Western Democracy Has Failed in Nigeria – Agbakoba Says, Suggests New System of Govt

Former President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Dr Olisa Agbakoba, has expressed disappointment with Nigeria’s democracy.

According to him, the Western democratic liberal model has failed in Nigeria.

He made this known on Friday while fielding questions on Arise Television’s Morning Show programme.

Agbakoba suggested “a consociational democracy, where we build our institutional democracy around our institutions.”

He said: “I think that the basic problem to permit me to give a small contextual and conceptual background about where we are and the problem, I think that the basic problem is that the Western democratic liberal model has failed. Nigeria, as you know, we’ve worked on a new constitutional process for 25 years, since 2000 and nothing.

“I think it’s time to rethink and reimagine our democratic experience. It’s not working, it’s not inclusive, it’s divisive. It’s full of fighting. It’s a winner take it all. People want power, nobody wants to be in the opposition.

“You see the opposition, people all jumping into the APC. The process is not working. So personally, I would advocate something homegrown, autonomous, what I call consociational democracy, where we build our institutional democracy around our institutions.

“I am a very strong person for finding a role for traditional rulers. King Charles is the constitutional monarch of the United Kingdom, and he has a role to play. He’s going to Canada. He’s playing a role in the trade process. He’s got a good deal with Trump.

“So I think our constitutional process should include the traditional rulers. I will recommend the Belgium model, where the Walloons and the Flemings are different people, but they’ve come to an arrangement whereby there is inclusion.

“Whatever process we want to adopt, the first point would be to discard the Western democratic liberal model, it is not working. It’s something that enables only a few to extract. If return on capital exceeds return on development, why would anybody want to develop Nigeria?

“These are the two broad points I think we need to take into account in reimagining a new Nigerian experiment. Otherwise, I started at 29 like I keep saying this. Now I’m 72. If something hasn’t worked for all this time, is it not time we think through a process?”