Making Nigeria work
This editorial in Vanguard (Lagos) tries to explain why government in Nigeria is so weak. The editor may have read comparative political science textbooks because the analysis seems based on academic ideas. Parts of it remind me of the complaints of Odili, the idealistic protagonist in Achebe's novel, Man of the People.
I think this essay would be a good review exercise, not only about Nigeria, but for thinking about political science as well.
If your students read this, what basic concepts would they recognize? What examples in Nigeria (and other countries) could they identify? How would they evaluate the editor's analysis?
Nigeria: Making Country Work
"LITTLE doubt exists that existing governments leave more mess than they had promised to clear. Governance is gradually reduced to doing nothing, other than clearing a bit of the muddle the previous governments splashed.
"The process itself creates more confusion. The people are always left to ponder the role of governments in their lives. They are right to think in that manner.
"Each incoming government runs campaigns promising to improve the life of the people. These campaigns answer quickly to perceived and suggested obstacles to solving the confounding problems of Nigeria. During campaigns, solutions are in abundance, the politicians cannot wait to get into office.
"They soon discover that many of them had no clues to the challenges of governance. Their brand of politics overshadows their own abilities to recognise they have personal limitations...
"In the midst of deliberate scarcities woven into the Nigerian life, it is only those who have access to some ends of the power cord that can get the barest benefits the state provides. Jobs, admission to schools, and procurement of security documents like passports and identity cards depend on who someone knows...
"Everyone seems content with complaining or blaming the Nigerian factor for things not working. The reason is simple - most Nigerians are waiting for their own opportunity to repeat these offences, with the evil precedents as their excuse...
"Nigeria cannot work, where the common good is cast aside for fleeting personal interests. Too much of our resources are being wasted in treating offences with levity."
Labels: governance, Nigeria, rule-of-law
posted by Ken Wedding @ 7:42 AM
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