Political scientists fault Nigeria’s liberal democracy

Olurode reiterates calls for regional govt
Nigeria Political Science Association (NPSA) has advised President Bola Tinubu to constitute a technical committee to review the concept of liberal democracy and its practice in the country.

According to the association, liberal democracy is the cause of challenges facing the country over the years.

For former commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof Lai Olurode, Nigeria will surely do better with a ceremonial President at the centre, while the regions retain its first 11. “To manage Nigeria’s pluralism effectively and productively, more life is better breathed to the regions,” asserted.

NPSA President, Prof Hassan Saliu, told newsmen that the socio-political and socio-economic challenges bedevilling the country might continue, “because both capitalism and its offspring, liberal democracy, have been observed to suffer from perennial crises, not only in Nigeria but everywhere in the world.”

The Political Science don at the University of Ilorin (UNILORIN) said liberal democracy theory was developed to complement capitalism, adding that it was the political face of capitalism, which was not designed for commoners.

Saliu saw no need for another constitution conference because of the cost implication, considering the country’s economic situation.

He, therefore, called for the constitution of a technical committee to work on past efforts in constitution conferences and bring out something that would help the country resolve most of its problems.

“For us as a professional association, we don’t believe in chasing the shadow. Most Nigerians talk about the high cost of this and that. Some would blame the All Progressives Congress (APC) and other parties, while some talk about ethnic rivalry or chauvinism, religious intolerance etc, but we, as an association, have risen above all that.

“We say all these are manifestations of a system. Why can’t you confront the system? The system in this case happens to be the vehicle with which we are practising our democracy, which is liberal democracy. Look around the world, liberal democracy is facing challenges, though it is the most popular form of democracy. In our view, not much tinkering; policy efforts can cure liberal democracy from its original sickness.”

OLURODE emphasised the importance of internal party democracy and adherence to party constitutions in building credible opposition in the country.

According to Olurode, the major challenge facing political parties is the absence of internal democracy, diverse acts of impunity and the rampancy of rapacious money culture, which leads to oligarchic tendencies where a few party members wield significant control.

Speaking with The Guardian, yesterday, he noted that this phenomenon is found in other political regimes as well.

He criticised the lack of ideology among party members, noting that politicians were primarily driven by personal interests and greed rather than a shared vision of development.

He said: “It is often not easy to draw a line between one political party and another, unlike in the First and Second republics. Nigerian political parties are now all for the free market economy, the laissez-faire state. Access to basic social services has become severely restricted.”

Olurode stressed that opposition parties must form alliances based on shared ideas and values, prioritising the citizens’ lives, rather than merely seeking power.

To achieve this, he advised parties to build on common ideologies, rather than personal interests or financial influence.