Multi-Party System and Democratic Processes in Nigeria: A Case Study of the Fourth Republic
Chapter One
Aims and Objectives of the study
The study’s major aim is to examine the Nigerian multiparty system and democratic processes in the Fourth Republic. Other specific objectives of the study include;
To find out the relationship between the multi-party system and democratic processes in Nigeria in the fourth republic.
To access the political implications of the multi-party system in Nigeria and the Fourth Republic.
To assess whether a multi-party system ensures democratic consolidation in Nigeria in the fourth republic.
To recommend ways of ensuring an improved democratic process through the multi-party system in Nigeria.
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
Concept of Political Party
Alabi and Arowolo (2009) see political parties as a well-organized group of people or individuals with similar idiosyncrasies who seek to gain and maintain the control of power in order carry out governmental roles and policies. Political parties bring people of different ethnicity and creed but with similar ideologies and perspectives. The above statement clearly explains the attributes of any political party; the formation of a political party entails similar views and shared interests. Omotola (2010) on the other hand see a political party as a maker of a functioning democracy in any democratic nation of the world, hence no nation can truly be democratic in nature without practicing a true political party system, similarly (Yaqub, 2002) explains the role of political parties in his definition as a group of people who intend to capture political power, they educate the populace, train candidates on the norms and needs of the people and ensuring unity within and outside of the party.
The Origin of Political Party
Akinola (2014) explains that the origin of political party can be traced to Greece where they had the City-State, which democracy similarly got its root from and all the citizens of these city-states will come to make decisions that will benefit their society. During these meetings they found out that it was not an easy task to getting people together to agree on how to wield the mechanism of power, therefore the need to elect representatives in government and in order to do this people decided to form groups according to their views and interests. Political activities are group based, hence the need to adopt group theory to analyze it.
This explains the need to have a group of people who share similar views and interest, with defined ideologies and purposes. The Greeks of that time had no idea that the decision they made in those days will transform democracy in centuries to come.
Background to the Development of Party Politics in Nigeria
The development of political parties in Nigeria must be understood against the wider context of how the political system has developed since independence, as well as in relation to the sense of deterioration of the institutions of governance since the return to democracy in 1999. Nigeria is governed by a presidential system. Over the decades, and following the experience of military rule, the country has seen a centralisation of power in the hands of the executive and a progressive weakening of the federal pact upon which Nigeria was founded. However, as political power has been concentrated in the centre and in the hands of the executive branch, an intricate body of informal rules of political interaction has also evolved, including through the experience of civil war (the Biafra war) and military rule, by which power is brokered in a way that achieves a sense of stability – at least among elites. (Domingo and Nwankwo, 2010:3).
At the inception of party politics in 1923, precisely 24 June, 1923, following the introduction of the elective principle by the Clifford constitution, Nigerian parties had very limited and self-serving objectives. The main objective was perhaps, that of buying legitimacy for the colonial government through very limited franchise restricted to Lagos and Calabar. Richard Sklar, in his seminal work, Nigerian Political Parties clearly demonstrate how the emergence of political associations such as the People‟s Union, was only in response to the prevailing realities of colonial administration (Sklar, 1963; Coleman, 1958 cited in Omotola, 2009:620).
CHAPTER THREE
METHODOLOGY
The approach used to carry of this study will be descriptive and explanatory. The source of data collection was secondary. Data was generated by studying of official documents, library materials, and internet materials. The scope of this study is the fourth republic from 1999 till date. Ex post facto research design was used in this study using data already collected and events of the past to explain the political situation in present times.
research design
The methodologies used in this research work are, in the main, doctrinal or library research in nature. The doctrinal method of the research, which is mainly theory-based, would enable this writer to consult, refer to, review, study and fill the gaps in the works of authors, contained in textbooks, journals, and the internet. The data collected through library research in which the researcher reads, writes and gathers pertinent information related to the topic of this project. After having information from relate d documents such as international legal instrument, books, scientific journals, and others regarding the main problem as the object of this research, then the researcher tries to make conclusion.
