Expanding Democratic Space in Nigeria

Dakar, CODESRIA, 1997, 268 p., ISBN: 2-86978-068-0

Establishing, broadening and maintaining democracy in Africa is an issue with world-wide implications. On the continent itself, democracy is a vital issue, precisely because the majority of Africans have been reduced to virtual outlaws, with little or no rights in their own countries. This process has been driven by their own governments. Atrocities, suppression, and violence have occurred all over the continent in the suppression of democratic freedom. What is astounding is that after such suffering the threshold of tolerance breaks and citizens seek ways to exercise some freedom from daily oppression. Nigeria, particularly in its current state, is no exception. Written by African social scientists Expanding Democratic Space in Nigeria makes an essential contribution to the ongoing debate and analysis of the potential for barriers to democratic space. Chapters highlight the role of different interest groups, the implications of the country’s colonial past and the legacy of the military, the role of the mass media and women’s participation in the political arena. Intellectuals, trade unions, human rights organisations and young people are all featured, as they take place in what the authors see as an inevitable move towards a freer State.