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CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
The quest for democracy, good governance and national development has been the major preoccupation of the Nigerian state since independence in 1960. These laudable objectives have suffered serious setbacks due to poor leadership and the inability of the followership to hold those in positions of authority accountable for their actions and inactions. The country has thus, been left in a poor state of development characterized by endemic corruption at all levels of government and society; abject poverty and hopelessness; insecurity of lives and property; high rate of unemployment and youth restiveness; kidnapping and armed robbery; religious extremism; infrastructural deficits; among others.
Those in positions of authority have remained indifferent to the plight of the poor, the hungry and unemployed; instead, they are obsessed with siphoning the fortunes of the country, hence social injustice, corruption, poverty and insecurity have brought untold hardship to the people. The desired national transformation of the country is still a mirage in spite of the abundance of human and material resources, which should have ordinarily translated into a buoyant life for the citizenry. The greatest threat to democracy and good governance in Nigeria has thus been poor leadership, which breeds hostile political environment for national development. Since the return of democratic governance in 1999, Nigeria has been experiencing deepening political crises as a result of the defects of the democratization process and the apparent ineptitude of the political leadership.
The problem of leadership has continued to abort efforts at genuine democratization through exclusion of some segments of the political elite from effective participation in the politics of the country. According to Fayemi (2009), the long years of political misrule and bad governance exemplified by civilian administrations and military dictatorships since the country’s political independence has left the nation politically de-mobilized, humanly underdeveloped and economically sterile with an ample population ravaged by poverty. Thus, with the return to democratic rule in the country in 1999, Nigerians had expected that the new wave of political leadership and democratic governance would accelerate the tide of development in the nation. The political leadership was expected to grapple with the socio-economic and political problems of the country, which border on poverty, corruption, lack of good governance, corrupt electoral system, unemployment, and insecurity, among others.
Some of these problems are not only getting worse, but appear to defy solutions. Nigerians have become deeply frustrated and disappointed over unfulfilled hopes of solving persistent economic crises, social tensions and political instability. The emergent political corruption and deceit have created widespread national disaffection, which has been hijacked by some interest groups for their own parochial purposes. Thus, despite size and natural endowment in both human and material resources, Nigeria lingers in the doldrums, perpetually a country of the future. This is contrary to the dreams of Nigeria’s founding fathers that saw the country at independence as a beacon of hope and a bastion of democratic government in Africa (Oronsaye, 2006).
The challenges of democracy, good governance and development confronting Nigeria are deeply rooted in the quality of leadership. The inability of the political elite in the country to provide quality leadershiphas been the major reason for the failure of the Nigerian state to make progress on all globally acknowledgedindices of human development. This study is concerned with how the expectations of Nigerians for democracy,good governance and national development could be realized. Thus, the study seeks to examine the challengesand prospects in relation to the country’s quest for democracy, good governance and economic development.
1.2 Statement of Problem
In spite of series of development strategies put in place by successive governments, and sometimes with good intentions, all attempts to attain meaningful and sustainable development have proven futile. It is worrisome to note that Nigeria has not been able to bring about substantial change in the economic conditions and people’s welfare and development. As Fayemi (2009) rightly observed, the living standard in Nigeria has fast been deteriorating with inflation, unemployment, civil strife, corruption, malnutrition, illiteracy among others being on the rise. These are pointers to the fact that there are critical factors militating against the enthronement of democracy and good governance as well as attainment of national development in Nigeria. This underscores the concern of this research work, to analyse the challenges of democracy, good governance and economic development as well as the prospects for a better Nigeria.
1.3 Research Questions
For the purpose of this study, the following research questions were formulated:
- Is there a nexus between democracy, good governance and economic development in Nigeria?
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What are the problems militating against Democracy and its consolidation in Nigeria?
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What are the challenges and prospects for achieving good governance and economic development in a democratic Nigeria?
1.4 Objectives of the Study
The objectives of this study are twofold. First, the general objective; which is to critically examine the challenges militating against democracy, good governance and economic development in Nigeria from 2007 to 2015, and to also proffer solutions to these challenges. Secondly, the specific objectives are spelt out below;
- To examine the nexus between democracy, good governance and economic development in Nigeria.Other project topics and materials works you may like
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To evaluate the problems militating against Democracy and its consolidation in Nigeria.
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To investigate the challengesand prospects for achieving good governance and economic development in a democratic Nigeria.
1.5 Hypotheses of the Study
- The impediments to democracy and its consolidation are likely caused by a horde of the factors antagonistic to its achievement.
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Good governance is dependent on the capacity of governance to achieve the greater good of the populace.
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The nexus between democracy, good governance and economic development is a function of the distribution of political administration bringing out the best in the state for the people.
1.6 Significance of the Study
It is needful to carry out this research work as the federal government now faces development challenges that are vital to both welfare enhancements for the citizens in the country and the improvement of the economy in particular. Also, this study will add to the body of knowledge on the subject matter of democracy, good governance and provide possible solutions to the various challenges faced, as well as be a reference point for other researchers, policy makers and the general populace.
1.7 Scope of Study
The study covers the analytic and critical examination of the challenges and prospects of democracy, good governance, and economic development in Nigeria. In the course of this analysis, effort is made to critically examine the challenges to the concepts ofdemocracy, good governance, and economic development in Nigeria, and possible solutions are proffered to alleviate the problem and achieve the earlier stated objectives of the study. The period of this study covers 2007-2015.
Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria is a federal republic in West Africa, bordering Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in the north. Its coast in the south lies on the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean. It comprises 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, where the capital, Abuja is located. Nigeria is officially a democratic secular country. Nigeria has been home to a number of kingdoms and tribal states over the millennia. The modern state originated from British colonial rule beginning in the 19th century, and took its present territorial shape with the merging of the Southern Nigeria Protectorate and Northern Nigeria Protectorate in 1914. The British set up administrative and legal structures whilst practising indirect rule through traditional chiefdoms. Nigeria became a formally independent federation in 1960. It experienced a civil war from 1967 to 1970. It thereafter alternated between democratically elected civilian governments and military dictatorships until it achieved a stable democracy in 1999, with the 2011 presidential election considered the first to be reasonably free and fair.
1.8 Organisation of the Study
This research work is structured in five chapters. The first chapter is the introduction, which states the problem the study sets out to examine as well as the objectives of the study. The second chapter is the review of related literature with respect to the basic concepts of this study. The third chapter presents the research methodology and design. The fourth chapter is the analysis and discussion of findings while the fifth chapter is the summary of findings, conclusion and recommendations based on the findings of this work.
1.9 Definition of Terms
• Democracy: this is a set of institutions that fulfil at least two essential requirements; ability to elicit as accurately as possible the opinions of the people on who should be their representatives and how the country ought to be governed.
• Good Governance: this is the process through which a state’s affairs are managed effectively in the area of public accountability, responsiveness and transparency, and all of which must be in the interest of the governed
• Economic Development: a process of societal advancement, where improvement in the wellbeing of the people, reduction in poverty, and creation of employment are the major characteristics. This is generated through partnerships and linkages with other sectors, organisations and other groups in the society.