WAEC Government 2006 past questions

Checked by the Skolra question team · Last updated 15 October 2026

Ten questions from the 2006 WAEC Government paper, with answers and explanations. We hold 44 questions from this paper, and the Skolra app has all of them.

WAEC Government 2006 questions and answers

1. 1.Notational Congress of British West Africa (NCBWA)failed to achieve its aims initially because
   1. A
      it lacked mass popular support from ordinary West Africans
      Correct
   2. B
      it was secretly funded by rival European powers
   3. C
      the British colonial government enthusiastically recognised and supported its demands
   4. D
      it was dominated by violent anti-British revolutionaries
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   Answer: A

   The NCBWA struggled to achieve its aims at the outset primarily because it lacked mass popular support. The organisation was largely elite-driven — dominated by Western-educated lawyers, merchants, and journalists — and failed to mobilise the ordinary population of farmers, traders, and workers. The British colonial authorities also refused to take its petitions seriously, partly because they could demonstrate that the Congress did not speak for the broad West African public.

2. 2.The number of chambers in a bicameral legislature is
   1. A
      Two
      Correct
   2. B
      Four
   3. C
      One
   4. D
      Three
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   Answer: A

   The prefix bi- means two. A bicameral legislature therefore consists of two chambers: an upper house and a lower house.

   In Nigeria, the National Assembly is bicameral — comprising the Senate (upper chamber) and the House of Representatives (lower chamber). A legislature with one chamber is called unicameral. No standard legislature has three or four chambers.

3. 3.The political system which allows equal access to the means of production, distribution, and exchange is called
   1. A
      Theocracy
   2. B
      Fascism
   3. C
      Socialism
      Correct
   4. D
      Capitalism
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   Answer: C

   Socialism is an economic and political system in which the means of production, distribution, and exchange are owned or regulated collectively — either by the State or by the community — so that all members have equal access to economic resources.

4. 4.The functions of political parties include the following except
   1. A
      Formulation of government policies
   2. B
      Political education of the masses
   3. C
      Adjudication of electoral disputes
      Correct
   4. D
      Recruitment and nomination of political leaders
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   Answer: C

   Political parties perform several vital democratic functions: they educate citizens on political issues, recruit and nominate candidates for public office, aggregate interests from various groups into coherent policy platforms, and when in power, formulate and implement government policies.

5. 5.Which of the following is an advantage of local governments in West Africa? Acting as
   1. A
      independent units that can override federal laws
   2. B
      training grounds for political leaders
      Correct
   3. C
      organs that permanently replace traditional rulers
   4. D
      channels for disbursing foreign aid to central government
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   Answer: B

   Local governments serve as training grounds for political leaders by giving aspiring politicians their first experience of governance, administration, and public accountability at the grassroots level. This is widely recognised in West African political science as one of the core advantages of the local government tier — it builds a pipeline of experienced leaders who understand community-level governance before moving into higher office.

6. 6.An essential feature of a State is
   1. A
      Sovereignty
      Correct
   2. B
      A written constitution
   3. C
      A multi-party system
   4. D
      A large population
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   Answer: A

   A State is defined by four essential elements: population, territory, government, and sovereignty. Of these, sovereignty is the most distinctive and indispensable feature.

7. 7.Free and Fair election is necessary for democracy to thrive because it
   1. A
      Ensures the legitimacy of elected officials
      Correct
   2. B
      Guarantees victory to the ruling party
   3. C
      Reduces the number of contesting parties
   4. D
      Prevents the judiciary from intervening in politics
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   Answer: A

   The foundation of democratic governance is the consent of the governed. A free and fair election is the principal mechanism through which that consent is expressed and verified.

8. 8.Which of the following principles negates the concept of the Rule of Law?
   1. A
      Supremacy of the constitution
   2. B
      Immunity from prosecution for state officials
      Correct
   3. C
      Equality before the law
   4. D
      Independence of the judiciary
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   Answer: B

   A.V. Dicey's Rule of Law rests on three pillars: the supremacy of the law, equality before the law, and the predominance of legal spirit (rights secured through courts). Each of these demands that no person — however highly placed — is above the law.

9. 9.The two components of sovereignty are
   1. A
      Legal and political
   2. B
      Internal and external
      Correct
   3. C
      Absolute and limited
   4. D
      Federal and unitary
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   Answer: B

   Sovereignty has two recognised components. Internal sovereignty refers to the supreme authority of a State over all persons, institutions, and organisations within its territory — the government's power to make and enforce laws domestically.

10. 10.Elective principle was introduced in the British colonies after
    1. A
       the Second World War
    2. B
       the Berlin Conference of 1884–1885
    3. C
       the First World War
       Correct
    4. D
       the founding of the United Nations in 1945
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    Answer: C

    The elective principle was introduced into British West African colonies following the First World War. The Clifford Constitution of 1922, promulgated for Nigeria, was the landmark instrument that first allowed a limited number of Africans to be elected (rather than nominated) to the Legislative Council. This reform came in the post-war environment in which colonial subjects who had contributed to the war effort began pressing for greater political participation.

The questions come from past JAMB, WAEC and NECO papers. We use software to help write the answer options and explanations, and every answer is checked twice before it goes on the site. How we check

Spotted a wrong answer? Tell us from the app or on the contact page and we check it.

Practise all 44 questions we hold from the 2006 paper, on a timed CBT screen

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