Analysis of some contemporary issues in Nigeria’s Fourth Republic. In Some Selected Governance Issues in Nigeria’s Fourth Republic.

Abstract

Nigeria, as a post-colonial nation, has been bedevilled by myriads of contentious and trending issues. Such issues come in various dimensions- political, social and economic. With its enormous natural resources, land mass and a large youthful population, Nigeria is regarded as the giant of Africa with great potential for development and growth. At independence, many believed that by the 1970s, Nigeria would be one of the developed countries, at least, in Africa, given its enormous wealth of human and material resources. However, after fifty-eight years of its existence as a sovereign and independent nation, the country is still categorised as a poor country, with a Gross Domestic Product of 375.77 billion dollars (Nigeria Data Portal, 2018).

The current situation which the nation is grappling with cannot be disconnected from the contemporary political issues and challenges facing the polity. This underscores the need for an analysis of certain critical issues in contemporary Nigerian politics. While Nigeria is faced with multi-dimensional contemporary political issues and challenges, the focus of this discourse comprises some of the critical issues in contemporary Nigerian politics. Such issues include party politics, elections and electoral violence, corruption, inter-governmental relations and restructuring, farmers-herdsmen conflict and Boko Haram insurgency.