Population of study
The target population for this study comprised of the political and development of democratic process in Nigeria. There is about 91 political parties in Nigeria. The study will highlight their challenges
Sample Size and Sampling Technique
In view of the researcher’s inability to reach out to the entire population the research used sample cases of tax evasion by Multinational companies in Nigeria that are published.
CHAPTER FOUR
The Phenomenon of Ethnicity in Nigerian Politics
Nigeria’s pluralism obtains from the ethnically diverse groups of people with different historical backgrounds and origin, culture and tradition. With a population of over 140 million and 374 ethnic groups as recorded by Otite (1990: 175), this speaks of extensive diversity or plurality of ethnic configuration. In the North, the Hausa/Fulani represents the largest ethnic group while Igbo represents the largest ethnic group in the East and the Yoruba the largest ethnic group in the West. If these four ethnic groups are removed from 374, the implication is that about 370 ethnic groups represent the minorities in Nigeria who are clamouring for recognition and contesting with the major ethnic groups in matters of national attention and decision making.
CHAPTER FIVE
RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSIONS
Based on the above findings this study recommends that:
- Political parties in Nigeria is the lack of political ideologies, philosophy and principles, there has to be what a party is known for, if they are liberals or conservatives, these will help shape the nature people the party will attract. Furthermore it will also impact of their manifestoes and how they will go about executing them. The importance of party ideology cannot be over emphasized therefore there must be clearly spelt out party ideologies for political parties in the fourth republic.
- There a serious need for political education among the citizen of Nigeria to remove the roots of ethnicity in the administration of political parties in Nigeria, The citizens should know the dangers of mixing ethnicity and politic so as to prevent chaos in the society. Ethnicity is another major hindrance to democratic development in the fourth republic, which needs to be addressed by constantly educating the populace about their rights so as to prevent them from being manipulated to be a part of ethnic politicking.
- There should be measures in place to look into establishing strict internal laws that will govern the affairs of party members and curb their excesses; most of the parties in the fourth republic have stronger men who do not obey the party laws and dictates of the party. Majority of the politicians today misbehave because there are no strict party laws guiding their actions. If the political party manage their own members how can they manage a state or a nation, hence the need for party internal laws to guide their affairs.
- There should be conferences among political parties which will lead to the adjustment of political laws and regulation that cautions politicians so as to make them very accountable for their actions in government and if found guilty of mismanagement of funds or abuse of office is liable go to prison. This will ensure that the elected office holders will be responsible for their actions while in the office, and will fast track the growth of democracy in the fourth republic.
- Seminars and workshops should be organised as frequently as possible to help the political party officials stay updated with the trend of political party activities which will develop them and the political party system at large. Constant education for the political party members as well will help to breed a new group of enlightened politicians that will cut across all levels of government.
- The electoral body that coordinate election (INEC) should be well funded by government to enable them carry out its duties properly without the influence of the government and other external forces. The independence of the electoral body is key to guaranteeing the accuracy election result which is a very important aspect of democracy. The inability of INEC to carry out its duties has hampered the development of the democratic process in the nation, it also brought social vices to play where politicians rig and stuff ballot boxes as seen in the fourth republic elections.
In conclusion, political party is a group of people who come together in common interest to get political power, multi-party has enhanced the development of the democratic process especially in the fourth republic. However there are peculiar challenges that have hindered the development of Nigeria in the fourth republic, the political elite have come to politics as a money making avenue where they invest in local politicians and expect returns on their investment. The adoption of group theory in this study has helped explain the coming together of people into groups; these groups get involved in political activities which encourages political participation in the activities of the state. All these political activities help to deepen democracy in Nigeria’s fourth republic. This study concludes that multi-party system is very good for the political development of our democracy in the fourth republic and if all the mentioned challenges are address it will enhance democratization in Nigeria.
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