WAEC Government 1988 Past Questions

Practice each question, then open it to see the full details.

Government refers to all the following, except

A.an institution of the state
B.the process of ruling a political community
C.the exercise of power and authority
D.the activities of decision-makers
E.the act of civil disobedience

What is a state? What characteristics must a state possess?

Government as the act of governing means the

A.activities of pressure groups and political parties
B.act of vetoing a bill
C.orders of judiciary and legislature
D.activities by which government policies are made and implemented
E.activities of parliamentary opposition

Define Republican form of government and state its essential characteristics.

Unwritten constitution means that the constitution is

A.not written down
B.based only on converntions
C.not contained in any single book
D.in draft
E.not approved

(a) What are the major differences between the civil service and public service?

(b) Discuss the main criticisms against the Nigerian civil service.

The delegation of Administrative Powers to the local units with the central supervision and control is called

A.devolution
B.decentralizetion
C.deconcentration
D.centralization
E.concentration

What is proportional representation? Discuss its merits and demerits.

Which of the following is not the function of the government?

A.Building of roads, bridges, canals, etc
B.Provision of education
C.Maintenance of relations with other states
D.defence of territory from external attack
E.Provision of all the material needs of all citizens

Discuss the functions of a modern legislature.

A flexible constitution can only be amended by

A.two-third (2/3) majorityvote in the legistrature
B.referendum
C.three-quarters (3/4) majority vote in the legistrature
D.plebiscite
E.simple majority vote in the legistrature

What is Non-Alignment? Examine the advantages of the policy.

Which one of the following countries has an unwritten constitution?

A.Great Britain
B.France
C.United State of American
D.Federal Republic of Germany
E.Germany Democratic Republic

Examine the factors which contributed to the Action Group Crises of 1962.

A rigid constitution is said to be best suited for a

A.Federal Government
B.Socialist Government
C.Military Government
D.Unitary government
E.Fascist Government

Account for the introduction of the Indirect Rule System in Nigeria, and its failure in some parts of the country.

Federal Elections were held in Nigeria in

A.1946,1951,1954,1979 and 1983
B.1954,1959,1964,1979 and 1983
C.1923, 1946,1951,1979,and 1983
D.1954,1960,1964,1979 and1983
E.1960,1963,1964,1979 and 1983

Compare the judicial system of the pre-colonial Hausa/Fulani Society with that of the lgbo Society.

The two components of sovereignty are

A.the rule of law and fundamental human rights
B.political power and political authority
C.political culture and political socialization
D.influence and poltical authority
E.political independence and supreme authority of the state within its territory

Mention the aims of the Organisation of African Unity (O.A.U) and discuss some of its achievements.

Nigeria broke diplomatic relations with Israel in 1973 because of Israeli

A.recongnition of Biafra
B.occupation of Egyptian territory
C.refusal to give aid to Nigeria
D.economic relations with South Africa
E.raid on Entebbe airport in Uganda

The United Nations organization (UNO)has its headquarters in

A.Britain
B.USSR
C.USA
D.China
E.France

The state is different from the government because

A.the State unlike the Government is permanent
B.the Government is made up of powerful people
C.members of the Government are elected
D.the state is created by God
E.The state can exercise absolute power

A state is a special from of human association because it

A.has a legitimate monoploy of life and death penalties over its citizens
B.is the richest association in society
C.has a constitution approved by the citizens
D.can punish law breakers
E.has a government

Which of the following is not relevant to communism?

