Electoral Violence and Political Instability in Nigeria: Implication for National Cohesion

Abstract

Nigeria had her first election in 1922 under the Clifford’s Constitution. Since then, under different dispensations, elections are held to fill various positions in both the legislative and executive arms of government. Elections in Nigeria are largely characterized with violence leading to loss of lives and wanton destruction of properties. Also, political parties are adorned with ethnic and regional colouration. Consequently, voters are largely ethnically and regionally biased in an attempt to put into office “one of their own.” This is the principal basis for the widespread electoral violence witnessed since independence in 1960. Successive governments have made frantic efforts to de-ethnicize and de-regionalize political contests and consequently achieve violence free and credible elections, particularly since the commencement of the Fourth Republic. These efforts have not achieved much in terms of stemming the occurrence of electoral violence. The corollary is fragmentation of the polity along ethno-religious and regional lines, thereby creating political instability and attendant inhibition of national cohesion since independence, six decades ago. Thus, the main objective of this paper is to show that electoral violence and the resultant political instability negatively affect national cohesion. The study adopted the State Compromise Paradigm to explain the need for sincerity among the political leaders of the different ethnic groups in the discharge of their duties and responsibilities in order to achieve national cohesion. The study relied mainly on secondary data focusing on political instability and weak national cohesion in the country. The study revealed that efforts at de-ethnicizing and de-regionalizing political contests as well as discouragement of violence in political contestation with ethno-religious bias had not yielded much positive results in the country. The paper concludes that unless and until electoral contestation in Nigeria is violence free, enduring political stability and national cohesion may remain unattainable. The study recommends, among other things, that state institutions should function for the benefit of all citizens, political leaders should avoid fanning the embers of ethnicity during elections and government should put in motion a sincere policy and programme for national cohesion.