WAEC Government 2018 past questions and answers

No government can meet every need of every citizen; it provides security, order and basic welfare.

The first purpose of a state is to keep order and security so people can live together peacefully.

A totalitarian state controls politics, economy, media and even private life.

Under socialism the major means of production are owned and controlled by the state.

Communism's principle is 'from each according to his ability, to each according to his needs'.

Baron de Montesquieu developed the theory in The Spirit of the Laws. Bodin is linked with sovereignty, Dicey with the rule of law.

Voting, campaigning and choosing leaders are forms of political participation.

Governments change through elections or coups, but the state continues.

Democratic government rests on the consent of the governed: the people give power to rulers who must serve them, like a social contract.

During a state of emergency some rights are suspended and special powers are used, limiting the rule of law.

Separated organs must also be able to check one another; otherwise each could abuse its own power.

Universal adult suffrage supports representative government; the others undermine it.

A single-party system bans opposition and restricts freedom of choice, speech and association, so it curtails personal liberty.

The constitution is the fundamental (supreme) law of a country.

Constitutions come from statutes, customs, conventions and judicial decisions; a party manifesto is only a party's programme.

Policies are first discussed and agreed in the cabinet (executive council).

Law-making is the main function of the legislature.

Courts can declare unconstitutional laws and actions void, which checks arbitrary use of power.

Because ministers sit in parliament and lead its majority, the executive and legislature work together and government business runs smoothly.

A small, homogeneous country can be governed easily from one centre.

The weak centre cannot hold the sovereign member states together, so confederations often break up (e.g. Senegambia).

The president is directly elected and answers to the voters.

In a federation the written constitution is supreme over both levels of government; secession is a feature of confederations.

Federalism spreads power between the centre and the states, a form of decentralisation.

Honest, impartial judges protect citizens' rights fairly.

The ombudsman (Public Complaints Commission in Nigeria) investigates citizens' complaints against government officials.

Tolls are charges collected by government for roads and bridges, not party income.

Both parties and pressure groups gather and express people's interests. Only parties seek to run the state.

Pressure groups mainly promote their own members' interests.

Radio, TV, newspapers and online media reach the largest number of people.

Laws imposed without debate ignore people's views; polls, media views and referendums measure them.

Some religious groups (e.g. Jehovah's Witnesses) do not vote, and freedom of religion lets them abstain; education, wealth or status are not accepted grounds.

In a primary election party members choose the party's candidate for the main election.

In an indirect election the people choose an electoral college, which then elects the officials.

The administrative class is the top class; it makes policy and supervises the executive class.

The Civil Service Commission appoints, promotes and disciplines civil servants.

Civil servants remain unnamed; the minister takes public credit or blame.

Under colonial rule chiefs lost their armies, could not fix taxes on their own and could not appoint or remove chiefs without British approval, but they remained the spiritual and cultural heads of their people.

Indirect rule governed through traditional rulers supervised by British officers.

Britain lacked the money (and staff) to run the colonies directly, so it used existing rulers.

Local government brings government and services close to the grassroots.

France replaced assimilation with association, which respected some African customs.

Most Africans would not give up their culture, religion and way of life to become French.

Early nationalism was led by the educated elite, sometimes with chiefs (e.g. the NCBWA, the Aborigines' Rights Protection Society).

Rigged elections, economic mismanagement and corruption are common reasons given for coups.

Leaders' personalities and beliefs shape how a country deals with others.

The Commonwealth sends observer groups to members' elections. It cannot prosecute anyone at the ICC.

A larger market is a benefit of ECOWAS integration, not a problem.

The UN's main aim is to prevent another world war, and none has happened since 1945.

(a) A society is a group of people living together in a defined area, sharing common values, customs and institutions and interacting for mutual benefit.
(b) Any four:
1. A population of people.
2. Common territory.
3. Shared culture, norms, values and language.
4. Rules and sanctions that regulate behaviour.
5. Interdependence and co-operation of members.
6. Social institutions (family, religion, economy).
7. Permanence and continuity.
8. Dynamic: it changes over time.

Give a clear definition, then features.

(a) Communalism is a social and political system in which land and the means of production are owned in common by the community and the produce is shared according to need; there are no classes.
(b) Any four:
1. Feudalism: land owned by lords; communalism: land owned by the community.
2. Feudalism: class society (lords, vassals, serfs); communalism: classless/egalitarian.
3. Feudalism: exploitation of serfs; communalism: no exploitation.
4. Feudalism: compulsory service and tribute to the lord; communalism: voluntary co-operation.
5. Feudalism: wealth goes to the lord; communalism: equitable sharing.
6. Feudalism: relationship based on land in return for loyalty/military service; communalism: based on kinship.

