4 - Political Pluralism

Summary

“Political Pluralism” contextualizes the sociopolitical formation of modern Nigeria, and explicitly expounds on the inadequacy of existing political structures and the importance of political pluralism to adequate governance and true democracy. Drawing insights from other African states and around the world, this discourse examines how various states have adapted to or responded to pluralism, and what pluralism looks like across Africa. This study identifies the seeming inadequacy of political pluralism in Nigeria because of the lack of proper implementation, shortsighted political visions, and bad governance thereby faulting the existing classical form of pluralism in Nigeria, and suggesting a form that accounts for its strengths and weaknesses, the converging points, and shared interests of cultures. The masquerade of fake alliances should be replaced by practical policies and democratic philosophies, along with implementable fiscal plans and other signifiers of a conservative or liberal political economy. It can work if it is coupled with regionalism, where each region is allowed to develop measures of autonomy in a democratic setting, a federal structure that distributes power between the regions, and a center held together by a binding constitution that is appropriate.