Nigeria's existence as a democratic entity has been bogged down by inherent challenges and failures. But while we lay blame for these failures on corruption and the rascality of our leaders, we should take a holistic view of our democracy and make logical inferences to point out the loopholes in our democratic composition.
Abraham Lincoln simply defined democracy as: government of the people, by the people, for the people. Let us take a look at each component and determine how we measure up.
Government of the people
The people are invested with the sole authority and responsibility of constituting their government, mostly via elections. Unfortunately, elections in Nigeria have mostly been characterised by violence, rigging, ballot-snatching, and other criminal activities that have enabled our hare-brained politicians to usurp the mandate of the people. Notwithstanding, by failing to reject these impostors, our people have inadvertently been giving legitimacy to their leadership.
Government by the people
After choosing their government, it behoves the people to determine how government should be run. The people should communicate their needs and challenges to government, and also be ready to resist any abuse of power or neglect of responsibility. Evidently, this is the most important component.
The nonchalance and 'on-your-own' mentality of Nigerians towards the democratic process is saddening. We are not only failing in our responsibility but providing the necessary encouragement for our abuse, impoverishment, and the feverish looting of our resources. Most of us are unconcerned about our motherland — if we can provide a sense of comfort for our families, then all is well with the world.
Government for the people
Since Nigerians have directly or indirectly failed to elect their government and also failed to determine how it should be run, government exists for itself. It prides itself above the people and pursues activities that are only good for government. Corruption is good for government — it enriches their pockets. Implementation of unpopular policies that impoverish the masses is good for government — it makes more money available.
However, we cannot go on doing things the same way and expect different results. We must change. We must do our part and also hold government accountable to its responsibilities. Only then can we say we have true democracy.