Nigeria’s Democracy Flawed – Agbakoba Urges Move Away from Western Framework

Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Olisa Agbakoba has once again expressed doubts about the sustainability of Nigeria’s current democratic system and called for a comprehensive overhaul of the country’s political structure.

Agbakoba bemoaned the dissolution of opposition formations into the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in an interview with Channels Television’s Politics Today on Monday. He cautioned that such political realignments undermine democracy rather than bolster it.

Agbakoba reflected on Nigeria’s political trajectory after independence, stating that despite having exercised democracy for more than 20 years, the nation has repeatedly failed at administration.

“By now, I assumed things would have improved. “But something is still fundamentally wrong after all these years, from 1960 through military coups and 25 years of democracy,” he remarked.

Agbakoba questioned whether Nigeria’s sociopolitical environment was a good fit for the Western democratic paradigm. Since Nigerians are more focused on their quality of life than on the system of government, he claims that democracy as it has been introduced from Europe and America has not produced the anticipated benefits.

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He clarified that Nigerians aren’t very curious in the president’s identity. They want someone who would supply them with food, adequate houses, safe roads, good schools, and prompt salaries. The true problems are those.

Agbakoba compared nations like China, who have achieved great progress without embracing Western-style democracy, and asked both leaders and public to think about a governance model that puts outcomes ahead of political niceties.

He stressed that linguistic, religious, and ethnic differences that are deeply ingrained in Nigeria make the country’s problems worse. “We need to ask ourselves a challenging but important question: is this system really working for us?”

Agbakoba made these comments at a time when a number of opposition party politicians have switched to the APC. Fearing that this trend threatens democratic checks and balances, the previous president of the Nigerian Bar Association voiced his concerns.

“I’m here to let opposition parties know that defecting isn’t a strategic move if they think so. Ordinary Nigerians suffer, and the system is weakened. Standing in the gap, even when it isn’t politically advantageous, is the real test of a leader.

As a necessary component of any working democracy, he urged moral leaders to eschew the allure of power and instead work to create a strong, credible opposition that keeps the government responsible.