By Okeke, Vincent Onyekwere
The politics of Revenue allocation in Nigeria, 1946 - 2002 were
' examined. It was discovered that "New Federalism" operating in Nigeria has
two principal implications, which Nigerian Government must, fully
addressed. First, there is the increased dependency of the sub-national
centers of government on the federal government for fiscal resources to
enable them discharge their functions. Second, there appear to be some
doubt whether the constituent units are now operating as co-ordinates of
central government or as appendages of unitary administration.
The federal government could possibly justify its retention of more
fiscal resources by pointing to the fact that the scope and magnitude of its
activities have increased substantially in recent years. The assumptions of
these responsibilities have by no means lessened the financial burden of the
lower tiers. This is because they still have to contend with the problems of
infrastructures and the transformation of their rural economies.