WASSCE GOVERNMENT MAY/JUNE 2003 (SSCE WAEC MAY/JUNE 2003 GOVERNMENT)
1. Government as an institution of the state refers to the
A. police and armed forces
B. judiciary the president and his minister
C. legislature, the executive and the judiciary
D. economic and political institutions
2. Authority means
A. an automatic right to be obeyed
B. legitimate right to be obeyed
C. a civic right to obey others
D. a civic right to be obeyed
3. Zionism resulted in the establishment of the state of
A. lraq
B. Jordan
C. Israel
D. Lebanon
4. As a political ideology, capitalism seeks to
A. encourage collective ownership of property
B. stimulate individual enterprise
C. eliminate social and economic inequality
D. make the rich, richer and the poor, poorer
5. The purpose of Montesquieu's theory of separation of powers is to
A. prevent tyranny by the government
B. uphold the supremacy of parliament
C. ensure equality before the law
D. guarantee free and fair elections
6. The concept of sovereignty was first introduced into political terminology in 1576 by
A. Winston Churchill
B. Jean Bodin
C. Kari Marx
D. Abraham Lincoln
7. Power is different from authority because power lacks
A. ability
B. sovereignty
C. probity
D. legitimacy
8. Oligarchy implies rulership by
A. an absolute monarch
B. a few powerful individuals
C. a military government
D. a charismatic leader
9. A fascist regime is both
A. fair and legitimate
B. responsive and responsible
C. authoritarian and totalitarain
D. democratic and constitutional
10. Freedom to act as one pleases but within the law is described as
A. democracy
B. separation of powers
C. human right
D. civic responsibility
11. A written constitution should have
A. an easy process of amendment
B. the principle of judicial interpretation
C. a hereditary process of succession
D. a propertied franchise
12. Checks and balances violate the principle of
A. rule of law
B. devolution
C. decentralization
D. separation
13. In a constitutional monarchy, the Head of State performs mainly
A. executive functions
B. judicial functions
C. administrative functions
D. ceremonial functions
14. If a member of the legislature is appointed a minister, he forfeits his seat in the legislature, this is a feature of the
A. presidential system of government
B. parliamentary system of government
C. communist system of government
D. feudal system of government
15. Which of the following statements about the presidential system is false?
A. The constitution is supreme
B. Existence of official opposition
C. The president is popularly elected
D. Ministers are not members of parliament
16. In a Unitary system of government, power is derived from
A. Judiciary
B. the executive
C. the constitution
D. source of authority
17. Citizens who are legally qualified to vote form
A. A constituency
B. the executive council
C. the House of Assembly
D. the electorate
18.Which of the following is an indirect form of election?
A. Electoral college
B. General election
C. Referendum
D. Bye-election
19. Franchise owes its evolution to the
A. development of representative government
B. establishment of state enterprise
C. development of the cabinet
D. establishment of electoral commission
20. One of the main functions of an election is
A. co-ordination of electoral activities
B. making of rules for governance
C. legitimization of the government
D. creating an avenue for politicians to make money
21. Which of the following factors limits universal adult suffrage?
A. wealth
B. age
C. education
D. heredity
22. The manifesto of a political party is a document which outlines
A. a country's political party development
B. a party's programme
C. the national ideology
D. the interest of party members
23. A system in which two or more political parties form the government is called
A. a coalition
B. an association
C. a decentralization
D. a centralization
24. Red tapism can be explained as
A. the decentralized way of taking decisions
B. a flexible way by which government decisions are taken
C. the rigid dependence on routine by civil servants
D. management by objectives
25. The major objectives of a pressure groups is to
A. influence policies of government
B. contest elections
C. control the machinery of government
D. provide political education
26. Which of the following agents of public opinion is the most widespread?
A. Mass media
B. The schools
C. The interest groups
D. Political parties
27. A statutory corporation is under the supervision of
A. the Chief Justice
B. commissioner or Police
C. a minister
D. a local government chairman
28. One of the functions of local government is to
A. collect company tax
B. make bye-laws
C. defend the nation
D. mint currency
29. The law-making body in Nigeria is called the
A. Congress
B. Praesidum
C. National Assembly
D. Parliament
30. The independence of the Judiciary is meant to
A. protest the rights of the judges
B. safeguard the liberties of individuals
C. enable judges enact laws at will
D. allow judges to participate in partisan politics
31. An institution which seeks to redress people's grievances against abuse of administrative power is the
A. Ombudsman
B. Judiciary
C. Directorate of Public Prosecution
D. Judiciary Service Commission
32. Which of the following was not a feature of assimilation policy?
A. Forced labour
B. Compulsory military service
C. Indigenat
D. Use of traditional rulers
33. Two-party system of government enables the electorate to
A. participate in government
B. choose freely between alternatives
C. moblize faourable opinion for government
D. sympathise with government
34. Nigeria was a federal state under the constitution of 1954 because the constitution provided for
A. equal representation between the North and South
B. a division of functions between the centre and the component states
C. direct election of members of parliament
D. the post of a prime minister
35. All of the following were a demands made by the National Congress of British West Africa from the colonial government except the
A. establishment of a legislative council in each of the British colonial territories
B. appointment of an African as a governor in each of the British colonial territories
C. establishment of a West African House of Assembly
D. establishment of West African University
36. The responsibilities of dividing a country into constituencies and accepting the nomination of candidates for elections are shouldered by the
A. Ombudsman
B. President
C. Eletoral Commission
D. Census Board
37. The two main policies introduced by the French in West Africa were
A. indirect rule and direct rule
B. indirect rule and assimilation
C. direct rule and indigenat
D. assimilation and association
38. The Loi cadre was passed in
A. 1959
B. 1956
C. 1955
D. 1954
39. A benefit which a country seeks to achieve in her relations with other nations is called
A. national interest
B. commercial interest
C. international diplomacy
D. foreign policy objective
40. The international organization formed after the Second World War to guarantee international peace and security is called the
A. Non-Aligned Movement
B. United Nations Organization
C. League of Nations
D. Cassablance Group
41. Under the British colonial administration, the Executive Council was purely
A. judicial body
B. an advisory body
C. charged with making laws
D. a tax collecting agency
42. The policy which sought to turn Africans into Frenchmen and rule them through institutions similar to those in France was
A. assimilation
B. association
C. Loi-cadre
D. Africanization
43. Many African leaders adopted the single-party system of government after independence in order to promote
A. fundamental human rights
B. constitutional government
C. national unity
D. competitive politics
44. The principle of non-alignment means that a country
A. is neutral in international trade
B. does not belong to any world organization
C. does not belong to any of the power blocs
D. has no diplomatic mission abroad
45. The annual budget of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) is approved by the
A. Security Council
B. Council of Ministers
C. Economic and Social Council
D. Commission of Mediation and Arbiration
46. The world health Organization (WHO) is an agency of the
A. Organization of African Unity
B. Economic Community of West African States
C. Commonwealth of Nations
D. United Nations Organization
47. The term ECOMOG means
A. Economic Community of West African Group
B. Economic Community Monetary Group
C. ECOWAS Monitoring Group
D. ECOWAS Movement Gruop
48. The Headquarters of the United Nations Organization is located at
A. New York
B. Addis Ababa
C. Vienna
D. London
49. The highest organ of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) is the
A. Trusteeship Council
B. Secretariat
C. Addembly of Heads of State
D. Council of Ministers
50. It is most unlikely for members nations of the Economic Community of West African State (ECOWAS) to
A. fuse into one political entity
B. establish a common customs tariff
C. have joint development transport and communications
D. abolish obstacles to free movement of citizens