The Legislature and Democracy in Nigeria, (1960-2003): History, Constitutional Role and Prospects

In Nigeria the constitutional role of the Legislature is yet to receive adequate scholarly attention. The main area of focus in most literature has been the executive arm of government and its other related activities. This paper examined the evolution of legislative functions in Nigeria with a view to justifying its contributions to democracy especially in the first, second and fourth republics (1960-2003) respectively. Related concepts of legislature and democracy were clearly explained with concrete supportive scholarly literature. The historical evolution of legislative function in Nigeria was also explored to demonstrate the common but often neglected place of the legislature in democratic governance. Based on this, premise, proper constitutional roles of the legislature in the promotion of democracy in Nigeria were analysed to show clearly that democratic culture cannot be sustained without harmonious executive and legislature partnership. The prospects of this partnership were outlined with far reaching recommendations on how to promote healthy executive and legislature working relationship in present democratic dispensation in Nigeria. Keywords: Legislature, democracy, constitution, history and role. 

Adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (Ifrs) and Assets Quality in the Nigerian Banking Sector: The Fundamental Effect Approach

The main purpose of this work is to examine the effect of the adoption of international financial reporting standards (IFRS) on assets quality in the Nigerian banking sector. Specifically the study sought to determine the effect of the adoption on asset quality, loan volume, , net interest income and profit after tax of deposit money banks listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.  The adopted research design is causal-comparative. Secondary data on ten out of sixteen listed deposit money banks on the Nigerian Stock Exchange by June 2018 were used. The banks which were selected via judgmental sampling technique were those whose annual financial statements for the immediate year before IFRS adoption year were available and contained figures under Nigerian GAAP/SAS and IFRS-equivalent. The data which were analyzed using paired student t-test approach were sourced from 2011 and 2012 annual reports of the selected banks except Zenith bank for which only 2011 annual financial reports were used..  The variables of interest were grouped under Nigerian GAAP (SAS) and IFRS. Findings revealed that overall, the IFRS adoption indicates negative insignificant effect on assets quality of deposit money banks in Nigeria. The study therefore, recommends inter-alia that Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria  should  partner with the CBN to provide clarity on areas of regulatory hindrance to full and effective implementation of the IFRS with regular

The United States and the Liquidation of European Colonial Rule in Tropical Africa, 1941-1963

Les États-Unis et la liquidation de l’autorité coloniale européenne en Afrique tropicale, 1941-1963. – Les États-Unis occupent une place de choix dans la littérature consacrée à la fin du colonialisme en Afrique. Ce pays, dit-on, a facilité le processus en poussant les Européens a de rapides concessions politiques avec les Africains. Ce point de vue a encore du poids aujourd’hui, et il est fréquemment exprimé dans les livres et les cours consacrés à l’histoire de l’Afrique. Peu importe que les prétentions d’un anticolonialsime américain soient fondées non pas sur une étude de sources de première main mais sur des suppositions. Le nombre croissant de documents officiels désormais accessibles à tous plaide en faveur d’une étude empirique d’un sujet intimement lié au discours africaniste sur la décolonisation. C’est exactement l’objectif de cet article qui montre que la perception courante du rôle des États-Unis dans le processus de décolonisation est trompeuse. Les États-Unis, de manière tout à fait évidente, souhaitaient et s’efforçaient de conserver une forte présence européenne en Afrique, même après les indépendances. Cet article explique les raisons de cette attitude et attire l’attention sur certains aspects saillants de la politique américaine envers l’Afrique entre 1941 et 1963 : un parti pris excessif en faveur de l’Europe, le souhait d’exploiter les ressources africaines pour reconstruire l’Europe, et le peu d’importance accordée à l’Afrique dans les calculs stratégiques des États-Unis.In the existing literature on the end of European colonial rule in Africa, the United States (U.S.) occupies a pride of place.  The U.S., it is said, played a facilitating role, by prodding the Europeans into speedy political concessions to Africans.  This viewpoint remains quite influential and is still regurgitated in textbooks and classrooms in African history.  It does not matter that the claims for American anticolonialism are based, not on study of the relevant primary records, but on assumptions.  The increasing availability, through declassification, of the U.S. official records strongly argues for an empirical study of a subject so germane to the Africanist discourse on decolonization.  This is precisely what this paper does–and it clearly shows that the popular perception of the U.S. role in the decolonization process is very misleading.  The U.S., its is quite apparent, desired and worked for a strong European presence in Africa, even after the independence.  The paper also offers explanations for this policy behavior, and in the process, draws attention to other salient aspects of the U.S. policy towards Africa in the period 1941-1963: for example, the overly Eurocentric bias of policy, the interest in exploiting African resources for the rehabilitation of Europe, and Africa’s low rating in U.S. strategic calculations

Hydration characteristics of cement pastes incorporating electric arc-furnace slag

