THE ROLE OF POLITICAL PARTIES IN DEMOCRATIC GOVERNMENT IN NIGERIA, THE FOURTH REPUBLIC

THE ROLE OF POLITICAL PARTIES IN DEMOCRATIC GOVERNMENT IN NIGERIA, THE FOURTH REPUBLIC

CHAPTER ONE

1.1    Background of the study

Democratic governance with its ideal of elective representation, freedom of choice of leaders, role of law, freedom of expression, accountability e.t.c has become the acceptable system of government all over the world. It is a form a government in which the supreme power of a political community rest on popular sovereignty. According to Oyovbaire (1987) democracy as a system of government seeks to realize a generally recongised common good through a coolective initiation and discussion of policy questions concerning public affairs and which delegate authority to agent to implement the broads decisions made by the people through majority vote. Thus, in contemporary times, democracy has been referred to as the expression of popular will of the political community through elected representative. The contemporary democracy according to Rapheal (1976) rest on representatives government. Democratic governance in Nigeria has been a different things when compared to what is obtainable in other part of the world. The respect for human right and rule of law which are the main features of democracy are not visible especially between 1999 and 2007; election rigging and gangsterism is the order of the day that one can hardly differentiate between democratic government and autocracy.

In modern societics, political parties are very essential to political process. They have become veritable instrument or adjunct of democracy in any democratic system.

Political parties are not only instrument for capturing political power, but they are also vehicle for the aggregation of interests and ultimate satisfaction at such interests through the control of government. Obviously political parties are crucial to the substanance of democtratic governance. As Agbaje (1999) note that the extents to which political parties aggregate accountability, represent and organize determines the level of accountability in public life including access to and use of power as well as political performance. Merkel (1977:99) summarized the basic functions of political parties as follows:

• Recruitment and selection of leadership personnel for government offices.
• Generation of programmes and policies of government.
• Co-ordination and control of government organ.
• Social integration through satisfaction and reconciliation of group demands or the provision of common belief system or ideology.
• Social integration of individuals by moboilization of support and by socialization.

Generally, political parties are very essential to democratic governance. It constitute a central instrument of democratic governance. It provides the means of promoting accountability, collective action, popular participation, inclusiveness, legitimacy and accountability through the intrefration of their completing principles, ideologies and goals for eventual control of the government in the state. Political parties are the intermediate institution mediating the affairs of both the peoples and personnel and agencies that exercise state power.

In Nigeria, the political parties usually are formed along ethnic, cultural, geo-political and religious lines. In everyday activities of government one notices the fostering of primordial loyalties such as ethnic sensivity and overt provision of other selfish political tendencies as a result, the political class has always remained benefit of viable political   ideology on which the nation`s has reduced party politics to a broad and bother game where monetization of political process is the bedrock of loyalty and support. This has eroded the aim of the democratic system.

Since, military disengaged from political power in may 1999, the PDP has dominated governance in Nigeria. After eight years of the party in governance which earned the result and admiration of the most Nigeria electorates at the polls due to its programmes and policies, the party is loathed in the country. The average Nigeria encounters frustration, disillusionment, and psycho moral dislocation owing to the failure of the Peoples Democratic party (PDP) government  to device expected dividends at democracy.

The task of its research is to examine the role of the ruling political parties governance in Nigeria`s fourth republic.

THE ROLE OF POLITICAL PARTIES IN DEMOCRATIC GOVERNMENT IN NIGERIA, THE FOURTH REPUBLIC