It is June 12, democracy day in Nigeria and how has technology driven this? Democracy, according to Britannica is a system of government in which power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or through freely elected representatives.
Technology, on the other hand, is the constant desire to improve things and solve problems. We have seen this from the times of the stone age, different stages of global industrialization, the internet age, and the future of the Internet of Things.
Nigeria for the most part of the time has been a military state until 1999 when it returned to a civilian regime. A military regime that was bloody, autocratic, and difficult.
Democracy was supposed to be a changing point for the country’s affairs, where its citizens will freely vote and elect people of their choice to lead them through the coming years.
Like technology, it was supposed to improve or solve the problems of dictatorship, but democracy in Nigeria hit a stumbling block after June 12 1993 presidential elections.
The elections held that day were considered by local and international bodies to be free and fair. But tragedy struck as the military head of state canceled the election on allegations of corruption.
Since then, we can argue that despite 20 years of democracy Nigeria is still indirectly ruled by the military. We have had several recycled military heads of state as democratic presidents.
The presidential has hovered around 2 major ethnic groups, with one as the head of affairs this past decade. Elections have not been free and fair, and democracy in its real form has not improved in Nigeria.
Technological advancement in Nigeria on the other hand has been a hit and miss. Despite the Oil boom of the 1960s, Nigeria didn’t invest heavily in infrastructure and technology transfer.
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Fair enough, the Telecommunication boom in Nigeria is laudable. The financial services sector is also strong in the sense that payments and transfers are literally among the quickest anywhere.
These are sectors growing rapidly as a result of technology. But the cores of a democracy are not developed. Freedom of speech, security, among others are serious threats to change and improvements in Nigeria.
Nigerian leaders are still bent on doing things the old way. We barely refine our crude oil. Even in 2021, the ease of doing business is low, government processes are still slow and extremely bureaucratic.
Democracy in Nigeria is still playing catch up to technology at its lowest point. Nigeria has failed in power generation, widening transportation, medical care, and infrastructure among others.
The country’s stance on Twitter, Cryptocurrency, #Endsars Protests, freedom of speech, police brutality, and Lgbt rights really show how backward Democracy in Nigeria is practiced.
The private sector and Nigeria’s growing population have been fueling technological advancement in Nigeria. If left at this pace democracy and technology in Nigeria will never align to a point of sustainable growth.
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