WAEC Government 1996 Past Questions

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

Delegated legislature refers to the

A.power of governmnet agencise to make laws
B.laws made by the legislature
C.transfer of law making power to the exective and judiciary arms
D.laws made by government agencies as authorised by the legislature
E.law making power granted by the legislature

Give reasons for the adoption of bicameral legislature by some countries

The concept of sovereignty was popularised by

A.J.J Rousseau
B.A.V Dicey
C.C.L Montesquieu
D.John Locke
E.Jean Bodin

(a) Explain the political concept of legitimacy

(b) What are the factors that sustain legitimacy in a state?

A system of government which allowed individual citizens to control the means of production and distribution is called

A.capitalism
B.fascism
C.feudalism
D.Communism
E.totalitarianism

Outline the factors which determine the electoral success of a political party.

Political authority is the

A.consent and recongnition of the legitimacy of the governmnet by the goverened
B.power of the governmnet to impose its will on the people
C.ability of the people to reject a bad government
D.power of the government derived from the constitution
E.independence of government actions both internally and externally

Why is it important for the Civil Service to be politically neutral?

In which of the following political system is the Rule of Law likely to be most enhanced?

A.Military
B.Parliamentary
C.Fascist
D.Monarchical
E.Totalitarian

Give reasons why the pre-colonial government in Yoruba land can be described as democratic.

An essential feature of democracy is

A.election by all adult s
B.governmnet by few wealthy men
C.participation by everyone in the economic sector
D.majority rule
E.easy decision making

Trace the constitutional evolution of federalism in Nigeria up to 1954.

Who is regarded as the father of Communism?

A.Karl Marx
B.V.I Lenin
C.Benito Mussolini
D.A.V Dicey
E.Austin Ranney

Why has it been difficult for many African countries to implement the principles of Non-Alignment?.

Which of the following is an important feature of a unitary constitution?

A.Revolutionary power
B.Concentration of power
C.Deconcentration of power
D.Enfranchisemenmt of power
E.Decentralisation of power

Highlight the main changes introduced into the Nigerian Government by the 1963 Constitution.

A major reason for enshrining fundamental human rights in the constitution is to

A.make the constitution flexible
B.make the constitution supreme
C.protect the rights of office holders
D.prevent military intervention
E.protect the rights of individuals in the society

Explain the problems facing the Economic Community of West African State (ECOWAS).

The security and ratification of major executive decisions by the legislature are an application of

A.the rule of law
B.separation of powers
C.delegated legislation
D.fusion of powers
E.checks and balances

Which of the following is the disadvantages of confederation?

A.he central governmnet is too far from the people
B.the centralauthority is vested with too much power
C.the primary loyality of the citizens is to the central government
D.it encourages secession
E.it makes a nonsense of party system

A constitution can be best be discrbed as

A.the complied laws of a state
B.a general book of laws
C.the fundamental laws to guide the government of a state
D.a detailed code of conduct for politicians
E.the reference book for judges

The process of distribution of powers among authorities distinct from the central government is known as

A.centralization
B.delegation
C.deconcentration
D.separation
E.decentralization

Constitutionalism denotes that

A.constitution is largely made up of conventions
B.the provision of the constitution is strictly adhered to
C.the constitution is not easy to amend
D.there is a constitutional Head of State
E.the provisions of the constitution are contained in a single document

Franchise means the

A.abilty to conduct elections
B.body of principles governing the conduct of an election
C.right to partcipate in an election
D.right granted to French citizens to vote
E.administrative procedure for free and fair elections

Question time in the legislature affords members the opportunity to

A.raise important questions outside the agenda
B.challenge court decisions
C.execute government policies
D.ask more questions
E.criticism of governmnet policies

Public opinion can be best be defined as

A.one man's view on public issues
B.sentiments expressed on public policies
C.the sum total of popular views on public policies
D.the view of the rich expressed on public affairs
E.a body of convictions of the electorate only

Which of the following best explains the term manifesto? The

A.constitution of the political party
B.authority to form a political party
C.proposed programme of a political party
D.symbol of the ruling political party
E.campaign strategies of a political party

Universal adult surffrage is very popular today because it

A.allows the establishment of military regimes
B.allows for equal political representation
C.encourages a multi-party system
D.ensures equal performance of all political parties
E.allows for greater political participation

The purpose of an election is to

A.allow people to participate in choosing their leaders
B.provide social amenities for the electorate
C.declare election results
D.give people political education
E.allow the counting of votes in public

Which of the following is not a method of election?

