Party Politics and Political Parties Under Presidential and Parliamentary Democracy in Nigeria

Abstract

This chapter examines party politics and political parties in Nigeria. From independence to date, the frequent dissolution of democracy has affected the growth of political parties in Nigeria. This also has affected the experience and ability of the politicians to develop and imbibe some basic democratic culture. This has made democratic sustainability a difficult task. Thus, both under the parliamentary and the presidential systems, democracy was largely unstable. The multi-party democracy of the first and second republics collapsed under an adversarial party politics. This chapter discusses how party politics shaped the character of government under the two systems.