A former governor of Rivers State, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, opened the underbelly of Nigeria’s democracy at this year’s Niche annual lecture series saying Nigeria’s democracy is not yet mature.
In the lecture entitled: ‘Why we stride and slip: Leadership, Nationalism and the Nigerian Condition’, Amaechi, a former Minister of Transportation, regretted that “elections are still massively rigged and influenced by violence, manipulation and thuggery.
He said: “Admittedly, our democracy has not yet matured… Elections are still massively rigged and influenced by violence, manipulation and thuggery.
“Most of our mandates are purchased at exorbitant prices. Our legislature remains an over-bloated conclave of mostly inactive onlookers.
”The executive branch is often stuck in the swamp of its own bureaucratic creation. Our judiciary is embarrassingly corrupt and largely compromised, mostly dispensing judgments rather than justice.
“The realities of today confront us with some inconvenient truths. Our democracy has alienated the people…”