Abstract: Primary education, in the geographical entity that is referred to presently as Nigeria, was 164 years old early this year. Before independence, the system was administered by different sets of managers including the Christian missionaries (1843-1882), the colonial government (1882-1940’s) and the regional governments (1950’s). Since, independence in 1960, the federal, state and local governments have played significant role in the administration of primary education. Poor administration has been the bane of the education system since inception. It is displayed in different ugly forms including poor timing of policy inauguration and programme implementation and pupil population explosion with the attendant result of dearth of educational resources. Statistical constraint, financial constraint and political constraint have contributed to the problem of poor management. For the system to survive, there is the need on the part of the nation to ensure political stability. It is only, when the polity is stable and all the tiers of government display the necessary political will that all the 3 constraints will be taken care of once and for all. The system will thus be invigorated and made fully prepared for the challenges in the future.