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Obasanjo's first term in office as a civilian president (1999 - 2003) was a major litmus test for the future of Nigeria's fledgling democracy. Set in a critical conjuncture characterized by high popular expectations and international goodwill on the one hand and weak institutions and deep-seated social cleavages exacerbated by years of military rule on the other, the new civilian governments at the Federal and State levels were expected to quickly deliver the "dividends of democracy" to prevent an authoritarian throwback. The expectations included a quick improvement in social service delivery, ending egregious human rights violations of the military era, improving infrastructure, strengthening institutions of governance and creating jobs. But how did the Obasanjo regime fare in meeting the citizens' expectations in its first term in office? What were the challenges faced by practitioners in all the branches and levels of government in achieving their electoral promises and public expectations? And how did they respond to those challenges? In this book, some of Nigeria's leading academics dialogue with politicians who hold or have held key political positions, including Governor Ibrahim Idris of Kogi State, former state governors Orji Kalu, Sam Egwu and Chris Ngige, as well as other key political practitioners to find answers to some of the above questions. The contributors address numerous thorny issues in Nigerian politics and governance including federalism and presidentialism, elections and the electoral process, the judiciary and courts, parties and the party system, the economy, as well as foreign policy. Specifically, they address the issues of executive-legislative relations, executive-judiciary relations, party-government relations, Federal and State relations and the relations between President Obasanjo and State Governors that he regarded as recalcitrant. The book is unique in that it departs from the conventional academic balance sheet approach of matching popular expectations against government's service delivery to actually incorporate the views and experiences of the practitioners in the field. This is done not for self-justificatory purposes, but to genuinely articulate and perspectivise the challenges the practitioners faced and their own efforts at coping with such challenges. ____________________________________________ Elo Amucheazi is a distinguished retired professor of Political Science at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka and former Director-General of National Orientation in Nigeria. He is currently adjunct Professor of Political Science at the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka and Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of Council of the Anambra State University. He has published widely on Nigerian Politics, including the classic study of pressure group politics in Nigeria entitled Church and Politics in Eastern Nigeria (1986) Okechukwu Ibeanu is professor of Political Science and Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. He is also the Special Rapporteur of the United Nations Human Rights Council on the adverse effects of toxic wastes on the enjoyment of human rights. He has published extensively on conflict and security issues in the Niger Delta, including Civil Society and Conflict Management in the Niger Delta (2005) and Oiling Violence (2006), which is on the proliferation of small arms and light weapons in the Niger Delta. His latest book is Election and the Future of Democracy in Nigeria (2007).
This book examines the challenges confronting the practice of democracy and governance in Nigeria. The book examines the theoretical underpinnings and the procedural and institutional components of democratic practice in Nigeria, including the challenges associated with elections, the legislature, the media and gender issues. Approaching the pluralistic characteristics of the Nigerian state and how they impede democratisation through contributions by experts and scholars in the field, the book analyses the issues and nuances inherent to governance and democracy in Nigeria, as well as domestic policy process, global governance and human security. Democratic Practice and Governance in Nigeria will be of interest to students and scholars of African politics and democratisation.
An introduction to the politics and society of post-colonial Nigeria, highlighting the key themes of ethnicity, democracy, and development.
The year 1999 was a watershed in the history of Nigeria as it witnessed the peaceful transfer of power from the military to the political class. Given Nigerias tumultuous history of successive military interventions, this development was the first genuine transition that saw the military elite transferring political power to civilians without itching to stage a comeback. This edited volume, composed of 22 chapters discusses the form, trajectory and substance of democratic governance in post-military Nigeria between 1999 and 2014. It is a compilation of well researched essays and narratives on Nigerian government and politics. The book is a multi-disciplinary assessment of Nigerias democratic strides, including contributions from scholars in a broad range of disciplines such as history, sociology and anthropology, political science, economics, international relations, among others. The book examines the factors responsible for the resilience of the current democratic governance structures, in spite of centripetal and centrifugal forces frustrating democratic consolidation in the country. It equally interrogates these factors and makes appropriate recommendations for overcoming them. Key themes covered in the book in the Boko Haram insurgency, governance and corruption, militancy, sharia law, Islamic banking amongst others. It sheds light on contending issues affecting, afflicting and retarding the countrys progress. Issues like ethnicity, electoral corruption, human rights abuses, privatization of national assets, kidnapping and armed robbery, overbearing leadership personality and many more are critically discussed. Local government autonomy and the challenges of grassroots development and civil service administration are also thoroughly analysed. Democratic Governance and Political Participation in Nigeria 1999-2014 is a detailed, exhaustive, deep, stimulating and captivating narrative of the Nigerian situation. It is enthusiastically recommended for those who wish to know more about contemporary Nigerian history. As a collection of contemporary issues on the Nigerian government and politics, the book is recommended for courses in politics and governance in Nigeria in particular and Africa in general. It is an invaluable companion for both graduate and undergraduate students as well as scholars of African politics.
This interdisciplinary and comparative study examines the Nigerian political system as a template for a historical and contemporary global comparative review and understanding of democracy-bureaucracy relations.
