By Obi Nwakanma
“If you
do not know where to put your hand, rest it on the knee” – Igbo proverb.
The inauguration of the President of the
Federal Republic of Nigeria into office is a pretty serious constitutional
event. It transfers power definitively to an individual who is then expected to
embody the moral, philosophical, visionary, and constitutional ideals of the
nation, and direct the executive function of state. The Constitution
establishes the power of Nigeria in three institutions of state: the National
Assembly, the Supreme Court, and the President. The National Assembly makes the
laws.
The Supreme Court interprets those laws,
including the permanent laws established by the Constitution. The President, as
the Head of the executive branch of the three arms, executes the laws. These
three powers together make up the Federal Government. They operate separately,
and each is granted the power to oversee the other in order to create a balance
of power, and prevent the misuse of authority. For instance, the National
Assembly, which is actually the most powerful institution of state in a
democratic republic, controls the Treasury of Nigeria, by law. Not the
President.