Federalism is seen as a formidable force for managing plural societies. In the case of Nigeria, there are
two schools of thought regarding the origin of federalism. The first school argues that Britain simply
imposed federalism on Nigeria for her economic and political gains. The second school believes that
Nigerian federalism was determined by historical and geographical factors. Whatsoever it may be, the
Nigerian federalism has undergone series of metamorphoses since its formation and has not passed
most of the tests formulated by scholars of federalism. The post colonial elites to build genuine
federalism through various policies have witnessed failures including the federal character principle.
The paper concludes that the failure to build genuine federalism by political elites have created
problems for the proper operation of the federal system in Nigeria.