Is Our Democracy Truly in Danger?
By Simon kolawale
After reading my article on the failed coup in Benin Republic, a friend sent me a series of chats via WhatsApp. He wrote: “As much as I agree with your piece on military rule, African presidents are shrinking the democratic space in most countries. Even before the coup, most of President Patrice Talon’s opponents were in jail. It is even worse in Tanzania. In Nigeria, opposition is free to operate butthe judiciary is practically dead. When they say ‘go to court’, they know what they are saying. You cripple the opposition. You appropriate the judiciary. The National Assembly is turned to a rubber stamp. The security agencies are clearly an extension of the ruling party’s enforcement team.”
Because I was taking a walk, I sent a one-liner: “My own is: is the military an option?” He replied: “That has always been my confusion: WHAT THEN IS THE OPTION?” I replied in capital letters as well: “MORE DEMOCRACY.” The solution to less democracy is more democracy. Because both of us lived under military rule, I decided to tease him: “Do you prefer Abacha to Tinubu?” He said: “Nooo. But that is not it. I love my freedom and I so much CHERISH democracy. But an average African leader is never ready to play by democratic rules. Honestly, I won’t join in celebrating military takeover. Not at my age (55). But we just have to strengthen this democracy. It is too flawed.” I agree with him in toto.
I found the discussion interesting. I momentarily halted my walk so I could engage more with him. He said: “The critical question is this: why do people cheer when the military takes over?” I said it is because they are gullible. “Citizens celebrated when the military seized power in Burkina Faso and Mali. Are they still celebrating?” I asked, recalling: “We celebrated when the military took over in 1983, didn’t we?” It took us a few years to realise that the problem we were battling with under President Shehu Shagari was not democracy — and military rule was not the solution. We thought life was hard under democracy only to realise sooner than later than “we ain’t seen nothing yet”.
As I continued my walk, I ruminated over the discussion with my friend, whom I met at THISDAY in 1997. We always discuss Nigeria (and football). He is so passionate about this country. He is very critical of the state of the nation, but also fair-minded. He commends what he thinks is right and condemns what he believes is wrong. He is not the type that never sees anything good in Nigeria. He is not a rabble rouser or the typical clout chaser you find on social media. Therefore, when he says he is extremely worried about the fate of democracy in Nigeria, it is not because he is on anybody’s payroll or promoting someone’s agenda. He is genuinely worried that our democracy is falling off.
Off the top of my head, there are certain characteristics I easilyassociate with democracy. One, credible elections. Every eligible citizen must be free to participate in the process, and the conduct must be fair, even if not perfect — perfection, after all, is an ideal. Two, rule of law. No person or institution is above the law, and thecourts must be obeyed. Three, human rights. A citizen has fundamental rights and enjoys the basic freedoms — speech, movement, association, thought, etc — as long as the rights of others are not infringed upon. Four, competitive elections. Citizens must have options at the polls. That is why a multiparty system is a standard measurement of democracy.
For democracy to function properly, some conditions are essential. One, the judiciary must be independent. Justice can only be done when it is not unduly influenced or manipulated. Two, there must be checks and balances, accountability and transparency. The legislature must not be a rubber stamp. The executive arm must be held accountable by all, including the judiciary, the legislature and the citizens who may organise as civil society groups. Three, citizens must cultivate a democratic culture. They must respect other people’s right to choose the parties and candidates they prefer. They must accept the outcomes of elections and judicial processes. Some people are sore losers.
My friend’s greatest concern about our democracy revolves around the mass defection to the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the questionable judgments by the judiciary on political matters. The rate at which politicians, governors in particular, are defecting to the ruling party is menacing. We may end up with over 30 governors in the APC before the presidential election. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which used to be a behemoth, is fast becoming a carcass. The African Democratic Congress (ADC) — which some major opposition figures have adopted as the alternative to the APC and PDP — is yet to test its electoral strength but at least it remains a viable option.
In my opinion, democracy cannot be exciting when almost everybody belongs to one party. The beauty is the variety — the options available to the people and the competition that this should engender. Why then are so many politicians flocking to the APC? It may be linked to my friend’s second fear — that the judiciary has been emasculated. With the PDP crisis, members are unsure of the faction the courts will recognise. That means their candidature in the coming elections may be nullified. The courts have been more than a disinterested party in our democracy; judges are installing governors and lawmakers. Since the APC is crisis-free, it is a safer vehicle for politicians.
Many will argue that the PDP crisis was orchestrated by the APC to create the scenario we have now found ourselves. The chief actor is Chief Nyesom Wike, a PDP member who is also a minister in the APC government. The word on the streets is that it is part of the overall strategy of the ruling party to weaken the opposition. Sadly, nobody can rely on the judiciary to resolve the PDP crisis: the judges seem to always move the goalposts. I have lost count of the number of orders and judgments on the crisis despite a pronouncement by the Supreme Court that intra-party matters should not be adjudicated upon. Many Nigerians have given up on the judiciary and the police, and this is tragic.