Write the differences in pairs: feudalism ... while communalism ...

(a) Any three: by birth; by registration (e.g. marriage to a citizen); by naturalisation; honorary citizenship; by descent.
(b) Any two (naturalisation): be of full age and capacity; good character; residence in the country for a stated period (e.g. 15 years in Nigeria); renounce former citizenship where required; take the oath of allegiance; be able to contribute to the country; be acceptable to the local community.

For (b), Nigeria's 1999 Constitution sets the conditions for naturalisation.

(a) A constituency is a geographical (electoral) district into which a country is divided for the purpose of electing a representative or representatives.
(b) Any four:
1. Close relationship between representative and voters.
2. Voters know candidates well.
3. Easy to hold the representative accountable.
4. Simple to operate and count.
5. Cheaper to run.
6. Tends to produce stable majorities.
7. Small size makes campaigning easier.

Single member = one representative per constituency.

Any five:
1. Centralised emirate system headed by the Emir.
2. Based on Islamic religion and Sharia law.
3. Emir appointed by and paid tribute to the Sultan of Sokoto or Emir of Gwandu.
4. Emir had executive, legislative, judicial and religious powers.
5. Appointed officials: Waziri, Galadima, Madawaki, Sarkin Fada, etc.
6. Alkali courts administered justice.
7. Taxation system: Zakat, Jangali, Kharaj, Jizya.
8. Emirate divided into districts under district heads.
9. Feudal: land held in trust by Emir; class divisions (Sarauta).

Highlight the centralised, Islamic, feudal nature of the system.

(a) Proto-nationalism is the early (first) phase of nationalism in West Africa, from about the late 19th century to the 1920s/30s, in which Africans protested against particular colonial policies and sought reforms within the colonial system rather than independence.
(b) Any four:
1. Led by educated elite and chiefs; small elite base.
2. Aimed at reforms, not independence.
3. Moderate methods: petitions, delegations, newspapers.
4. Local/territorial in scope; not mass-based.
5. Protests against specific issues (land, taxes, water rate).
6. Examples: Aborigines' Rights Protection Society (Gold Coast, 1897), NCBWA (1920), Lagos protests.
7. Loyal to the British Crown.

Contrast with later mass nationalism that demanded independence.

Any five (1989 Constitution, made for the Third Republic; it was never fully operated because of the 1993 annulment and military take-over):
1. Head of State, Head of Government and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces.
2. Executes and maintains the constitution and federal laws.
3. Appoints ministers, ambassadors and other federal officers (with Senate confirmation).
4. Assents to or vetoes bills.
5. Prepares and presents the budget to the National Assembly.
6. Exercises prerogative of mercy.
7. Conducts foreign relations.
8. Declares war/state of emergency with National Assembly approval.
9. Chairs the Federal Executive Council.

Note that the 1989 Constitution was never fully used; Nigeria now runs on the 1999 Constitution with similar presidential powers.

Any of:
1. Good governance and accountability.
2. Free and fair elections.
3. Fight against corruption.
4. Sound economic management; reduce poverty and unemployment.
5. Constitutional provisions outlawing coups and punishing plotters.
6. Professionalism and good welfare in the armed forces; civilian control of the military.
7. Political education and a vigilant civil society.
8. Respect for rule of law and human rights.
9. Equitable distribution of resources and national unity.
10. Regional/international sanctions against coups (ECOWAS, AU).

Each mechanism should remove a cause of coups.

Any five:
1. Political instability and coups in member states.
2. Language and colonial differences (Anglophone/Francophone/Lusophone).
3. Members' loyalty to other bodies (e.g. UEMOA, ties to France).
4. Different currencies; slow progress toward a single currency.
5. Poor transport and communication links.
6. Non-payment of dues; poor funding.
7. Border closures, smuggling and restrictions on free movement.
8. Similar primary products, little intra-regional trade.
9. Fear of Nigeria's dominance.
10. Insurgency, terrorism and civil conflicts.
Note: since 2018, Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger left ECOWAS in January 2025 (forming the Alliance of Sahel States), reducing membership from 15 to 12.

In 2018 ECOWAS had 15 members; it now has 12.