Civil society organisations (CSOs) across West Africa have blamed worsening economic conditions, authoritarian civilian governments, imperialism, manipulation of election results, corruption and weak judiciaries for citizens’ preference for military rules, especially in West Africa.
They made this known during a roundtable on democracy in West Africa convened by the West Africa Civil Society Institute (WACSI), where they highlighted democratic backsliding and shrinking civic space in the region.
The CSOs argued that democracy was declining in West Africa because people wanted good governance and economic prosperity regardless of what form it came.
Vice President of the International Programmes, Ford Foundation, Martin Abregu, urged the civil society groups to ensure that the progress achieved in democratisation is sustained.
“There’s the perception that we were stuck in a moment. In the 1990s, there was a consensus that democracy was what was needed. Today that consensus is not there. The worst-case idea is that we have moved from authoritarian regimes, but we have never landed in democracy and we are stuck in that kind of limbo,” he said.
He emphasized that the current situation is far more complex, characterized not by mere stagnation but by a regression marked by coups and the rise of elected authoritarianism.
The situation could deteriorate further as he suggests that today’s youth show less dedication to democracy compared to older generations, which raises questions about the stark contrast between the current societies and how they appeared in the 1990s, prompting confrontation of this paradox.
Regional Director, West Africa, Ford Foundation, ChiChi Aniagolu-Okoye, said it is a ‘sad development that many West African countries are now back to military government and some more are looking forward to it.
“Supposed a poll is conducted in Ghana or Nigeria, today, for instance, it will not be surprising to see figures in favour of a return to the military system of government.” she said.
However, she urged CSOs to persistently advocate for the safeguarding of democratic principles and institutions, pointing out that CSOs are disproportionately affected by non-democratic settings.
“In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the CSOs were instrumental to the return to democracy in West Africa. It was a trying period, especially for Nigeria and Ford Foundation was the only organisation that physically stayed while every other one left Nigeria. The Ford Foundation showed a very strong commitment to democracy by staying back to provide support in the CSO space towards entrenching democracy.
However, seeing that we are going right back to where we started and seeing that the citizens are rejoicing over that, is a sad testimony to the work done in the past and even for the CSOs that were in the trenches. This makes this conversation so important,” she said.
