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Difficulty: HardFirst Republic Politics and Major Crises (1960–1966)

During the 1962 Western Region crisis, Governor Sir Adesoji Aderemi dismissed Premier S.L. Akintola based on a written petition signed by a majority of legislators outside the House of Assembly. When the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council later upheld the Governor's legal authority to dismiss a Premier without a formal parliamentary vote, how did the Nigerian parliament resolve the resulting constitutional impasse?

  1. It retroactively amended the Regional Constitution to require a formal vote on the floor of the House and abolished Privy Council appeals under the 1963 Republican Constitution.Answer
  2. B
    The Prime Minister exercised executive presidential authority to veto the Privy Council ruling and directly reappointed the Premier.
  3. C
    The federal government dissolved the Western Region's federal status and absorbed its territory into a centralized, unitary administration.
  4. D
    The ceremonial Head of State issued an executive decree suspending the Supreme Court and dissolving the Regional House of Assembly.

Answer

The parliament resolved the constitutional crisis by retroactively amending the regional constitution so that a Premier could only be dismissed following an explicit vote of no confidence on the floor of the House, while also abolishing further appeals to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in the 1963 Republican Constitution.
The correct answer highlights that following the Privy Council's decision in Adegbenro v. Akintola, political leaders enacted a retroactive constitutional amendment stipulating that a Premier could only be removed by a formal vote of no confidence conducted on the floor of the House of Assembly. To solidify judicial independence and avoid further external judicial overrides, Nigeria abolished appeals to the Privy Council when it transitioned to a Federal Republic in October 1963.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the historical and legal context of the 1962 Western Region Crisis.
Identified the conflict between Governor Aderemi, Premier S.L. Akintola, and Alhaji D.S. Adegbenro regarding dismissal procedures under parliamentary constitutional rules.
Understanding whether a Governor could dismiss a Premier based on evidence outside the legislative chamber was the core legal debate.
2
Examine the judicial outcome of Adegbenro v. Akintola.
The Privy Council ruled in favor of Adegbenro, stating the Governor could assess lack of confidence from any reliable source outside the House.
This ruling created a major conflict with the Nigerian political leadership's interpretation of parliamentary convention.
3
Evaluate the political and legislative reaction by the Nigerian Government.
The Federal and Regional parliaments amended the Constitution of Western Nigeria retroactively to nullify the Privy Council's decision and subsequently abolished Privy Council appeals altogether upon adopting the 1963 Republican Constitution.
This action secured Akintola's position as Premier and asserted national judicial sovereignty.

Key Concept

Constitutional Friction and Legal Resolution during the 1962 Western Region Crisis
Estimated Time:2m 0s
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Topics

First Republic Politics and Major Crises (1960–1966)