CONSTITUTIONAL and political reforms undertaken across Africa since the mid-1970s have produced significant progress in reshaping governance structures, but the abuse of incumbency power remains the greatest threat to credible elections, democracy and development on the continent, Professor of Political Science and former Secretary-General of the African Association of Political Science, Prof. Adele Jinadu, has said.

He noted that while several African countries had renegotiated aspects of their constitutional frameworks over the decades, the success of the reforms had continued to face serious structural and political challenges.

He made this known at the Foreign Policy Lecture Series titled Elections and Democracy in Africa, organised by the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA) in Lagos.

According to him, ruling parties in many African states frequently exploit state power for partisan advantage, particularly through the misuse of public sector procurement processes to generate funds for political campaigns and electoral manipulation.

He said the trend was compounded by weak institutions responsible for transparency and accountability, creating an environment where electoral laws and constitutional provisions are easily subverted.

Jinadu linked the challenges to what he described as a toxic political environment and a growing amoral political culture in some African countries, especially Nigeria, where he said politics had increasingly become criminalised. He argued that while independent electoral management bodies were important, they alone could not guarantee credible elections without a supportive political culture and strong accountability institutions.

He said the prevalence of impunity, zero-sum electoral competition, widespread vote-buying, voter intimidation and public indifference to constitutional obligations continue to undermine electoral credibility across the continent.

According to him, the factors create conditions where even the deployment of advanced technology and technical expertise by electoral bodies may fail to deliver credible elections.

Citing Nigeria’s experience, Jinadu said elections conducted in 2015, 2019 and 2023 remained controversial despite improvements in the credibility of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), including the adoption of smart card readers and internal administrative reforms after the 2011 elections.

He warned that excessive focus on constitutional design and electoral reforms, without addressing the moral foundations of political culture, would limit democratic progress.

He stressed the importance of civic vigilance, referencing the republican principle that eternal vigilance is the price of liberty, while noting that building democratic institutions in Africa has been historically difficult due to colonial legacies, post-colonial state structures and the pressures of globalisation.

Jinadu said that although Africa faced risks of democratic reversals, constitutional governance appeared to be gaining durability, with constitutional mechanisms for resolving election disputes helping to prevent violent post-election crises in countries such as Ghana, Nigeria and Kenya.