FISCAL FEDERALISM AND RESOURCE CONTROL IN NIGERIA

Abstract

Resource control and true federalism have remained two contentious factors in the Nigerian body polity. They have been in the front burner of the national discourse since the return to democracy in Nigeria. This research therefore investigates the fiscal federalism and resource control in Nigeria. The research is qualitative in nature therefore using mainly secondary sources of data. The study adopts the Elite theory as its framework of analysis. It contends that the emergence of the military in politics distorted the Nigeria federal structure in the post-civil war era, when oil politics, revenue allocation system and resource control became one of the critical destabilizing factors in Nigeria’s federal experiment. Moreso lack of visionary political leadership and corruption are the major contributors to the agitation for true federalism in Nigeria. It recommends among others that; the character of the Nigerian state must be restructured. This means that the ethnic driven politics and the politics of personal interest and self-aggrandizement must be put to an end. Nigerian political leaders must place national interest above tribal or ethnic interest. The interplay between the centripetal and centrifugal forces in Nigeria’s power equation should be balanced for the ultimate good of society.