THOUGHTS OF FEMOLAD: IS DEMOCRACY THE BEST FORM OF GOVERNMENT?

IS DEMOCRACY THE BEST FORM OF GOVERNMENT?

IS THERE AN ALTERNATIVE, ESPECIALLY FOR NIGERIA?

 

Since the end of the cold war, democracy has been the world’s dominant political ideology. Today, the global number of democratic governments is at an all-time high.

 

Many in the West hail a new age of freedom, and a consensus is formed that democracy has won the battle of ideas. However, this consensus is increasingly fragile.

Brexit and the election of Donald Trump have arguably exposed democracy’s chaotic nature, and some argue that ‘people power’ is simply tyranny of the majority. China’s ascendancy, say critics of democracy, proves the superior efficiency and planning of an autocratic government.

Democracy is certainly flawed, but is there a better system?

Or is democracy ‘the worst form of government, except for all the others’?

Firstly, democracy is arguably the best form of government in terms of guaranteeing the rights and freedoms of the majority.

In recent decades, many oppressive dictatorships have been toppled by democracy; in the Eastern bloc, Popular Fronts removed brutal regimes such as Ceacusescu’s in Romania, and the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings produced a handful of new democratic states.

Democracy has arguably been so successful in liberating humanity.

 

Five things stand Democracy taller than other forms of government.

1. Rule of Law:

This encompasses both the supremacy of the law i.e. the constitution; and equality before the law. Thus the law is above every one including political leaders and every citizen, regardless of status whether economic, social or political, is equal before the law.

Thus Alhaji Aliko Dangote has just the same number of rights as his gateman. This would not be the case in a system like Aristocracy, Plutocracy or Oligarchy.

2. Fundamental Human Rights of Citizens:

It is not uncommon to hear cases of mass brutalization of citizens, extrajudicial killings and other sorts of injustice meted against helpless citizens in autocratic countries.

Meanwhile, in a thriving democracy, such news is hardly ever heard because citizens are the majority; they hold the power and they wield it as they please.

Thus their rights are adequately protected and promoted in the laws of the land. There are also strict provisions for redress in case of breach of these rights.

In Nigeria for instance, Fundamental Human Rights are provided for in Chapter IV of the 1999 Constitution.

3. Legitimacy:

Since a democratic government comes into power through the vote of the people and in accordance with legal requirements, the government is legitimate, real and accepted. This is fundamental because it gives citizens a sense of belonging and responsibility and it gives them the confidence to objectively criticize unfavourable government policies through recalls and protests.

 

4. Sound decision-making process:

In a democracy, the decision-making process is subjected to a lot of consultation and scrutiny. For instance, when an issue comes before the legislature, extensive debates and public hearings are taken on it before such can become a Bill and executive assent must be sought before it becomes a law.

And even when it becomes a law but it is invalid perhaps in the procedure, the judiciary has the power to declare such law null and void and of no effect whatsoever.

Thus sound decisions are inevitable unlike in an autocracy where the ruler may choose not to consult anyone before making arbitrary decisions. This is the operation of the doctrines of Separation of Power and Checks and Balances.

 

5. Change of government:

The fact that democracy is a government of the people, by the people and for the people shows that the people can easily remove a leader who turns out to be corrupt, ineffectual, vile or anything unwanted by the people.

They can do this either through a method like impeachment of executive members or recall of legislators or even through the elections.

This holds government accountable to the public.

 

Other forms of government tend towards exploitation of the many by the elite: this is because without the vote, citizens have no means of redress, so the actions of the government go unchallenged, allowing it to abuse its power. Leaders experience a form of moral hazard, as there are no limits to their actions, and they themselves do not suffer the consequences. If there is no democratic representation, there is nothing to stop the elite terrorizing the many.

Some, however, argue that democracy merely results in tyranny of the majority, as

minorities are accorded little power in democratic institutions that award representation quantitatively. Decisions are, they argue, often made “not according to the rule of justice and the rights of the minor party but by the superior force of an interested and overbearing majority.” This is a legitimate criticism; many democracies have a record of side-lining

ethnic, religious and political minorities, from the struggle for African Americans’ civil rights, to the exploitation of indigenous communities in Australia. Democracy can certainly be ineffective in safeguarding the rights of the minority; however, there is no one form of democracy. It is a loose term, encompassing many different political systems, some of which are more effective than others in protecting the rights of the individual.

 

Majoritarian systems allow a majority absolute control over the government. This

winner-takes-all arrangement excludes political minorities.

Coming back home, however, the argument about whether, or not, democracy is the appropriate form of government for Nigeria has been on the forefront for some time now.

In seeking an alternative system of government for Nigeria, many subtly push Nigeria to consider the Chinese state capitalism, led by the communist party, as the appropriate solution to our democratic problems because of the giant economic leaps that country has made in such a short period of time.

 

The current Chinese political system, for all its adaptability – being pragmatic, non-ideological and technocratic, is not as sound or adaptable as a democratic system of government. Even Chinese leaders won’t dare experiment with democracy for the fear of losing control of their immense powers – powers which are limited under democratic conditions because of its many checks and balances.

 

Democracy being a government of the people, by the people and for the people, is considered the freest and fairest form of government that  sustains the economies of many, different, world powers that have institutionalized it. It has brought many countries to abundant economic prosperity simply because they have fully obeyed its liberating principles.

 

Nigeria’s democracy is under threat because it is nascent and, like every nascent democracy, it is riddled with many problems. These problems are the reason Nigeria is still trying to grapple with, or effectively implement, democracy’s liberating principles.

 

Foe Nigeria’s democracy to effectively work, Nigerians need to have confidence in it. They have to understand that nothing is really as bad as it seems. People have to understand that our democracy is an evolving process, and we can’t achieve everything at once. Even today’s advanced democratic governments had their fair share of problems in their beginnings.

 

However, the future of our democratic politics is very unclear as we seem to be descending deep into the dark worlds of ethnic differences, cronyism, greed, terrorism and corruption, but these narratives do not mean we have to say we need to replace our democracy or frantically experiment with new political and economic arrangements. This would be disastrous.

 

What then do Nigerian leaders need to do to assure Nigerians that democracy is still the best?

 

Nigeria’s leaders must understand that the citizens need to see an even stronger Nigeria that fulfils its ambition to be among the regional and global leaders. To that end, Nigeria must strengthen its democratic institutions, advance economic reform, control corruption, professionalize its security forces, and effectively counter the threat of terrorism while respecting the human rights of all its citizens.

 

Professionalization of security forces and countering terrorism are hugely important in every democratic process – whether nascent or advanced, because they are the foundations upon which every thriving democracy/sector lie.

 

The Nigerian Government has to take a comprehensive approach to insecurity across the country. And that approach, in my view, has to include addressing every region’s legitimate political, economic, and social needs, as well as implementing a professional security response that respects human rights.

Democracy is a government of the majority of the people and there is only one reason why is it the by far the most practised of all systems of government: it is simply the best!

 

The orientation of the people and the attitudes and tendencies of leadership are the reasons the thought of another form of government is considered at all.

 

Give and take, Democracy is still the best form of government but each nation must adopt a version of it suitable for its people.

 

Nigeria, for instance, would do well with a home-grown adaptation of Democracy.

 

 

I am Femi Ladapo (Femolad)