A.Democracy
B.Violent reolution
C.Friedrich Engels
D.Class war
E.Private Enterprise

A Nigeria citizen can only be deprived of his citizenship if he is

A.condemned to death
B.convicted by a court of law
C.married to a foreigner
D.holding a dual citizenship
E.an armed robber

In the process of governing, OUTPUT refers to

A.the influence of pressure group
B.demand of the political system
C.the decision of the government
D.the opinion of the electorate
E.the influence of political parties

Another word for red-tapism is

A.democracy
B.authocracy
C.idiosyncrasy
D.bureaucracy
E.theocracy

Rule adjudication is the main function of the

A.Executive
B.President
C.Legistature
D.Judiciary
E.National Assembly

The major problem that arose from the 1979 election centred around the

A.inability of many voters to find their names on the voters register
B.cancellation of election results in many constituencies because of alleged irregularities
C.inability of some dissatisfied candidates to seek redress in the court of law
D.controversy over the presidential election result
E.widespread complaint that too many elections were scheduled too close together

The following key factors which influenced Nigeria's foreign relations except

A.peaceful co-existence
B.economic dependence
C.non-interference
D.respect for territorial integrity
E.international co-operation

The following independence of Nigeria was in 1945 with the coming to power in British of

A.Conservative Party
B.Tory Party
C.Liberal Party
D.Labour Party
E.Democratic Party

Which of the following is not an accepted way of resolving international conflict?

A.Diplomacy
B.Propaganda
C.Non-militray use of force
D.Militray force (war)
E.Nuclear war

The membership of the state in Nigeria is made up of

A.Federal Ministers
B.State commissioners
C.State governors
D.the leader of state and the traditional chiefs
E.the state governors and the head of state

In the Oyo traditional political system the Alaafin of Oyo was elected or chosen by a group known as the

A.Bales
B.Obas
C.Ogboni
D.Bashorun
E.Oyomesi

The declaration of state of emergency in Western Nigeria was protected by the constitution of

A.1954
B.1951
C.1960
D.1963
E.1948

The primary purpose of the state is to

A.establish a system of law and order
B.train people to becaome good citizens
C.Cater for all the needs of the citizens
D.ensure the self sufficiency of its people
E.ensure that its people enjoy absolute freedom

The Armed Forces Ruling Council came into existence under the

A.Buhari Administration
B.Gowon Administration
C.Ironsi Administration
D.Obasanjo Administration
E.Babangida Administration

Which of the following is not a specialized agency of the United Nations Organization?

A.World Health Organization
B.The Food and Agriculture Organization
C.The International Labour Organization
D.The General Assembly
E.The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development

The creation of the office of the Prime Minister in Nigeria was accomplished in

A.1951
B.1954
C.1957
D.1959
E.1960

Which of the following is not a function of a party secretariat?

A.Electing the leader of the the party
B.Organizing party conferences
C.Publishing the party's manifesto
D.Planning party strtegy to win election
E.Handling publicity for the party

The first Military President of Nigeria is

A.Lt General Olusegun Obasanjo
B.Major General J.T.U Aguiyi-Ironsi
C.Major General Ibrahim Babangida
D.General Murtala Mohammed
E.General Yabbuku Gowon

The following factors favoured the introduction of a indirect Rule in Nigeria except the

A.shortage of manpower
B.shortage of funds
C.existence of a system of taxation
D.existence of educated elite
E.existence of organized traditional systems

The psychological support a regime gets from its citizens if they believe the regime is right and ought to be obeyed, is known as

A.sovereignty
B.power
C.authority
D.influence
E.legitimacy

The voluntary activities of members of a society in the selection of rulers is known as

A.political participation
B.political socialisation
C.political decision
D.political culture
E.political authority

Residual powers under the Nigerian Independence Constitution were the powers exercised by

A.the Federal Government
B.the Regional Governments
C.the Local Governments
D.both the Federal and Regional Governments
E.both the Local and regional Govenments

The highest court of appeal under the Republican Constitution of Nigeria was the

A.Federal High Court
B.Judicial Committee of the Privy Council
C.Regional Court of Appeal
D.Supreme Court
E.Federal Court of Appeal

Nigeria became a federation of 19 state in

A.1875
B.1976
C.1967
D.1978
E.1979

A popular form of proportional representation is

A.communal representation
B.single transferable vote
C.the alternative
D.the second ballot
E.electoral college

A political concept that is composed of the attitudes beliefs, emotions and values of a society is called political

A.culture
B.single transferable vote
C.authority
D.socialization
E.power