TITLE:
Redefining the Nigerian System of Government: The Error of a Copied Democracy without True Federalism
AUTHORS:
Abraham Great
KEYWORDS:
Politics, Government, Federalism, Democracy, Nigeria
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Political Science,
Vol.14 No.2,
March
14,
2024
ABSTRACT: The political life of
Nigeria has been characterized by years of switching to different forms of government:
from colonial to parliamentary, military, and presidential systems of government. From independence, the country has
maintained the appellation of Federal Republic, even though in reality, true
federalism cannot be pointed to; which begs these questions: 1) Does Nigeria really have true democracy? 2) What led Nigeria to adopt federalism and was this the right choice? 3) Could there be a hidden agenda for democracy, particularly in
Third-world Nations like Nigeria? Did any nation really become developed with
democracy or are there developed nations using democracy as a tool for
sustainable development? 4) Does the principle of
currently practiced federalism enable dictatorship? 5) What did Nigeria get wrong that Singapore
got right, seeing as both nations gained independence around the same
period? This paper will reflect the story of how Nigeria attained federalism, albeit a seemingly fake one. The flaws of
Nigerian democracy will be identified to justify the assertion that
democracy is not healthy for the country. The hidden motive behind the
retention of federalism will also be unearthed in order to establish how much
of a disservice the present arrangement is doing to the stability and progress
of the country. Finally, upon the aforementioned
premises, a case for a system of government that ensures continuity in order to impact on the progress of a
developing pluralistic nation will be made.