CHUKWU DAVID writes on the recent Democracy Day lecture organised by the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS) at which the Director-General of the institute, Prof Abubakar Sulaiman and others listed some milestones of 25 years of uninterrupted democracy in Nigeria, and factors impeding nationhood in the subsisting democratic journey

There is no doubt that Nigeria, after gaining independence from Britain 64 years ago, has passed through a chequered history in her political development, witnessing more years of military interregnum than democratic governance before the year 1999, when the present democracy finally came on board.

As political scholars always claim (which has now become contentious), that the worst democracy is better than the best military dictatorship, Nigerians have had very high expectations that having operated uninterrupted democratic system of government for 25 years, there would be a lot of dividends of democracy to justify the new order.

However, to say that after over two decades of democratic rule in Nigeria, citizens are still grappling with many socio-economic and political maladies is stating the obvious.

At last week’s 2024 Democracy Day lecture organised by the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS) in Abuja, the Director General of the institute, Prof. Abubakar Sulaiman, did a comprehensive overview of the country’s democratic journey in the last 25 years, stating some of the gains so far, as well as naming critical factors clogging the country’s journey to nationhood.

Sulaiman in his speech, themed: “Democracy and Renewed Hope Agenda: The Reforms and Matters Arising,” noted that the Democracy Day lecture series was a brainchild of NILDS and was initiated in 2022 to assess the nation’s democracy – our past, and our present vis-à-vis our democratic gains so far to foster and consolidate our democratic gains for future generations, stressing that this is pertinent considering the sacrifices made by Nigerians in wrestling power from the military after long years of military dictatorship.

The NILDS DG who was represented by Dr. Ashimiyu Abiola, Director of Studies, explained that the theme for this year’s democracy day lecture was very significant, particularly in the context of the current state of the nation’s economy, as the removal of fuel subsidies has resulted in a hike in the price of petrol and impacted the economy adversely. Sulaiman said that the situation was worsened by the floating of the Naira which weakened it against the Dollar, making the cost of foodstuff and other commodities skyrocket beyond the reach of the common man.

He also pointed out that another reason for the significance of the day’s lecture was that it would also present policy pathways for the current administration to deal with the growing scourge of depreciation in the standard of living, energy crisis, foreign exchange volatility, and labor agitations, among other issues.

His words: “Permit me to reiterate that today’s democracy day lecture is focused on assessing the nation’s economy, security, and polity generally, especially issues of security architecture, taxation and economic reforms, commodities, and agricultural reforms, new minimum wage and high inflation, institutional reforms, and democratic reforms, among others.

The objective is to identify fertile areas for policy interventions that will serve as guides to the 10th National Assembly as they carry out their legislative business. “Tellingly, there is no gainsaying the importance of this lecture because Nigeria’s democracy has, over the years, produced significant gains.

Although democratic gains are still unfolding, as most people may argue, some of these gains are evidenced in our legal system which has been greatly strengthened. The various institutional reforms that have brought about transparency and accountability are also worthy of note. Above all, for over two decades, Nigeria has had regular elections every four years to determine its leaders.

“This is the hallmark of every democracy, and it is important because, the world over, there is a growing recognition that democracy is more likely to develop and endure when all segments of society freely participate and influence political outcomes without suffering bias or reprisal.

Over time, Nigeria’s democracy has demonstrated this to a greater extent.” Prof. Sulaiman, however, declared that ethnicity, religious intolerance, fake news and corruption are some of the factors militating against Nigeria’s nationhood.

He observed that the current regime under the leadership of President Bola Tinubu is an offshoot of the 2023 general election, which left in its wake a huge division among Nigerians along ethnic and religious sentiments.

He pointed out that this was a similar threat that had resulted in long-drawn wars and avoidable human casualties in some countries, especially in Africa, such as the Rwanda genocide and the war in Burundi, among others.

Suleiman expressed concern that economic hardship in the face of perceived national division along ethno-religious lines portends danger to national cohesion and existence, lamenting that the situation was made worse by the spread of fake news and misinformation on social media.

According to him, due to these challenges, Nigerians place a lot of expectations on the Renewed Hope Agenda of the current administration to engender unity, resolve economic challenges and restore public confidence in democracy and its institutions.

His words: “Although there have been some perennial challenges to our democracy. These challenges continue to manifest and cast a dark shadow over the significant achievements in the last two decades. These enemies of nationhood continue to manifest themselves in the guise of dangerous ethnicity, religious intolerance, fake news and corruption, among others.

“The current regime is an offshoot of the 2023 general election, which left in its wake, a huge division among Nigerians along ethnic and religious sentiments.

This is a similar threat that has resulted in long-drawn wars and avoidable human casualties in some countries, especially in Africa, such as the Rwanda genocide and the war in Burundi, among others. “Thus, economic hardship in the face of perceived national division along ethno-religious lines portends danger to national cohesion and existence.

It is made even worse by the spread of fake news and misinformation on social media. You will agree with me that due to these challenges, Nigerians place a lot of expectations on the Renewed Hope Agenda of the current administration to engender unity, resolve the economic challenges, and restore public confidence in democracy and its institutions.”

He noted that the common feature of African countries currently under military rule is weak democratic institutions, which made them prone to military coups, that Nigeria must tackle her challenges and provide the needed leadership to other African countries on the merits of a democratic system that is inclusive, accommodating, and focused on the best interest of the generality of the citizenry rather than the interests and egos of individual political leaders.

Providing remedy to this worrisome problem, Sulaiman said: “The solution to our challenges requires regular and in-depth brainstorming and introspection on the successes and shortcomings of our democracy.

We must continue to reengineer our polity and strengthen political institutions to deepen democratic practices entrench good governance through regular, credible, free, and fair elections, and guarantee the independence of the judiciary.”

Presenting a keynote address at the lecture, Special Adviser on Political Matters to Vice-President Kashim Shettima, Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, said that Nigerians have a right to express opinions over their circumstances to their leaders, freely and openly, stressing that this is one of the advantages of democratic systems.

Baba-Ahmed also, posited that Nigerians equally have a duty to evaluate the promises and claims of leaders against the evidence placed before them, so that they could make informed decisions, pointing out that this too, is one benefit of a democratic system.

He noted that most Nigerians at the moment were not in the mood to make allowances and excuses for President Tinubu-led administration, saying that “the onus is on the President to engage the citizenry through all avenues that exist, and through new and innovative ways that he may invent, to enlist the support and understanding of Nigerians.”

He further said: “That is what politicians do. What the people do is to buy into the administration’s plans for the country or refuse to do so. The best leaders never give up on explaining themselves to the people who gave them mandates to govern them.

That is how it should be, because in a democratic system, elected leaders are servants whose energy and loyalty is rarely sufficient to please everyone. On many occasions, though, both the leader and the citizen find common grounds. And we need many common grounds in Nigeria right now.”

Also, speaking, the Director General of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Prof. Ayo Omotayo, stressed that the worst form of government any nation could have was military government. He added that Nigerians were both physically and mentally brutalised when soldiers were at the helm of affairs in the country.

Omotayo urged that Nigerians and the government should reflect on the gains made so far under the 25 years of unbroken democracy and explore what should be done to deepen the democracy, especially by strengthening the democratic institutions.

He expressed optimism that the nation’s democracy would get better, urging citizens not to forget how the democracy was achieved, saying: “we fought for democracy; some lost their lives, some went to jail; others got maimed for life. Our democracy will get better. But we must all work in synergy with government to get it better.”