On May 29, 1999, the end of military rule
brought about a new era of regular
elections and the return of civil liberties in
Nigeria. Any volunteer handover of
government from military to civilian leaders
is unusual. Nigeria's was, arguably, unique.
Since then, there have been significant
improvement in the transition to democratic
governance in the whole of the country.

Fifteen years of hindsight offer an empirical
basis for greater optimism about the
durability and performance of democracy in
Nigeria. Despite the wave of democratisation in the country being partial and potentially reversible, and skeptics identifying important vulnerabilities, our democracy have lasted longer and tried to perform better than initially expected.

However, it is of crystal clarity that most
Nigerians are yet to enjoy the full dividends
of democratisation because the importance
of democracy has not been well served in
the country.

Abraham Lincoln's simple, concise and
universally recognised definition of a
democratic government as: "the government of the people, by the people, and for the people" emphasizes the nitty-gritty of democracy, which is all about the people. Hence, a democracy is built on the equality of the people; the freedom of these people to associate with one another for the
realisation of their ideals and the defense,
promotion of their interests. It is leadership
that is centred on the people and does not
lose them.

In Nigeria, the reverse is the case. Democracy is centred on the elites and does not lose them. Our leaders tend to forget the words of Wael Ghonim that "the power of the people is much stronger than the people in power". They tend to overlook
the fact that the essence of leadership is
service to the people.

In a bid to satisfy their whims and caprices, our leaders emerged with this erroneous view that the principles of democracy are not universal, but subjective depending on the environment. This view was exemplified by Olusegun Obasanjo, in
the Elements of Democracy, when he
opined that:

"Democracy as concurred in the West may
not suit our peculiar circumstances and
needs. As such, our conceptualisation of
democracy must take due cognizance of
our lived reality and whatever structure and
institutions that would sustain democratic
practice must reflect the peculiarities of our
(Nigerian) environment."

At this juncture, certain questions run
through the mind of any rational being: Is
democracy really subjective? Is it necessary
to subjugate the people in order to produce
this so-called home grown democracy?

The contrary notions of Obasanjo and other
like-minded Nigerian leaders have
promoted political maladroitness, led to a
great deal of improvisation, and proven to
be a root cause of our economic and
political malaise.

Two major problems seem to be the remnants of such erroneous assumptions, and have remained at the base of our dwindling democracy.

Political Godfatherism and corruption.

POLITICAL GODFATHERISM hinders the
success of our democracy. At first, Nigeria
had ideological godfathers who offered
leadership ideas and expertise which they
shared with their brilliant protegees. Their
vision was based on enforcing a philosophy
of governance for the purpose of
development. In recent time, and in the
wake of our modern democracy, godfathers
are politically clueless set of people lacking
the wisdom and ideas to impart. These new
godfathers assume their positions because
of their enormous wealth. They perpetuate
the evil in their business oriented mindset
by "investing" into politics and expecting a
return of "profit". At the detriment of the
citizenry, they rely on unscrupulous means
to satisfy their excessive thirst which is
almost insatiable. Some of such debased
godfathers and their sons are: Chief Chris Ubah - Dr. Chris Ngige, Dr. Olusola Saraki - Alhaji
Mohammed Lawal, Alhaji Lamidi Adedibu -
Alhaji Rasheed Ladoja, Sir Emeka Offor - Dr. Chinwoke Mbadinuju.

In the words of Paul Ogugua (Ph.D), "the
only contribution which this class of
godfathers has made to our democracy
includes the emergence of such citizens
that prefer money to their conscience".

CORRUPTION has become a norm in
Nigeria. It has eaten deep into our politics
and is a serious impediment to the
development of our country.

Commenting on the intensity of corruption in Nigeria, John Odey asserts:

"Today in Nigeria, corruption has become a
structural sin so contagious that it hardly
leaves anybody without a smear. And since
the country has been justifiably stigmatised
as a den of corruption, all Nigerians, both
the guilty and the innocent, have been
paying costly for it. Everywhere in the
world, Nigerians are generally feared like
mad dogs, dreaded like criminals,
cautiously approached like dangerous
snakes and watchfully avoided like lepers."

Whilst we can acknowledge that the depth
and outcome of corruption in Nigeria is
really as severe as Odey has noted, it
suffices to say that the most destructive
factor in our government (democracy) is
corruption. Whenever one listens to political
news on Nigeria, one notices that
corruption is the main cause of our
dwindling democracy.

Little wonder an Afro Barometer survey
report, as documented on www.worldpublicopinion.org , states that:

"84% of Nigerians said they were happy
with their country's democracy in 2000. In
2005, only 26% were satisfied. The 2000
poll took place shortly after Nigeria ended
15 years of military rule with the election
of president Olusegun Obasanjo, whose
popularity declined over his two-terms in
office with his government beset of
corruption scandals."

Consequently, stalling attitudes threaten the
culture of democracy in Nigeria, and under
performing democratic government have
engendered these attitudes.


An article published on News24: www.news24.com/nigeria/MyNews24/Democracy-in-Nigeria-Trends-and-major-challenges-20141113