Former Cross River State governor and Peoples Redemption Party presidential candidate, Donald Duke, has said Nigerians were better off under military rule than under the country’s current democratic system.
Duke made the statement while assessing Nigeria’s 27 years of uninterrupted civilian rule since the country returned to democracy in 1999. He argued that successive civilian administrations had failed to deliver enough improvements to justify the high cost of governance.
“The people were better off under the military. At least governance was not that expensive,” Duke said during an interview.
Duke questions democracy dividends
The former governor said Nigerians should judge democracy by its impact on their welfare and living conditions. He questioned whether the country had made enough progress since the end of military rule.
“I’m speaking broadly now. If we focus on the well-being of the people, what we term democracy dividends, how much has been delivered?” he asked.
Duke said many of Nigeria’s longstanding problems remain unresolved. He also argued that some of them have become worse.
“We’re still having the same problems we had 27 years ago. It’s getting worse. The number of children out of school has not improved; it’s deteriorating. The healthcare system is not improving; it’s deteriorating.”
He also questioned the country’s progress in infrastructure.
“Infrastructure deficiency over the last 27 years—are we better off? The question is: are we better off today than we were in 1999? Hardly so. Hardly so,” he said.
Unemployment, electricity remain major concerns
Duke said Nigeria had failed to tackle some of the problems that existed before the return to civilian rule. He specifically mentioned electricity and unemployment as challenges that remain unresolved.
“The problems that existed before 1999—electrification, unemployment—those things are still there. And I don’t see a structured approach towards dealing with these issues,” he said.
The PRP presidential candidate expressed frustration over what he described as Nigeria’s failure to learn from countries that had successfully addressed similar challenges.
“This is my frustration, because there’s no problem we cannot resolve. We’re not a unique country,” Duke said.
He added that Nigeria could study how other countries had solved similar problems and adapt those solutions to its own circumstances.
“There are peer reviews you can do. How did you solve this? How did you do that? Are we thinking through our problems?” he asked.
Duke criticises Nigeria’s political system
Duke also criticised the state of opposition politics and the country’s electoral system. He argued that weak opposition parties had reduced accountability and contributed to public frustration with democracy.
“The opposition is terribly weakened and self-centred. Democracy is also in danger,” he said.
According to him, election results do not always reflect the wishes of voters.
“The results you get from the polls often don’t reflect the views of the people. So there’s a disenchantment with the system, both by the contestants and the public. Most people don’t vote because they believe their votes don’t count,” Duke said.
He argued that political officeholders become less accountable when voters believe their votes cannot influence the outcome of elections.
“Because your vote doesn’t matter, there’s a tendency to take people for a ride and disregard what is required by the people,” he added.
‘We are pretending democracy’
Duke further questioned the strength of Nigeria’s democratic institutions. He argued that the National Assembly and judiciary had failed to provide effective checks and balances on executive power.
“We don’t have a democracy. We are pretending democracy. We’re not a democracy. You and I know that,” he said.
Duke also criticised what he described as the inability of political elites to provide effective leadership. He said many people had turned politics into a permanent occupation instead of a platform for public service.
“It’s a failure of the elite more than anything else,” he said.
Duke warned that the growing gap between rich and poor could also create serious social problems. He recalled a warning that a time could come when wealthy Nigerians would struggle to sleep because poor Nigerians could no longer afford food.
The former governor said Nigeria had enough human and natural resources to transform the country but had failed to achieve its potential.
“Nigeria is exceedingly blessed. It’s sad. It’s painful that we are where we are,” Duke said.