This paper presents the results of a comparative study of the hydration characteristics of cement pastes incorporating steel slag or ground granulated blastfurnace slag (GGBS) as substitutes for ordinary Portland cement (OPC). The study looked at the physical and chemical characteristics of the starting materials. Various cementitious paste mixes were manufactured and cured under two separate curing regimes and a combination of thermogravimetric and X-Ray diffraction analysis used to identify the hydration products formed during the investigation. The study established that the partial replacement of OPC with Electric Arc-Furnace steel slag or GGBS leads to a slow rate of formation of hydration products at early ages. However, at later ages, mixtures containing GGBS and waste slag produced more hydration products than the control OPC mix, especially when cured under a hot humid (Mediterranean) climate. The results suggest the viability of application of such industrial waste products in concrete which, among others, is likely to have an important impact on waste utilisation strategy and a dual benefit of reducing the possible negative environmental impact and preservation of natural resources

Assessing the Moral Relevance of Peace Education Contents in the Basic Education Social Studies Curricula for Effective Citizenship Participation in Nigeria

Social Studies is a core subject at the basic education level in Nigeria which has the potentials of inculcating functional knowledge and desirable morals into pupils for effective citizenship participation through peaceful co-existence. However, despite this positive trend, the moral significance of peace education contents of the subject seem not to have been adequately explored. This lacuna justified the need for this study which sought to find out the moral relevance of peace education contents in basic education social studies in Nigerian schools. The study adopted a descriptive survey design with content analysis bias. A sample of 200 social studies teachers undergoing in-service sandwich training were selected through stratified random sampling technique from states across the six geo-political zones of Nigeria. Three research questions guided the study. Similarly, two major instruments namely 10-item questionnaire titled “Teachers’ Awareness of the Moral Relevance of Peace Education Contents in Basic Education Social Studies Curriculum” and content analysis of the same social studies curricula published by NERDC, a foremost Nigerian educational regulatory body were used for data collection. Data collected were analyzed with the use of arithematic percentages. Findings of the study showed that majority of the teachers were not only aware of the moral relevance of peace education  contents in basic education social studies curricula but were also of the  opinion that the subject could be used to meet the moral and peace education needs of Nigerian pupils for the purpose of inclusion citizenship participation. It was also established that peace and moral education contents were adequately reflected in the basic education social studies curricula. These findings were exhaustively discussed with far-reaching recommendations on how to improve the teaching and learning of moral aspects of peace education contents through the basic education social studies curricula for effective promotion of inclusive citizenship participation in a multi-ethnic and religious society like Nigeria. Keywords: Basic Education, Moral, Moral Relevance, Social Studies Curricula, Citizenship Participation.

Assessment of Non-destructive Methods for Evaluating the Performance of Surface Treatments on Concrete

Hydrophobic films are frequently applied to concrete structures to reduce water ingress and provide protection against weathering and chemical attacks. However, these waterproof coatings tend to deteriorate with time and require reapplication to maintain their effectiveness. Deciding when the retreatment should be applied and how to assess existing treated surfaces can sometimes be a challenging task for owners of concrete structures. Consequently, this paper presents findings on the assessment of absorption characteristics of surface-treated concrete using several techniques. Three non-destructive test methods were used to evaluate the efficacy of surface treatment under different curing conditions and with varying numbers of treatments. The methods employed were the initial surface absorption test, Karsten tube test and electrical conductivity test (wet method). The results show that the employed methods were all able to distinguish between treated and untreated surfaces. Treated samples exhibited better resistance to water absorption and electrical conductivity than untreated ones, and the absorption characteristics were found to be influenced by the number of treatments and curing regimes. All three test methods were effective in assessing surface treatment quality, with the Karsten tube test being the most practical for in-situ evaluation due to the simplicity of its setup

BUILDING SUPPORT FOR COMMUNITY POLICING; CHALLENGES AND IMPLICATIONS FOR NATIONAL SECURITY IN NIGERIA

This study sought to determine ways effective public support could be harnessed for community-policing project in order to assist the police to maintain security and work harmoniously with the public. Specifically, it sought to find out the extent the public is aware of the existence of community policing security project, its perceived effectiveness, possible challenges and likely support it requires to function as well as the envisaged implications for national security in Nigeria. A sample of 1000 Adult citizens drawn from Abia, Anambra, Enugu and Imo States in south east Nigeria using stratified and purposive sampling techniques were used for the study. Data was collected with the use of a 25-item Questionnaire titled. “Questionnaire on building effective support for community-policing for National security in Nigeria” (QBESCIN). This was complemented with focus group discussion sessions with police officers in the selected states. The instrument was validated by experts and appropriately tested for reliability. Percentages were employed in analyzing data. Findings among other things revealed that majority of the respondents are to a large extent aware of the existence of community-policing project even though certain related challenges such as resistance to change, lack of information/publicity, poor public-police relations etc seem to confront its viability. Correspondingly, it was unanimously agreed by respondents that community policing needed moral, financial, motivational and enlightenment support to work effectively. The implications for national security were identified in form of the need for better police-public relations, public mobilization and participation etc which are deemed strategic for effective performance of the police. These findings and implications were discussed and appropriate recommendations made on how community-policing could be used to support police operational effectiveness in south-east Nigeria