THE POLITICAL TRANSFORMATION OF NIGERIA – RELEVANT FACTORS

Abstract

Nigeria is classified neither as a developed economy nor an economy in transition but as a developing economy. This is a gratuitous classification. In real terms, Nigeria is an underdeveloped country. In the 2022 ranking of countries in their performance vis-à-vis the 2030 sustainable development goals, Nigeria ranks 139 out of 193 countries. It trails behind countries like Ghana, Gabon, Togo, Cameroon, Burkina Faso, etc. Its unenviable status as the capital poverty of the world, which it acquired in 2018, was only surpassed in 2022 by India. In spite of this, Nigeria's National Bureau of Statistics, in its 2022 report, says that 133 million Nigerians are in poverty. This parlous state is being exacerbated by ethnicity and religious bigotry. To halt this downward trend and turn the page of political transformation, great thinkers have underlined good leadership as a relevant factor that can serve as a fillip to the realisation of this goal. Good leadership is good. However, it is insufficient for this project. There are two other relevant factors besides good leadership. They are, namely, a good constitution and the rule of law. The hierarchical order of importance of these relevant factors is: 1. good constitution, 2. good leadership and 3. the rule of law. The three are both independent and interdependent at the same time. They are a trinity of factors. Nigeria's political transformation depends on these factors' dynamism and functionality. The analogy of these factors with the Trinitarian Persons is the analytical tool in this paper.