Keywords: Executive, Legislative, Governance, Relationship, Rule of Law.

Abstract

This study looks at how the executive and legislative organs interact and how that affects Nigerian governance in the country's Fourth Republic (2011-2019). The study examined the cooperation, conflict, and consequences for policy-making of the relationships between the legislative and executive branches. The study made use of the separation of power theory and the descriptive qualitative method. Additionally, secondary data from journals, publications, textbooks, executive- legislature documents, and the Federal Republic of Nigeria Constitution from 1999 were used. The results of the study showed that, since the Fourth Republic's return in 1999, legislative- executive ties in Nigeria have been more tense and fraught, particularly between 2011 and 2019. It also showed that, on multiple occasions, this structure of relations between the arms had only managed to impede Nigerians from receiving quality services and decent administration instead of creating friendly relationship that can promote good governance. The study found that the relationships between the institutions have a greater detrimental effect on good governance, particularly between 2011 and 2019 when the two organs were at the loggerhead on some policies which were hindered. As a result, cooperation is necessary to support good governance. It was suggested that in order to advance good governance in Nigeria, the legislative and executive branches should support and uphold the concepts of the separation of powers.

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Published: 2026

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