Military culture and political leadership in Nigeria’s democracy

Abstract

ABSTRACT The nature and pattern of sustenance of democratic rule in Nigeria since the inception of the fourth republic which followed the exit of military rulers in 1999 have continued to generate scholarly debates. The conundrum of whether or not the country has freed itself from the ominous influence of the culture of military rule is a huge concern. Using former President Obasanjo and current President Buhari as case studies, this article examines the extent to which the reemergence of Nigeria’s former military Heads of State as civilian administrators since 1999 has affected constitutionalism and democratization in Nigeria’s political leadership. The patterns of administration of civilian government as well as democratic infractions of both regimes are considered. The paper relies on secondary data and the descriptive method of analysis. The Military Transition Model, a strand of Transition Theory, was used as a framework for further clarification. Rather than improve on the tenets of democracy, findings show that elements of absolutism and arbitrary rule are strongly perceptible. There are no convincing proofs that the reappearance of Nigeria’s former military rulers into political leadership is reinforcing the country’s long awaited democratization processes. The current political leadership in Nigeria has not demonstrated sufficient political will to eschew the dregs of contempt for rule of law. The study concludes that problems of democratic infractions are prevalent in the current political system largely due to the persisting influence of military culture of political leadership.