This book addresses various issues that have arisen in the practice of democracy in Nigeria since 1999, focusing on the Obasanjo years (1999-2007). Nigeria's return to democratic rule has been marked by developments such as the implementation of reforms to address perceived economic problems and corruption. The introduction of democracy in the country has also witnessed many challenges, including the difficult relationship between some political chief executives and their deputies; intriguing intergovernmental relations; the rise and resurgence of sub-national groups that pose serious threat to the hegemony of the state; precarious inter-ethnic/inter-sectional relations; attempts to perpetuate the tenure of chief executives through constitutional amendments; and developments in electoral politics and conflicts. The book provides incisive analysis into these issues.
This book sheds new light on the often shadowy, but essential role of committees, which exist in modern parliaments around the globe, and it questions the conventional notion that the ‘real’ work of parliament happens in committees. Renowned country specialists take a close look at what goes on in committees and how it matters for policy making. While committees are seen as the central place where policy is made, they often hold their sessions closed to the public and calls for transparency are growing. To understand this "black box" it is necessary to look within but also beyond the walls of the committee rooms and parliament buildings. Bringing together formal and informal aspects, rules and practices shows that committees are not a paradise of policy making. They have great relevance nonetheless: as crystallization points in the policy networks, as drivers for division of labor and for socialization and the integration of MPs. The new insights presented in this book will be of interest to scholars, students and professionals in parliamentary affairs, legislative studies, government, and comparative politics. They are also relevant for political analysts, journalists, and policymakers.
Recent political thought has grappled with a crisis in philosophical foundations: how do we justify the explicit and implicit normative claims and assumptions that guide political decisions and social criticism? In The Practice of Political Theory, Clayton Chin presents a critical reconstruction of the work of Richard Rorty that intervenes in the current surge of methodological debates in political thought, arguing that Rorty provides us with unrecognized tools for resolving key foundational issues. Chin illustrates the significance of Rorty’s thought for contemporary political thinking, casting his conception of “philosophy as cultural politics” as a resource for new models of sociopolitical criticism. He juxtaposes Rorty’s pragmatism with the ontological turn, illuminating them as alternative interventions in the current debate over the crisis of foundations in philosophy. Chin places Rorty in dialogue with continental philosophy and those working within its legacy. Focused on both important questions in pragmatist scholarship and central issues in contemporary political thought, The Practice of Political Theory is an important response to the vexed questions of justification and pluralism.
This book investigates Nigeria’s soft power capabilities in West Africa, demonstrating the extent to which the power of attraction may serve the country’s foreign policy interests. With the increasing popularity of internationally acclaimed cultural outputs, including afrobeat, Nollywood, and charismatic Pentecostalism, and a foreign policy disposition that is altruistic and sparsely transactional, there is increasing interest in how these soft power attributes influence perceptions of Nigeria in Africa. Drawing on extensive original research in Ghana and Liberia, this book highlights the attractive and unattractive elements of Nigeria’s soft power potential. In so far as it makes the case for Nigeria’s soft power in West Africa, it also discusses the challenges encumbering the effective deployment of the full range of Nigeria’s soft power capabilities in the operationalization of its African policy. This book is a timely contribution to prevailing scholarly discussions about the nature and utility of soft power in Africa. It will be of interest to both Africanists and researchers of international relations, foreign policy, and political science more broadly.
Between 1974 and 1990 more than thirty countries in southern Europe, Latin America, East Asia, and Eastern Europe shifted from authoritarian to democratic systems of government. This global democratic revolution is probably the most important political trend in the late twentieth century. In The Third Wave, Samuel P. Huntington analyzes the causes and nature of these democratic transitions, evaluates the prospects for stability of the new democracies, and explores the possibility of more countries becoming democratic. The recent transitions, he argues, are the third major wave of democratization in the modem world. Each of the two previous waves was followed by a reverse wave in which some countries shifted back to authoritarian government. Using concrete examples, empirical evidence, and insightful analysis, Huntington provides neither a theory nor a history of the third wave, but an explanation of why and how it occurred. Factors responsible for the democratic trend include the legitimacy dilemmas of authoritarian regimes; economic and social development; the changed role of the Catholic Church; the impact of the United States, the European Community, and the Soviet Union; and the "snowballing" phenomenon: change in one country stimulating change in others. Five key elite groups within and outside the nondemocratic regime played roles in shaping the various ways democratization occurred. Compromise was key to all democratizations, and elections and nonviolent tactics also were central. New democracies must deal with the "torturer problem" and the "praetorian problem" and attempt to develop democratic values and processes. Disillusionment with democracy, Huntington argues, is necessary to consolidating democracy. He concludes the book with an analysis of the political, economic, and cultural factors that will decide whether or not the third wave continues. Several "Guidelines for Democratizers" offer specific, practical suggestions for initiating and carrying out reform. Huntington's emphasis on practical application makes this book a valuable tool for anyone engaged in the democratization process. At this volatile time in history, Huntington's assessment of the processes of democratization is indispensable to understanding the future of democracy in the world.