An analysis grace malachi brown, phd department of history and diplomatic studies faculty of humanities rivers state university of education pmb 5047, rumuolumeni port harcourt, rivers state nigeria. The all progressives congress apc is a political party in nigeria, formed on 6 february 20 in anticipation of the 2015 elections. What is the role of political parties in democracy answers. The first set of political parties to be formed in nigeria was formed in 1959, shortly before nigeria gained her independence from britain.
Their roles and activities are critical in any assessment of. Having gone through different phases of political action and facing various forms of suppression by the state, the kurdish movement from 1990s persisted in establishing legal parties despite. Party system and nigeria political development projectclue. Oloyede oluyemi national bureau of statistics nbs, abuja, nigeria abstract nigeria has been recording low participation of women in both elective and appointive positions. Aduku and yakubu, adejo umoru centre for inter african and human development studies cides, jos, nigeria school of general studies, federal polytechnic, kaura namoda, zamfara state, nigeria. Because of the hunger to attain on leadership position of the other, it has resulted to political crises and disintegration. The role of political parties in democratic governance in nigeria the role of political parties in democratic governance in nigeria a case study of pdp. Political parties 1 select candidates, 2 mobilize voters, 3 facilitate governance, and 4 monitor the opposing party when its in power over the next century, the political parties reluctantly launched in the 1790s matured into essential parts of our political system, serving four critical functions. Politics of namibia takes place in a framework of a semipresidential representative democratic republic, whereby the president of namibia is both head of state and head of government, and of a pluriform multiparty system. This issue of whether competing political parties are a basic prerequisite of a democratic system is of highly contemporary relevance, especially in light of emphasis placed on the new african initiative championed, among others, by presidents mbeki of south africa, obasanjo of nigeria. Sep 24, 2015 towards sustainable democracy in nigeria.
Political party in nigeria should perform the functions provided above. Increasing womens political participation through effective. Nnamdi azikwe ncnc chief obafemi awolowo ag they campaigned vigorously across the length and breadth of nigeria. Most people do not know but there are presently 68 inec recognized political parties in nigeriaupdated for 2018. Islam reached nigeria through the borno empire between 1068 ad and hausa states around 85 ad during the 11th century. However, youths influence on national politics remains limited. The role of women in politics and in the sustenance of. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the two chambers of. The history of political parties in nigeria began when the first political party in nigeria was established in 1959, the year before nigeria gained her independence from great britain. In fact, democracy is based on a free and fair election. The role of traditional institutions in political change and. The president is the head of state, the head of government, and the head of a multiparty system. The recruitment of political leaders is one the main functions of political party in nigeria.
Another exclusive role for a political party is to be a representative for the citizens. The return of political parties produced a discontinuity not only in the continents political life, but also in the study of african politics. In addi tion, it is a shared opinion that there is no need for the provincial sphere of government, and that the roles of districts and provinces are mainly shaped by the apartheid legacy. For democracy to thrive and be sustained therefore in nigeria and. There is a general sense that traditional politics and representative democracy. Political parties represent groups as well as individuals.
National council of nigeria and the cameroons ncnc. The party, which earned the respect and admiration of most nigerians, in the period between 1999 2007 due to its politics. Questionnaires were administered on 700 randomly selected female politicians, activists and professionals in government and dominant parties across the six geo political zones of nigeria. Full list of political parties in nigeria nigerian finder.
Democracy can be defined as rule for the people, of the people, by the people. In the classical formulation by the political theorist schattschneider political parties created democracy and modern democracy is unthinkable save in terms of the parties. Generally, nigerias political parties have been plagued by suspensions and expulsions of party members, cross carpeting particularly prior to elections and deep divisions and factions that have manifested sometimes in violent conflicts ikelegbe, 20. Its important that they keep in touch with the people. The political leaders who led the campaigns on behalf of the threedominant regional and ethnicbased political parties were. Political parties have also been the instruments for inspiring voters. The history of nigeria can be traced to prehistoric settlers nigerians living in the area as early as 1100 bc. Introduction nigeria and nigerians have been caught in the frenzy of centenary celebration. Parties play very crucial role in political, economical and cultural development of the country.
The role of political parties at the local government level. The school draws attention to the potential negative consequences of free interaction between politics and administration e. Political parties, operating at their best, make democratic government possible in large, complex and heterogeneous societies. One of the main roles for any political party in a democratic country is to provide freedom of rights. The federal government of nigeria is composed of three distinct branches.
