As Nigeria marks 26 years of uninterrupted democratic rule, regional groups have declared that politicians are the problem of the country, not the system of government.
In their different comments marking the activities of Nigeria’s June 12 democracy, the regional bodies said that unless the politicians abandon the prioritisation of personal interest, the masses would not feel the needed dividend of democracy.
In the opinion of the apex northern socio-cultural organisation, Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), politicians can sabotage any system of government in Nigeria unless they subdue their personal interests and work for the interests of Nigerians.
ACF accused the politicians of not allowing Nigeria’s government system to work.
Speaking with LEADERSHIP in a telephone interview, ACF national publicity secretary Prof. T.A. Muhammad Baba condemned early campaigns ahead of the 2027 elections, stressing that such moves were intended to divert Nigerians’ attention from insecurity, economic challenges, and other challenges facing the nation.
ACF said, “In our opinion, any system of government doesn’t matter. We adopted a presidential system of government, and now we are complaining that it is too expensive. The politicians are the ones who don’t want the system to work. Any system of government that Nigerians can adopt, politicians will sabotage the system, and it will not work effectively because of their interests.
“Many politicians don’t have the country’s interest at heart; they only have their own interests.
“We are complaining that the presidential system of government is too expensive, but is the same politicians who are making it expensive.”
Commenting on the current politicking, ACF said, “On the issue of early campaigns ahead of 2027 elections, what I can say is that politicians who cannot offer dividends of democracy to Nigerians are hiding under early politicking to divert the attention of Nigerians. To such politicians and our leaders who are campaigning in just two years of a one-year term, Nigerians will not notice their low performance.”
Democracy Still Better For Nigeria Despite Inherent Lapses, Says Afenifere
Speaking on behalf of Afenifere, the national publicity secretary of the pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Comrade Jare Ajayi, said that democracy is still Nigeria’s best form of government, notwithstanding its perceived shortcomings.
According to him, democracy may not be perfect, being a human contraption; however, it appears to be far better for now among the known political systems since it allows most people to participate in governance.
“Democracy has its shortcomings, no doubt. But a legion of these shortcomings are due to human factors, greed and self-centredness especially,” he said.
The Afenifere publicity secretary stated that Nigeria’s experience in the last 26 years “has shown clearly that most politicians parading themselves as democrats are doing so only to cajole the people. Most of their actions go against the tenets of democracy as we know it.”
He strongly advocated the return to the parliamentary system of government, “not only to drastically reduce the cost of governance but also to curb corruption and check the tendency of political office holders not to be answerable to the people.
Comrade Ajayi expressed hope that the Constitution would be reviewed early enough for the 2027 elections under the parliamentary system.
On President Bola Tinubu’s two years in office, the Afenifere spokesman said the last two years were quite challenging for citizens and those in charge.
He, however, expressed optimism that the remaining years of President Tinubu’s tenure would herald a better deal for Nigerians.
Ohanaeze Insists On Restructuring As Way Forward
For its part, the apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, has insisted on restructuring Nigeria as the way for the country to make progress.
It stated that restructuring would allow the different regions to control their resources and develop at their own pace.
Ohanaeze national publicity secretary Dr Ezechi Chukwu disclosed this in an exclusive interview with LEADERSHIP in Enugu.
He stated that restructuring will promote healthy competition among the regions.
On the issue of rotation, the Ohanaeze spokesman insisted that zoning has not worked over the years and is not in the country’s constitution.
Therefore, he maintained that he was against zoning and described it as an agreement between power mongers who use selective means to determine where the power went, depending on how it suited them.
Lives Have Not Been Improved Significantly – MBF
Speaking on the same matter, the Middle Belt Forum (MBF), in a statement issued to LEADERSHIP on its assessment of democracy in Nigeria, stated that 26 years of democratic governance had not significantly improved the lives of ordinary Nigerians.
According to MBF, while elections are regularly held under contentious atmospheres, the democratic experience has largely failed to deliver good governance to the electorate.
The statement, which was signed by the national spokesman of the Forum, Luka Binniyat, argued that the standards of living have declined, and insecurity and poverty are at unprecedented levels.
“At the same time, civilian leaders have often exhibited the same authoritarian tendencies as the military, and in some cases, worse,” he said.
The Forum also pointed out that corruption remains systemic, cutting across party lines and levels of government.
The MBF noted that in Transparency International’s 2024 Corruption Perceptions Index, Nigeria ranked 145 out of 180 countries, underscoring the depth of the problem.
It further stated that despite a robust legal framework on paper, institutions meant to check the abuse of power remain weak, compromised, or politically manipulated, adding that democracy has only allowed a shift from military to civilian rule, which should be a positive development.
On the way toward 2027 and beyond, the Forum insisted that Nigeria must adopt a new constitution urgently.
Democracy Is Better Than Military Rule, Says Ohanaeze Youth President
Conversely, however, a youth group, Ohanaeze Youth Council, has declared that democracy, as a system of government, has been good to Nigeria.
The group’s national president, Mazi Okwu Nnabuike, was assessing 26 years of unbroken democracy in Nigeria and insisted that the nation’s democratic experience so far has been better than in a military regime.
He urged Nigerians to be patient with their leaders, adding that Rome was not built in a day.
Nnabuike expressed hope that before the next 50 years, Nigeria will do better than even America.
Democracy Has Been Beneficial To Nigeria, But… – Ex-PANDEF Spokesman
Similarly, the immediate-past spokesman of the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), Dr. Ken Robinson, has said democratic rule has been beneficial to the country.
Robinson, who stated this in a chat with LEADERSHIP in Port Harcourt, however, said there is room for improvement.
He said, “Yes, democracy has benefited the country, although there is significant room for improvement. However, even the worst form of democratic or civil governance is preferable to the best military rule.