A.Simple majority
B.Proportional representation
C.Single-member constituency
D.Plurality system
E.Absolute majority

How many Nigerians were elected into Legislative Council when the elective principle was applied in

A.Two
B.Three
C.Four
D.Five
E.Six

One of the advantages of the simple majority system of voting is that it

A.discourages election malpractices
B.gives an accurate result of an election
C.is very suitable to large countries
D.is simple and cheap to operate
E.is useful in developing countries

The geographical units into which a country is divided for the purpose of elections are called

A.constituencies
B.polling
C.local government areas
D.states
E.country councils

Local authorities impose rates because

A.government wants the rich to become richer
B.the poor are expected to finance political parties
C.of the need to provide fund for public corporations
D.of the need to provide essential amenities for the citizens
E.it an is obligation of a citizen to pay such rates

Local government is described as grassroots government because

A.it is the nearest governmnet to the people
B.its headquarters is located in the villages
C.all the leaders are from the villages
D.it is the first tier of government
E.all the local people participate in it

Which of the following is true of a public corporation? It is

A.set up to make profit for the government
B.to provide essential service for the people at a low cost
C.owned by the governor of a state
D.established by a bye-law
E.owned by the minister of commerce

In the Hausa pre-colonial political system, sovereignty was located in the

A.Quadi
B.Emir
C.Waziri
D.Madawaki
E.Galadima

Which of the following was the most senior official under the British colonial administration? The

A.District Officer
B.Lieutenant Governor
C.President
D.Governor
E.Secretary for Native Affairs

A major objection to the Indirect Rule system was

A.economy in administration
B.administration through illitrate heads
C.the involvement of many Africans in administration
D.the control of territories by the colonial secretary
E.the refusal of the British to education Africans

The development of nationalist activities was more rapid in British West Africa than in French West Africa because the

A.French West Africans were not interested in having self-government
B.French administerative policies did not allow for political agitation
C.British were no longer interested in governing their acquired territories
D.British did not have a standing army in West Afric, unlike their French counterparts
E.British encouraged political agitations in their territories

The French policy of assimilation was based on the idea that the African culture was

A.expensive
B.unwritten
C.inferior
D.elaborate
E.popular

The general strike of 1954 in Nigeria gave force to the

A.formation of the Commonwealth
B.introduction of the Green Revolution
C.formation of the United Nations Organization (UNO)
D.demands of the nationalist movenment
E.staging of military coup détat

Which of the following best describes the position of the traditional rulers during the colonial period? The

A.were directly involved in government
B.made laws for the people
C.were part of the executive arm of government
D.served as a link between the people and the government
E.were directly accountable to Secretary of State for the Colonies

To have have an orderly society a state needs

A.president
B.chief judge
C.constitution
D.legislature
E.chief whip

To have have an orderly society a state needs

A.president
B.chief judge
C.constitution
D.legislature
E.chief whip

Which of the following was a resolution in North Atlantic Charter of 1941 that helped to stimulate nationalist movements in West Africa?

A.People all over the world had the right to vote and voted for
B.Whites had the right to train Africans on how to rule over themselves
C.all colonial territories should be members of the League of Nations
D.Newspaper should support the colonial masters
E.People all over the world had the right to choose their own from of government

The first commission set up to work out revenue procedure for Nigeria was the

A.Phillipson Commission
B.Chick Commission
C.Raisman Commission
D.Binns Commission
E.Hicks Commission

Which of the following is the basic factor in the formation of a federation? The

A.presence of a common enemy
B.willingness to remain dependent
C.existence of a single large ethnic group
D.presence of an ambitious ruling calss
E.desire for union

The political parties which formed a coalition government at the center after the 1954 general elections in Nigeria were the

A.NEPU and AG
B.NCNC and NEPU
C.NPC and NEPU
D.AG and NPC
E.NPC and NCNC

Which of the following political parties produced four ministers in the National Government of 1957 in Nigeria? The

A.AG
B.NCNC
C.NPC
D.NEPU
E.UMBC