Citizenship Education

INTRODUCTION 

The term citizenship has various meanings and definitions. In one sense, citizenship may be used interchangeably with nationality denote a state of being full member of a society, community or country. In this sense, an individual is a citizen of a society, community or country if that individual is also a national of that society, community or country.

The term citizenship may also be used as a classification of the wider term nationality. In this sense nationality may be use broadly8 to include both citizens and non-citizen national who owe permanent allegiance to a country. It is important to note that even though Nigerian constitutions have used the terms citizenship and citizens of Nigeria rather than nationals and nationality of Nigeria.

CITIZENSHIP BY BIRTH (SECTION 25) 

This section operates under the principles of “Jus Sanguine”. In this regards a person’s citizenship is determined by his blood relation with the parents. Here a child is not automatically a citizen of the place of birth unless at least one of his parents is a citizen of that society, community or country.
Unlike the united state citizenship, which citizenship by birth is a combination of the customary international law principles of “Jus Soli” (citizenship by birth within a country) and “Jus Sanguine” (citizenship by blood relation to the citizen parents). It is the co-existence of “Jus Soli” and “Jus Sanguine” that gives rise to dual citizenship in many countries.

This by subsection (1) of this section, birth within Nigeria on or before independence confers Nigeria Citizenship, if any of his parent or grandparents born in Nigeria belongs or belonged top an ethnic Nigerian Community. One problem with subsection (1) (a) of this section is that the phrase belongs or belonged to a community indigenous to Nigeria is broad enough to accommodate any African from any part of the continent if only his ethnic community is similar to that existing in Nigeria.

This subsection also requires a person born or before 1st October, 1960 be born in Nigeria. Being born in Nigeria in a narrow sense may mean being born within any of the 36 state and for the Federal Capital Territory of Abuja (FCT). In the broad sense, subsection (1) (a) may confer Nigerian citizenship by birth on any person born in a ship or aircraft registered in Nigeria or belonging to the Federal Republic of Nigeria, or in a Nigerian embassy, High Commission or Mission abroad science Nigeria recognizes the customary international law principle which does not confer citizenship on an alien whose parents diplomatic immunity and privileges as was held in United State versus Cong Kin Ark!.

By the provision of subsection (1) (c) persons born outside Nigeria by Nigerian citizen are admitted into the country’s citizenship. Hence no person born outside Nigeria can claim Nigerian citizenship by birth if neither of his parents was a Nigeria citizen. If may not matter which of the parents has his citizenship through which child claims his own citizenship as was held in Shugaba Darman versus Minister of Internal Affairs & Ors2

CITIZENSHIP BY REGISTRATION (SECTION 26) 

This section provides the second method of acquiring Nigerian citizenship. This is more of a conferment, by the president of the Federal Republic, and not claim by birth as with the previous section.

Subsection (2) (a) of this section gives a wife of a Nigerian citizen who is not herself a Nigerian citizen, concession to register as a Nigerian citizen.

The problem with his subsection is that it is wide enough to qualify not only a woman who currently married to a Nigerian citizen, but also a divorce of a Nigerian citizen who might or might not have to re-married. Another issue here is that the concession for citizenship by registration is made only to a wife of a Nigerian citizen, but not to a husband of Nigerian. The foreign husband of a Nigerian citizen must. Therefore, have to naturalize if he desires to be a Nigerian citizen. The justification of this may be based on customary law rule that marriage is patrilocal not matrilocal.

Subsection (2) (b) also gives the concession for a grand-child born outside Nigeria. Secondly, it gives concession to a grand-child, who is full age and capacity. Full age and capacity means that he must be up to 18 years of age or above. However, until the president exercise his authority of making regulation, the benefit of this subsection may not in use in any body. There is also an imputation that such an aspiring citizen by registration must be a person of sound mind and one capable of taking important decisions independently and that should include his quest for a Nigerian citizenship.

By section (1) (a)-(c); to be qualified to register as a Nigerian citizen, the aspirant/applicant must satisfy the president that he is a person of good character. Although it is not certain what constitutes good character, it appears that a character will qualify to be good if it has no criminal records. Paragraph (b) of this subsection stipulates that to register as citizen, the applicant must exhibit a clear intention of desire to be domicile in Nigeria. Domicile here presupposes a consistent stay in Nigeria for a number of years with intention to make a permanent home thereon.

By paragraph (c) of subsection (i); to register as a citizen, the applicant must be willing to swear to an oath of allegiance to Nigeria as provided in the seventh schedule. Subsection (1) (c) does not say what the swearing to the oath of allegiance to Nigeria amounts to. But section 29 of the constitution makes the grant of citizenship conditional upon an effective renunciation of any other citizenship held by the applicant within.

CITIZENSHIP BY NATURALIZATION (SECTION 27) 

This section provides the third method of acquiring Nigeria Citizenship. This provision allow a foreigner who cannot acquire Nigerian citizenship by birth or registration to do so by naturalization, if he satisfies the president that he has sufficiently fulfilled all the conditions prescribed by law.
The applicant must either have been resident in Nigeria for a continuous period of 15 years immediately before his application or he must have resided in Nigeria for one calendar year that is 12 months immediately before his application. An addition to his second alternative is that the applicant must be able to show that in the preceding twenty years before that one year, he has resided in Nigeria fro a total minimum of 15 years. This second alternative takes care of people who may occasionally return to their home country once in a while on leave, holidays or other assignments for fairly long periods.
For concession to be operative, the applicant must be foreigner that foreigner may either be a treaty-foreigner (e.g an ECOWAS Citizen) or any type of foreigner.

Secondly, since the granting of citizenship by naturalization under subsection (2) of this section falls within the discretion of the president; every acquisition of citizenship by naturalization in Nigeria.