Lawrence Olaoye 
…seeks redefinition, restructure of LG system to reflect local realities
…urges politicians to be sensitive to people’s needs, feelings
Former Speaker of the House of Representatives and immediate past governor of Katsina State, Bello Masari has raised the alarm over growing discontentment against the practice of democracy in the country.
This came as he called for a redefinition of roles and restructure of the local government administration in Nigeria.
Masari, in his keynote address at the lecture commemorating the nation’s 25th Democracy Day organized by the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF) at the Conference Centre of the Presidential Villa on Tuesday urged politicians in the country to be more sensitive to the needs and feelings of the people.
Evaluating the trajectory of democracy in the last 25 years, the former governor identified five issues that should be at the front burner henceforth.
He said “The first point is that we need to pay serious and continuous attention to the shifts in the perception of Nigerians about our democracy.
“It is easy to think that our democracy can continue to weather the storms because we have had 25 years of unbroken civil rule.
“That might be misleading. Democracy can continue to endure only when the people think it is desirable and thus worth keeping and defending.
“According to a 2022 survey by Afrobarometer, 70% of Nigerians polled prefer democracy to other forms of government. That is the good news. But 77% of those surveyed are not satisfied with the way democracy works in Nigeria, up from 57% in 2017.
“This should get us worried. We need to understand why our people are gradually losing faith in democracy, and we need to consciously strengthen their faith in democracy.
“The second point, which is related to the first, is that we need to put more effort in delivering the benefits of democracy to the vast majority of our people.
“Democracy as an idea is great. But people cannot eat it. Scholars such as Amartya Sen, the Economics Nobel Laureate, talk about the instrumental value of democracy, which is about how democracy should serve as an instrument for or a bridge to a better life for the people.
“Our people call it the Dividends of Democracy. People do not want democracy for its sake. They want democracy to translate to materials benefits for them.
“They want concrete dividends from democracy. We thus need to redouble our efforts to eliminate poverty, reduce inequality, deepen human capacities and expand opportunities in our society.
“My third point is that we need to pay special attention to the needs and mindsets of our youths. The youths constitute an overwhelming majority of our population today.
“It is projected that by 2050, Nigeria will be the third most populous country in the world, with a preponderance of young people. Nigeria can become a global economic powerhouse if we harness the full potential of our youths.
“To realise this benefit, the so-called demographic dividend, we need to create the enabling environment for our youths, and by extension our country, to thrive.
“Most of our youths are not satisfied with the system today, and they are checking out of the country in large numbers, mostly because of lack of opportunities for them to actualise their dreams.
“Let’s create the opportunities for them to stay back at home and contribute their quota to the development of our country.
“On a related note, more than half of our population today are under the age of 25. This means that most of our citizens were born after 1999. This group includes a significant number of people of voting age today.
“I call them critical voters. It is important to pay close attention to this group of citizens. On one hand, they can be called the children of democracy.
“They should be natural defenders of democracy. But on the other hand, they have no memory of how bad the alternative to democracy could be, and they may not be keen about defending