The presence of political parties is one of the positive indicators of the healthy democratic transition in any country. Nigeria has one of the fastestgrowing populations in the world and the largest economy in africa. Traditionally, people get involved in public life via political parties. Political parties and democratic consolidation in nigerias fourth republic akubo, a. Most people do not know but there are presently 68 inec recognized political parties in nigeria updated for 2018. As nigeria has this high number of human population, so is the number of political parties in the country as every politician wants to be governor or president. Pdp and apc remains the strongest parties in nigeria in the opinion of the researcher. First it deals with the issue of the constitutional status of a political party. The development of political parties in nigeria dates back to the days of the struggle for political independent in the late 1940s, when the nationalists were at the preindependence and postindependence periods. I restrict my discussion to political parties in democracies i. Federal polytechnic, kaura namoda, zamfara state, nigeria abstract. The undoubted contribution that some chiefs make to local. Nigerian politics takes place within a framework of a federal, presidential, representative democratic republic, in which executive power is exercised by the government. Executive power is exercised by both the president and the government.
Commissioner of the independent national electoral commission, professor lai olurode, has submitted this analysis of women in nigerias 2011 general elections. Challenges for political parties in democratic regimes 80 6. The second political party was the northern peoples congress npc and it. Numerous ancient african civilizations settled in the region that is today nigeria, such as the kingdom of nri, the benin empire, and the oyo empire. Nigerian political parties serve as a representative of the citizens. Actually it would be the means by which a government can run. Monitoring participation of women in politics in nigeria paper presented by mrs. Role and functions of political parties in democracy is unconstrained. The role of political parties in constitutionalising governance.
The top three political parties at the moment still remains all progressive congress apc, peoples democratic party pdp, and all progressives grand alliance apga. The role of political parties in democratic development in. Nigeria is a federal republic, with executive power exercised by the president. The last decade of the twentieth century was characterised by a resurgence of multipartism in africa. While historically speaking the public administrations main task has been to implement and communicate political decisions to society, one of the key changes that has occurred over the past decade or so has been. History of political parties in nigeria nigerian finder. This law on political parties makes provision about quite a number of issues.
They are also an indicator of the state of a countrys democracy. Political parties are also not deemed to be parties if most of their members or of the executive committee are foreigners or the registered seat of the party is located outside the country. Apc candidate muhammadu buhari won the presidential election by almost 2. History and development of political parties in nigeria. The role of traditional institutions in political change.
It is a way to mobilize voters to support common sets of interests, concerns, and goals. Questionnaires were administered on 700 randomly selected female politicians, activists and professionals in government and dominant parties across the six geopolitical zones of nigeria. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. In 1959, there were three political parties in the country and they include the following. Extreme caution should therefore be exercised in respect of policies which might encourage a renewal of official participation by chiefs in political life or government. It cannot be treated simply as a civil society group. The parties traded charges of hooliganism at each other. A country should offer its citizens the ability to vote or be voted for. Also, interview schedules were conducted with 10 of the randomly selected respondents. These people come together to contest elections in order to hold power in the government. In the preindependence and the early post independence periods, political parties in nigeria were not ideologically based. Political parties in parliament and government 68 4. The three political parties were the national council of nigeria and the cameroons ncnc. The aim is not to document the good or ugly things political parties are doing in contemporary east africa a task that has been assigned to practicing politicians who were invited to the conference.
The role of political parties in democratic governance in. Acknowledgements increasing womens political participation through effective training programs represents the culmination of nearly 30 years of work by ndi staff, partners, volunteers and funders to advance womens political participation. The primary role of the political party is to fix the political agenda and policies. For democracy to thrive and be sustained therefore in nigeria and africa, whole political parties need be grown to. The role of political parties in constitutionalising. Jean jacques rousseau 191278, perhaps one of the most studied and well known political philosophers of the 18 th century. An assessment of political parties and democratic consolidation in nigerias fourth republic mike omilusi, phd department of political science ekiti state university, nigeria abstract democratic values and practices are crucial for democratic institutionalization and the development of party strength. The twoday conference, focused on enabling women to earn positions of leadership within and outside political parties, to be more strategic and effective within those roles, and to raise the profile of nigerian women as an important voting bloc. One of the main roles for any political party in a democratic country is to provide freedom rights. They may represent the interests of farm workers, urban african americans, small business operators, particular industries, or teachers any similar individuals who cooperate to express a specific agenda. Roles and definition of political parties a political party is defined as an organised group of people with at least roughly similar political aims and opinions, that seeks to influence public policy by getting its candidates elected to public office. Functions of political parties in nigeria political. This aspect of the process embodies undeniable opportunities and challenges at the time of writing, lara natalini was a research fellow at the africa institute of south africa.
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