27 Years After, Nigeria’s Democracy Still Totters

Nigeria may have maintained 27 years of uninterrupted civilian rule, but the ideals of democracy remain elusive, Davidson Iriekpen writes

On Friday, Nigeria marked 27 years of the nation’s longest period of uninterrupted civilian rule since independence in 1960. Expectedly, the federal government was highly elated, declaring its commitment to strengthening democratic governance, promoting national unity and addressing the challenges confronting the nation.

President Bola Tinubu used the occasion to again reflect on Nigeria’s democratic journey, and concluded that despite its imperfections, Nigeria’s democracy remained resilient because citizens had consistently chosen leaders through the ballot box, resolved disputes through legal institutions and ensured peaceful transitions of power.

The president called on Nigerians to unite in the fight against terrorism, banditry and kidnapping. He said such joint efforts had become imperative because the battle against insecurity cannot be left to the government alone. He assured that the country would emerge stronger and more united after overcoming terrorism.

He urged citizens to avoid ethnic profiling and blame games in the face of security challenges. He assured that the country would emerge stronger and more united after overcoming terrorism.

The president acknowledged that despite the progress Nigeria has made to sustain democracy,  many Nigerians continued to face economic hardship. He assured citizens that the government remained focused on reducing inflation, increasing food production, creating jobs, improving living standards and ensuring that the benefits of economic reforms reached every household.

However, the federal government’s elated mood was not wide-spread as the insecurity across the country has provoked the ire of many Nigerians against the government, particularly due to the abduction of teachers and school children in Oyo, Borno and Kogi states.  The economic hardship is also taking its toll on citizens.

As reassuring as the president’s words were, they did little to soothe the constant pain many Nigerians were going through, either in the cold hands of bandits or the strangling hands of hunger.

Not a few had questioned if Nigeria had ever really enjoyed a democratic rule since retired General Abdulsalami Abubakar handed the reins of government to President Olusegun Obasanjo to signal the birth of the Fourth Republic on May 29, 1999. 

Recall that the life spans between the First and Third Republics were brief, with the former collapsing after six years of Nigeria’s independence from Great Britain. The 13-year period of military rule, civil war, coups and counter-coups followed and lasted until 1979, when the Second Republic came into being. That too was short-lived, lasting only four years. It was truncated by another military coup in December 1983, which lasted until 1999.

During the military rule, Nigeria suffered one of the most brutal dictatorships in the African continent, superintendent over by the late Major General Muhammadu Buhari, retired General Ibrahim Babangida and the late General Sani Abacha.

General Babangida tried to run a diarchy and attempted to create a Third Republic that would be a combination of military and civilian rule. This experiment only lasted a few months, resulting in the failed Third Republic in 1993 when General Abacha, one of Africa’s most vicious dictators, overthrew the diarchy system led by a handpicked Ernest Shonekan.

Between 1983 and 1999, it took several years of citizens’ activism, agitations by human rights activists and incredibly brutal suppression by the military dictators to overcome military rule in Nigeria. It even took some citizens to run overseas to avoid being killed by the military juntas.

While the milestone of the Fourth Republic demonstrated institutional resilience and peaceful transfers of power, it remained a mixed bag, characterised by profound socio-economic challenges, shrinking democratic space, human rights abuses, electoral disputes, and ongoing debates over true democratic dividends.

With the fierce manner Nigerians struggled to achieve democracy in 1999, many had thought that by now, the country would be a place following with milk and honey. Unfortunately, this is not the case.

Not a few Nigerians are surprised that 27 years after, citizens have continued to grapple with massive insecurity, severe economic hardship, soaring inflation, poverty, and the controversial removal of fuel subsidies, which have deeply impacted the cost of living.

On the surface, the country has features of a democracy – three arms of government – executive, legislature and the judiciary – but they are hindered by significant deficits and systemic issues.

Analysts say Nigeria’s democratic failure is rooted in weak institutions and a lack of accountability. While the executive is believed to be clueless, incompetent and manipulative, the legislature is weak and rubber-stamps executive proposals.

On the other hand, the judiciary is often accused of losing its independence, and as such, has compromised.

Those who spoke with THISDAY posited that judicial independence must be protected and insulated from executive influence. According to them, when courts align with political interests rather than legal precedent, democracy dies. Judicial appointments should be depoliticised, and judges must be empowered to hold power to account without fear of retaliation.

Elections are not only marred by irregularities; civil society and the media have been emasculated. The erosion of these key watchdogs of democracy have allowed impunity to flourish.

“If anyone had told me that 27 years of democracy, Nigeria would be what it is today, I would not have believed. A country where nothing works. A country where we cannot conduct simple elections, which is a key component of democracy, ” said one of the analysts.

This explains why many believe that despite maintaining 27 years of uninterrupted civilian rule, the ideals of democracy, justice, equity, good governance, and accountability remain elusive.

This is why many feel that democracy in Nigeria has since changed to the government of the politicians, by the politicians and for the politicians only. How else can one explain the bloated salaries allotted to the high-ranking public officers while servants who earn paltry sums are owed for months?

There is no doubt that even though Nigeria’s democracy is 27 years old, the country has remained a toddler on many fronts. The country is not measuring up in the areas of rule of law, security, free and fair elections, healthcare, education, employment, and micro and macro-economic indices.

Democracy cannot be measured only by elections or civilian governments. Its true test lies in the everyday experiences of citizens. Can they live without fear? Can they earn a living safely? Can they trust that public institutions will protect them regardless of status, connections or wealth? Are they given enough democratic space to operate freely without fear of intimidation, arbitrary arrest and detention?

To avoid any uprising that could threaten the nation’s democratic rule, the political class must, as leaders, make the people their top priority by first providing the necessities to improve their standard of living, as practised in advanced democracies. Only then will democracy be sustained.