers.

C: assents to bills

Presidential assent is part of the law-making process, although the president belongs to the executive. This interaction illustrates checks and balances rather than complete isolation of the branches.

B: presidential system

The presidential model separates the branches and gives each powers that check the others. These checks are particularly prominent where the executive does not depend on continuing parliamentary confidence.

A: Senate

The Senate confirmed presidential nominations where the 1979 Constitution required legislative confirmation, including federal ministerial appointments under section 135. The House of Representatives was not the confirming chamber for those nominations.

B: habeas corpus

Habeas corpus brings the legality of detention before a court. If detention lacks lawful authority, the court can order release.

B: the winner may not poll an absolute majority

Plurality requires more votes than any other candidate, not an absolute majority. A candidate can therefore win while most voters collectively supported other candidates.

A: delimitation

Constituency delimitation is the process of defining electoral districts and their boundaries. These districts determine which voters elect particular representatives.

A: capture state power

Political parties organize to win public office and exercise governmental power. Replacing a particular government or serving particular members can be an objective but does not define every party.

D: male adults with an annual income of at least £ 100.

The Clifford electoral arrangements restricted voting to qualifying adult men with the required annual income. They did not introduce universal adult suffrage.

C: had an equal number of senators

The 1979 arrangement gave every state the same number of senators, preserving equal state representation in the upper chamber. House of Representatives seats did not use that same equal-state rule.

A: supreme court

The Supreme Court exercised judicial review as part of the judicial branch. That role concerned constitutional legality and was not exercised by the president or parliament as a substitute court.

D: national population commission

The National Population Commission has responsibility for registering births and deaths. These vital records serve a different purpose from employment records maintained by a civil service commission.

C: unicameral legislature and two-party system

The Political Bureau recommended a unicameral federal legislature and a two-party system. The government accepted the two-party proposal but chose a bicameral legislature, so the recommendation must be distinguished from the arrangement later adopted.

D: Nigerian national democratic party

The Nigerian National Democratic Party was formed in 1923 following the Clifford Constitution's elective provisions. It contested the early Lagos elections before the later nationalist parties in the other options.

D: education, provision of water and construction of roads

Both federal and state authorities have roles in education, water provision and road construction. Defence and external representation, which appear in other options, are federal responsibilities.

A: France's atomic test in the Sahara Desert

Nigeria broke diplomatic relations with France in 1961 in protest against French nuclear testing in the Sahara. The action expressed opposition to the regional consequences of those tests.

C: African Development Bank

The Nigeria Trust Fund was established by agreement with the African Development Bank in 1976. It supports development in eligible lower-income regional member countries through concessional financing.

A: advance their interests

States join international organizations to pursue interests through cooperation. Aid, development and alliances may be particular interests, but not every organization provides all of them.

B: General Assembly

Every United Nations member state has representation in the General Assembly. Membership of the Security Council and other principal organs is more limited.

D: Angola

Angola became independent in 1975, later than Côte d'Ivoire in 1960 and Algeria in 1962. Tanganyika and Zanzibar, which formed Tanzania, had also attained independence earlier.