This was a popular question and well attempted by most of the candidates. The performance of the candidates who answered it was good as they really understood its demands. However, those who failed were completely ignorant of the changes introduced by the 1963 Republican Constitution. The candidates were expected to give the following points as answers to the question:
(i) It created the office of the President;
(ii) Supreme Court of Nigeria became the highest court of appeal;
(iii) The constitution provided for an indirectly elected Head of State;
(iv) It abolished Judicial Service Commission
(v) Republican status: The 1963 Constitution changed Nigeria from a monarchy to a republic;
(vi) It increased the membership of Senate from 44 to 56 members;
(vii) It replaced the Queen of England with a ceremonial president as the Head of State in Nigeria;
(viii) Membership of House of Representatives increased from 305 to 312 members;
(ix) The constitution introduced the fourth region - Mid-West Region with effect from 9th of August 1963;
(x) The Director of Public Prosecution, who was previously independent, now came under political control;
(xi) It provided a five year tenure for the President/Head of State;
(xii) Appointment of the Justices of the Supreme Court was done by the president;
(xiii) It transferred the appointment of the Prime Minister from Governor-General to the President;
(xiv) Each Regional Assembly elected its own Governor;
(xv) It specifically named and made Nnamdi Azikiwe the first president of Nigeria with effect from 1st October, 1963;
(xvi) Removal of Head of State to be done by a joint meeting of the parliament;
(xvii) It provided for the president of the Senate to act as president whenever the seat became vacant
