DEMOCRATIC CONSOLIDATION: INDIGENOUS LANGUAGES AND NIGERIA'S TRANSFORMATION AGENDA

Abstract

From 1914 to date, Nigerian leaders had pursued diverse programmes and policies for the development of the country. As part of effort towards democratic consolidation and in view of the developmental challenges confronting the nation, Goodluck Jonathan upon his election in 2011 as the President of Nigeria came up with a programme and policy which he called the Transformation Agenda. This study examines the import of indigenous languages in the transformation agenda as a catalyst for democratic consolidation. In this study, efforts were made to examine the transformation agenda and how the use of indigenous languages can strengthen Nigeria’s democracy. This paper argues that the use of the indigenous languages is not only critical to the achievement of the transformation agenda but also as the most effective way to communicate the policy to ordinary Nigerians. The paper thus concludes that the transformation agenda will fail, if urgent attention is not given to the indigenous languages. Keywords : Democracy, consolidation, Transformation Agenda, indigenous language