A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE SECTION 144 OF THE 1999 CONSTITUTION: MUSA YAR’ADUA AS A CASE STUDY

ABSTRACT

On the 23rd of November, 2009, President Musa Yar’Adua left Nigeria for treatment abroad in an undisclosed country. For the next 80 days, nobody heard from or saw the federal republic of Nigeria. Even the vice-president, Goodluck Jonathan, could not give any reasonable report of the president’s whereabouts. The activities of the federal executive council became suddenly shrouded and ambiguous. As expected, question about the whereabouts and status of the president began to fly at the national assembly, the judiciary and the federal executive council.
The attendant issues that emanated from this situation led to a very tensed period of fierce constitutional arguments by different quarters, especially from legal practitioners, scholars, authors and most especially, the media who put up quite a show fielding all sorts of rumors and speculations.
The purpose of this thesis therefore, is to critically appraise the all the constitutional issues that emanated from the Yar’Adua’s saga. In view of this, the office of the president would be critically examined, together with his powers and obligations in relation to section 144 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999. Also, the obligation of the Federal Executive Council, the National Assembly and the Judiciary would be examined too.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABSTRACT

TABLE OF CONTENTS

TABLE OF CASES

TABLE OF STATUTES

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

CHAPTER 1

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

1.0.0: INTRODUCTION

1.1.0: BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

1.2.0: OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

1.3.0: FOCUS OF THE STUDY

1.4.0: SCOPE OF THE STUDY

1.5.0: METHODOLOGY

1.6.0: LITERATURE REVIEW

1.7.0: DEFINITION OF TERMS

1.8.0: CONCLUSION

CHAPTER 2

APPRAISAL OF THE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT AND THE VICE PRESIDENT

2.0.0: INTRODUCTION

2.1.0: THE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT AND VICE-PRESIDENT

2.1.1.0: THE PRESIDENT

2.1.1.1: THE VICE PRESIDENT

2.2.1: QUALIFICATION AND NOMINATION OF THE CANDIDATES CONTESTING FOR THE OFFICE OF THESE OFFICES

2.2.2: GROUNDS FOR THE DISQUALIFICATION OF CANDIDATE

2.2.3: TENURE OF THE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

2.2.4: PROVISION FOR THE EXTENSION OF THE TENURE OF THIS OFFICE

2.2.5: DEATH, INCAPACITATION OF THE OF THE PRESIDENT ELECT BEFORE OATH OF OFFICE

2.2.6: DUTIES, POWERS AND OBLIGATIONS OF THE PRESIDENT

2.2.7: REMOVAL OF THE PRESIDENT FROM OFFICE

2.3.0: CONCLUSION

CHAPTER 3

IMPLICATIONS OF THE ABSENCE OF THE PRESIDENT FROM OFFICE

3.1.0: INTRODUCTION

3.1.1: THE ABSENCE OF PRESIDENT MUSA YAR’ADUA FROM OFFICE

3.2.0: THE LEGISLATURE IN RESPECT OF THE OF THE YAR’ADUA’S CASE

3.2.1: THE POSITION OF THE JUDICIARY

3.2.2: THE POSITION OF AUTHORS AND SCHOLARS

3.30: CONCLUSION

CHAPTER 4

AN EXAMINATION OF THE PRESIDENT YAR’ADUA’S CASE

4.1.0: INTRODUCTION

4.1.1.0: PERMANENT INCAPACITY OF THE PRESIDENT

4.1.1.1.: MEANING AND AN EXAMINATION OF PRESIDENT YAR’ADUA’S MEDICAL CONDITION

4.2.0: THE FEDERAL EXECUTIVE COUNCIL

4.2.1: AT WHAT POINT DOES THE FEDERAL EXECUTIVE COUNCIL PASSES THE RESOLUTION DECLARING THE PRESIDENT INCAPACITATED

4.3.0: A CRITIQUE OF THE MUSA YAR’ADUA’S CASE

4.4.0: CONCLUSION

CHAPTER 5

GENERAL CONCLUSION

5.0.0: CONCLUSION

5.1.0: RECOMMENDATION

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