Guardian

REFLECTING on Nigeria’s democratic experience since 1999, former Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Chief Richard Akinjide and former Minister of Transport, Chief Ebenezer Babatope, say all is not a write-off, as the country can do better with time.

According to Akinjide, politics consists of conflicts resolution because politics without conflicts is no politics.

He noted that sometimes, “you have things go up and you have things go down but the most important thing is to be democratic, law-abiding and to make sure we do things right. As long as we obey those norms, we have nothing to fear.”

Akinjide said: “If you start the synopsis from the time of independence till now, you might say you are not 100 per cent satisfied because we had several military interventions.

“Before the military intervention, things were going fairly well, although we had some kind of misunderstanding. But since democracy has come, I think we are doing fairly well; we should not be unhappy.”

He said the electoral system had been developed because the country had successfully conducted several elections into the legislature and executive arms at the federal, state and council levels.

“Do not forget we were under colonial rule for a very long time and before we can reach the level of Europe and America, it will take a very long time.

“We should not expect to achieve within one or two generations what it took them 300 to 400 years to achieve. As far as I am concerned, I am quite happy with our achievements.”

Akinjide said everything that had happened to us had happened to Britain and the United States.

“Look at what happened in the time of Abraham Lincoln when the South wanted to break away completely; Lincoln had to fight it,” he said. “Also, when Oliver Cromwell came in and King Charles I was deposed in England.

“What is important is that we should always do things according to the rule of law. We should always believe in the fundamental rules of democratic norms. If you get defeated in an election, you must always accept your fate,” Akinjide added.

Babatope, who is also a member of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Board of Trustees (BoT), noted that though there had been problems, “as expected” in the democratic path of Nigeria since 1999, “Nigerians have the cause to be happy about the success the country had achieved since 1999.”

“Our problems range from insecurity, as evidenced by the Boko Haram menace, to economic problems and rancour within the party system, particularly indiscipline within the parties,” he said.

“Nigerians must never be disturbed by these tough problems. A Greek philosopher, Heraclitus, once said that society must forever be in a state of conflict. He was, in other words, saying no society could ever be free of conflicts and problems within her borders.

“It is, therefore, not strange that our country, Nigeria, has rolled from one problem to another since our return to democratic rule in 1999.”

Babatope predicted that after Boko Haram had long gone, “our dear country will still witness other problems that are fiercer in scope than what we currently experience with Boko Haram.”

“We once had the Maitatsine religious violence and the Niger Delta problem before Boko Haram. It is my honest view that Nigeria has not performed poorly in her democratic challenges since 1999,” he said.

He insisted that Nigeria has not done badly in her democratic scorecard since 1999, explaining that one grave problem that endangers the country’s democracy since 1999 is corruption.

“We must continue to combat it with all our strength; and Nigerians must never permit anti-democratic forces to again return to power in our country,” he said.

“We must allow politicians to move from one error of judgment and one mistake to the other until we move near the ideal in our democratic path.

“Any attempt to solve the problems of our great country through anti-democratic path may lead to the disintegration of Nigeria,” he warned.