Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has criticised the model of democracy practised in many African countries, arguing that it lacks African context and content and has contributed to a winner-takes-all political culture.
Gatekeepers News reports that Obasanjo said the Western liberal democratic system inherited by many African countries was not designed around the continent’s realities, likening its adoption to wearing a dress that was not made to fit.
The former president spoke on Tuesday at the 2026 Goodluck Jonathan Foundation Democracy Dialogue in Bauchi, the Bauchi State capital.
According to him, the Western model has encouraged a political culture in which those who win elections often disregard their opponents.
“The Western liberal democracy that we inherited pulls from monarchy, hence we can have government and loyal opposition, loyal to the monarchy. But when you talk about loyal opposition in an African setting and I have gone into many of African languages, opposition means enemy, that is the word. Then do you have a loyal enemy?” Obasanjo said.
“So, what do you do with your enemy? You crush him and destroy him and that is what we have.”
He argued that the system does not adequately reflect African realities, resulting in a winner-takes-all approach to governance.
“The democracy we practice has no African context, no African content and if you try to use what is not meant for you to serve your purpose, it is like a dress for which you are not measured, you try to put it on, it is either too small for you or too big for you. It will not fit and it will not serve your purpose,” he said.
“In practice, we have winner takes all, first past the post. If you beat me by one vote then you take it all and whatever I have does not matter.”
Obasanjo: Nigeria Must Protect Its Diversity
Obasanjo also criticised what he described as the poor management of diversity, warning that democracy should not be practised in a manner that ignores the importance of Nigeria’s diverse identities.
He said diversity remained a defining feature of Nigerian society and should be deliberately protected and nurtured.
“Nigeria is what it is because of our diversity. Remove diversity out of Nigeria you will probably have Republic of Oduduwa, that will not be Nigeria or Republic of Danfodio, that will not be Nigeria. That diversity must be nourished and be taken care of,” he said.
The former president also expressed concern over the growing influence of money and other forms of inducement in Nigerian politics, saying the trend had increased “by leaps and bounds.”
While acknowledging that widespread poverty and illiteracy posed challenges to democratic development, Obasanjo criticised the lack of gender representation in Nigerian politics since the beginning of the Fourth Republic.
“In Nigeria, you call this one fourth republic, we have not elected a female governor in more than 24 years. And yet the people we are electing, most of them lack character, they lack attributes and values that can endure and can uplift,” he said.
‘Democracy Is a Continuous Process’
Obasanjo said Nigeria needed to look beyond simply copying political parties, institutions and judicial structures from Western countries.
He stressed that democracy should be viewed as a continuous process rather than a destination, arguing that African countries should develop a system that reflects their own history, culture and values.
The former president noted that countries from which African nations adopted Western liberal democracy were themselves reviewing aspects of their political systems.
He questioned why African countries should not equally reassess the model they inherited.
“Call it what you like, just make sure it has history, culture and values that are African. You can call it democracy if you like, you can call it African democracy. In that case it will be African with African context and African content,” Obasanjo said.
The dialogue, chaired by Obasanjo, was attended by former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan and former Vice President Namadi Sambo.
Bauchi State Governor Bala Mohammed hosted the event, which also attracted constitutional experts and civil society representatives from across Africa.
