REFERENDUM IN NIGERIA AND SPAIN: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS

Abstract

Referendum is the act or principle of giving the people of a country the chance to state their opinionon some important matter by voting for or against such a matter in a universal franchise. It is also a demand by a group or section in a country or sovereign state to vote for or against an issue or issues for their benefit, growth and development especially when the group feels marginalized like the two jurisdiction under review-Catalans in Spain and the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) in  Nigeria.  This  work  will  therefore  discuss  the  causes  of  demand  for  referendum  in  the  two countries. It will also bring to the fore the differences and similarities between Catalans in Spain and Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) in Nigeria. It is the finding of this work that there is no constitutional  provision  for  the  referendum  on  national  disputes  in  the  1999  constitution  of  the Federal  Republic  of  Nigeria.  This  omission  does  not  represent  the  aggregate  views  of  the generality  of  the  citizens.  Consequently,  a  number  of  conflicts  have  occurred  and  are  still occurring which have claimed many lives. The research methods to be adopted will be amongst others analytical, comparative, doctrinal and historical.