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Question

Difficulty: HardMilitary Intervention and Governance in Nigeria

During military regimes in post-independence Nigeria, administrative power was split between central military bodies and executive organs. How did the Supreme Military Council (SMC) relate structurally and functionally to the Federal Executive Council (FEC)?

  1. The SMC served as the supreme legislative and policy-making authority whose decrees overridden FEC decisions, while the FEC executed daily governance policies.Answer
  2. B
    The FEC held legislative veto power over SMC decisions to maintain traditional inter-organ checks and balances.
  3. C
    The SMC was legally subordinate to the FEC and required judicial approval before issuing binding national directives.
  4. D
    The FEC held absolute sovereign power over national defense, leaving the SMC with purely ceremonial administrative tasks.

Answer

The Supreme Military Council (SMC) functioned as the highest political and legislative body, enacting supreme military decrees, whereas the Federal Executive Council (FEC) performed subordinate administrative and cabinet duties.
In Nigeria's military governance structure, the Supreme Military Council (SMC) was the apex authority responsible for law-making (via military decrees) and supreme policy formulation. The Federal Executive Council (FEC) operated as an administrative cabinet charged with carrying out civil governance under the ultimate authority of the SMC.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the institutional hierarchy of Nigerian military governments.
Identified that the highest military council (SMC, later AFRC or PRC) combined supreme political and legislative power.
Military regimes restructured state organs into a centralized pyramid.
2
Determine the functional role of the Federal Executive Council (FEC).
The FEC acted as a cabinet comprised of military officers and civilian commissioners to manage government ministries and implement policy.
Day-to-day civil administration required executive oversight beneath the ruling military council.
3
Evaluate the relationship between the SMC and FEC.
The SMC promulgated decrees that were law and held supreme decision-making authority over the FEC.
Decrees issued by the top military body suspended constitutional checks and subordinated lower administrative organs.

Key Concept

Structure and Hierarchy of Military Governance Organs
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Topics

Military Intervention and Governance in Nigeria