However, political parties are merely vehicles to win elections in Nigeria. Defections should not be surprising. The PDP and APC have both benefitted from the lure of incumbency. The PDP that used to be like honey to the ants has become a poison. The APC may go the way of the PDP at some point in the future. When all sorts of politicians with different values congregate on one platform, it is only natural for the alliance to weaken when interests begin to diverge. Many would argue that these defections are not really organic, that it is a game of convenience and survival. An implosion is, thus, inevitable. And as Senator Ali Ndume asked, governors are defecting but what about the voters?
Is our democracy truly in danger because of defections, disputed election outcomes and judicial pronouncements? This is not a concern to be dismissed with a wave of the hand. But the biggest danger, to my mind, is the poor level of civic engagement. Democracy, by nature, has an in-built self-cleansing mechanism that active citizenship can activate. But the wiring of many Nigerians is “all or nothing”: if their candidates don’t win an election or a petition, they want to set the house on fire. Democracy to them is only when things go int their favour. The opposition did this when the PDP was in power: if they won an election, it was credible; if they didn’t, it was the worst election since 1914.
It is poor citizenship to resort to coup-baiting because your candidate lost an election. If you really love military rule, why not relocate to Mali, Niger or Burkina Faso? Why are you rushing to Canada, the US and the UK where democracy has survived its own crises? How many African countries have been developed by military rule? If military dictatorship has not proved to be better, why would you want to ditch an evolving system which you can actively contribute to building? If democracy is shallow, what we need to do is deepen it. Democratisation is a journey. It is our duty as citizens to keep pushing forward, despite our frustrations. It is said that eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.
Our democracy is endangered largely because of the dearth of democrats. In the famous words of the late Prof Claude Ake, “You cannot build a democracy without democrats.” Most of our leaders have no regard for democracy. All they want is power, by all means. They must raise their game and make democracy work for the people. That is the best way to counter the coup-baiting. But the people must also police the system energetically and altruistically rather than throw up their hands in surrender. Sadly, the civic space is polarised and poisoned because of partisanship. Statesmanship is scarce. Still, I want to ask: if our democracy is endangered, ismilitary dictatorship a better option?
AND FOUR OTHER THINGS…
PROMOTION BONANZA
There was widespread objection, both in the military and civilian circles, when it emerged that Col Nurudeen Yusuf, ADC to President Bola Tinubu, was to be decorated as a brigadier-general— less than a year after his last promotion. I cannot see any justification for it. I am happy that the president saw reason and retreated. If this had gone ahead, it could have caused transgenerational damage to the military establishment. Yusuf’s rapid promotion would have been somehow justifiable if he had commanded a theatre that liberated Borno state from terrorists. But you move from lieutenant colonel to colonel and to brigadier in two years just for standing behind the president? Wonderful.
VISA BAN
Finally, we are itching towards a total US visa ban. On Tuesday, Nigeria was added to the list of countries placed on “partial visa restrictions”. Previously, President Donald Trump had unilaterally revoked the reciprocal five-year visa agreement to the applause of some Nigerians. Then the “Christian genocide” campaign was ramped up, and we are now under restrictions. If we finally get a full ban, it will be a big political victory for the campaigners. But, in the meantime, we need to know that it is mostly ordinary Nigerians, including ardent Trump fans, that will be affected by the latest visa restrictions. The A1/A2/A3 visa category for government officials is not affected. Not yet. Absurd.
TAINTED PERMIT
We are back to the issue of “status quo” again. In legal terms, returning to status quo used to mean no party should do anything that will affect the core matter in dispute. But when President Olusegun Obasanjo engineered the illegal removal of Governor Rashidi Ladoja of Oyo state in 2005 and the court said all parties should maintain status quo, the government said the impeachment was the “status quo” that should be maintained. The Supreme Court eventually returned Ladoja to office. Now a court has ruled that status quo should be maintained in the legal tussle over the tinted glass permit. Police authorities have said status quo means the enforcement should continue. Nigeria!
NO COMMENT
The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has petitioned FIFA, alleging that DR Congo fielded ineligible players during the World Cup playoffs. The NFF accused Congo of deceiving FIFA into clearing players for its national team despite their status contravening the country’s citizenship laws. Our plan is clear: if we can’t qualify on the ball, we can make it in the boardroom. If we manage to get Congo technically disqualified, we will still have to beat Iraq in the intercontinental playoffs in March 2026 before we can make it to the World Cup proper. I want to suggest that the NFF should start digging for dirt on Iraq in case they also defeat us. We can say they used Iranians, not Iraqis. Hahahaha.
