C.B.N. V. OCHIFE (2025) 12 NWLR (PT. 2000) 1
ON PURPOSE OF SEPARATION OF POWERS OF GOVERNMENT UNDER 1999 CONSTITUTION
Separation of powers is a constitutional principle introduced to ensure that the three major institutions of the State—namely the legislative, executive, and the judiciary—are not concentrated in one single body, whether in functions, personnel, or powers.
The division ensures that the powers of each branch of government are not in conflict with others. The intention behind a system of separated powers is to prevent the concentration of powers by providing for checks and balances.
This has been meticulously done in the 1999 Constitution (as altered). Nowhere in the 1999 Constitution (as altered) have the powers of the judiciary been made subject to the powers of the executive.
The principles of separation of powers as enshrined in the Constitution must be sustained by the Supreme Court.
Further, since the beginning of a formal Constitution in Nigeria, the provision of section 287 of the 1999 Constitution has existed in various forms to protect the enforcement and integrity of judicial pronouncements.
Therefore, all arguments for the requirement of the Attorney-General’s consent to the enforcement of judgment against the government blur the lines of separation of powers.