Abstract

Nigerian Political Culture: The Saga of Militarism

Barr Okeke VOS and Ugwu Chukwuka

Military rule became dominant feature of government in Nigeria only after political independence, especially from January 15th 1966. This has become a national problem. The role of the military in the Nigerian politics has generated a lot of heated debates. The great question is, why has the military not only undertaken its traditional function of protecting the nationâ????s territorial integrity but has vested interest in the administrative role and politics. This paper addresses questions relating to whether Nigerian political culture is a creation of militarism? Or is the militaristic political culture in Nigeria fallout from the constitution? The task of this paper is to raise critical questions on the role of the Nigerian constitution in permitting the entrance of military in governance.