caution.
Though electoral activity is judged by some scholars to facilitate democratic learning, consolidation is inevitably a much longer-term process.
What will matter more is what happens once a new leader is in place.
In this respect, a common critique in parts of Africa has concerned the prevalence of diminished forms of democracy whereby polls are held to lend a veneer of legitimacy to what may otherwise be highly undemocratic regimes.
Certainly, there have been numerous examples of rulers seeking to weaken democratic institutions.
The long-term view: As such, it is clear that a country does not become democratic purely through the casting of votes. Rather, consolidation is a less tangible process determined by long-term investment in democratic institutions; the entrenchment of a democratic culture; respect for freedom of speech, assembly and organisation; and the absence of attempts to subvert the various organs of a democracy.
In this respect, the hard work in Nigeria lies ahead. The trajectory, however, remains unclear.
As a former military leader who took power through a coup in 1983, Buhari’s candidacy was held by opponents to symbolise a return to a repressive past.
Yet, he has since fought in three democratic contests, and claims to have learned from his stint in office. He presents himself as a born-again democrat. And he won on a campaign to root out corruption – a fundamental source of perversion of state institutions and of popular faith in them.
What will be key, upon his accession, is the extent to which he remains committed to this cause, and to strengthening democratic institutions more broadly.
He has warned that progress could take time; yet his ability to overcome entrenched interests to fulfil this pledge will be key to his success in the eyes of citizens.
Excerpted from: ‘Nigeria post-election: Bellwether of African democracy?’.
Courtesy: Aljazeera.com