ACHIEVING THE ESSENCE OF GOVERNMENT IN A GROWING DEMOCRACY: SAVING NIGERIA FROM ANOTHER CIVIL WAR

Abstract

In Nigeria today there are more than enough reasons to query the essence of government as it is evident that the government has failed in its primary function of providing good governance and securing lives and property. Motivated by the above, this study adopted qualitative method of data collection in dealing with the topic; achieving the essence of government in a growing democracy: saving Nigeria from another civil war.. In view of this, data were generated from secondary source materials. Thus based on content analysis of documented evidences the study unraveled the essence of government and the many challenges facing democratic governance in Nigeria; insecurity in the forms of terrorism, insurgency, armed banditry, kidnapping and these in addition to marginalization, inequality, chronic corruption and nepotism indeed constitute systemic threat to national cohesion in Nigeria today. The study recommends as follows; urgent need for restructuring the Nigeria polity to ensure the effective operation of true federalism as against the current quasi federalism currently in practice in the country; objective implementation of the recommendations of the 2014 National Conference or convening a national conference urgently whose recommendation must be implemented will be a precondition for evolving a people’s constitution that will cater for the diversities inherent in the Nigerian federal system; need to review the geopolitical structure of Nigeria so as not to allow the continued dominance of a particular section of the country over others; and urgent need to change the 1999 Constitution to ensuring that it reflects the Peoples aspiration in a united federal republic of Nigeria.