Democracy not working in Nigeria – Obasanjo, Obi, Tambuwal, Kukah

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Labour Party presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah, and former Sokoto governor, Aminu Tambuwal, have expressed concerns that democracy in Nigeria is not functioning as it should, stressing the need for urgent reform to address the country’s challenges.

The leaders spoke on Monday at the 60th birthday celebration of former Governor of Imo State, Emeka Ihedioha, held at the Ladi Kwali Hall, Abuja Intercontinental Hotel.

Also in attendance were former Commonwealth Secretary-General, Emeka Anyaoku; former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and the immediate past governor of Katsina, Aminu Masari.

Speaking, Obasanjo stated that democracy, as it is currently practised in Nigeria and much of Africa, has failed to meet the needs of the people.

The former president noted that the Western model of democracy does not align with African values and needs, adding that “Democracy in Africa has failed because it is not African.”

Obasanjo called for a redefinition of democracy to better reflect the continent’s cultural realities and to serve the people more effectively.

He said: “Is democracy failing in Africa? Are we talking of democracy or Western liberal democracy? We should remember that in Africa, we had a form of government which attended to the needs of the people. That is democracy.

“Abraham Lincoln describes it as a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.

“But what do we have today? The Greek democracy affects everyone. But democracy has now become representative democracy and it hasn’t taken care of everyone.

“Democracy in Africa has failed because it’s not African, it didn’t have our culture and way of life. You will say, go to court when you know that you can’t get justice.

“Democracy is dying in Africa and to save it, it should be made in the context of Africa.”

Obi, on his part, was equally critical about how democracy is practised in the country, declaring that Nigeria’s democracy is not working.

The former Governor of Anambra State, while recalling his own experience, where he had to fight for his mandate after being impeached, maintained that he did not resort to bribery.

“Democracy is not working in Nigeria. Everything has been knocked down. I didn’t pay a dime to retrieve my mandate. When I was impeached, Obasanjo called to ask about my welfare. Nigeria should imbibe the Indonesian democracy, proportional representation,” Obi said.

Delivering the keynote address titled “Is Democracy Failing in Africa?”, Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Matthew Kukah, faulted the weaponisation of religion in Nigeria, which he described as one of the major hindrances to the country’s democratic development.

Kukah also described the relationship between Obasanjo and Atiku as being like a Catholic marriage, where they quarrel frequently but never break up.

He, however, called for a more honest and inclusive approach to addressing the country’s challenges.

The cleric said: “Democracy is working for different people as you can see in their outlook. There is the belief that citizens are free to rebel. There has been debate whether the Nigerian constitution is perfect or not.

“No constitution will be better than the Bible and Koran. Yet, we are still living in sin. The problem is that in Nigeria, the issue of Christian and Muslim prayer is not the best. The weaponization of religion is a big problem in Nigeria.

“Democracy is a work in progress. God doesn’t discriminate between Christian or Muslim prayers. There is no discrimination. We are children of one God. If we are not treating each other rightly, one of them must be a bastard.

“Democracy and its principles are endless contests. There are certain things God has given us which people can’t control.

“We as Africans inherited a system that’s not ours, but we can’t say it’s not relevant to us. There are differences between democracy in Asia and that of Africa. Singapore is an example. What do we make of the tenets of democracy in Africa?

“I feel sorry for the Judges. At the last election, even small me, I had people calling me, complaining, talking to this, talking to that. Pressure on Judges to deliver justice. I agree that there’s an urgent need to clean up the mess.

“Democracy is about everything, it’s about justice. How do we know if democracy is working in Nigeria? Do we measure democracy based on the things we wish ourselves?”

For Tambuwal, democracy in Nigeria is still a work in progress, but he stressed that its success depends on the commitment of political leaders to abide by the rules.

Weighing in on the emergency rule declared in Rivers State by President Bola Tinubu, Tambuwal recalled that there was cooperation in the National Assembly during a state of emergency under Obasanjo’s administration, saying that democracy can work when political actors act responsibly.

“Democracy will work if the actors play by the rules. It’s a work in progress.”

“Under Obasanjo, a state of emergency was declared. The NASS worked together to ensure that 2/3 majority passed the emergency. Each member had to vote. In this same NASS, we have the same constitution. What happened in the last one? We need to chase out the bad operators in democracy,” he stated.

Speaking at the event, Atiku said Ihedioha has remained loyal even when they found themselves on different political platforms.

“Emeka and I have kept this relationship, and till today I have found him extremely loyal, dedicated, and focused, even though sometimes we found ourselves on different political divides, but we kept our relationship, and I think that testifies to the kind of person Emeka is,” he said.