More analysis of Nigeria
The analysis from the New York Times' Lydia Polgreen echos that of Edward Harris in the International Herald Tribune. I wonder how this instant analysis will compare with longer-term academic analysis in a few years.Africa’s Crisis of Democracy
"Nigeria’s troubled presidential election... represents a significant setback for democracy in sub-Saharan Africa at a time when voters in countries across the continent are becoming more disillusioned with the way democracy is practiced.
"Analysts said the Nigerian vote was the starkest example of a worrying trend — even as African countries hold more elections, many of their citizens are steadily losing confidence in their democracies...
"African voters are losing patience with faulty elections that often exclude popular candidates and are marred by serious irregularities, according to the Afrobarometer survey, published last year, which sampled voters in 18 countries, based on interviews with 1,200 to 2,400 people per country. While 6 in 10 Africans said democracy was preferable to any other form of government, according to the survey, satisfaction with democracy dipped to 45 percent from 58 percent in 2001...
"In 2000, in the euphoric aftermath of Nigeria’s transition from a long spell of military rule to democracy, 84 percent of Nigerians said that they were satisfied with democracy as practiced in Nigeria, according to the Afrobarometer survey.
"By 2005 that number had plummeted to 25 percent, lower than all the countries surveyed save Zimbabwe. Almost 70 percent of Nigerians did not believe elections would allow them to remove objectionable leaders, the survey found..."
Labels: Nigeria, political culture
posted by Ken Wedding @ 7:54 AM
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Nigerian Vote Not Credible, Say EU Observers
"European Union observers said Nigeria's presidential election could not be considered credible on Monday as early results showed ruling party candidate Umaru Yar'Adua set for a landslide win.
"Outgoing President Olusegun Obasanjo said elections were not perfect, but appealed to Nigerians not to lose faith in the democratic process..."
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