The Politics of Neoliberal Democracy in Africa: State and Civil Society in Nigeria (International Library of African Studies)

290 Pages·2008·0.3 MB·English

by  Usman A. Tar

THE POLITICS OF NEOLIBERAL DEMOCRACY IN AFRICA
Usman A. Tar completed his PhD in Peace and Conflict Studies at the
Department of Peace Studies, University of Bradford. He is Lecturer at
the University of Maiduguri, Nigeria, and has held teaching and research
positions at the Africa Centre, Department of Peace Studies, University of
Bradford. He is Managing Editor of the journal Information, Society and
Justice and a member of the editorial board of the Review of African Political
Economy. He has previously served as contributing editor to Peace, Conflict
and Development. His research interests include international relations;
politics of development; peace, conflict and security; governance and
democracy; state, civil society and citizenship.
THE POLITICS OF NEOLIBERAL
DEMOCRACY IN AFRICA
State and Civil Society in Nigeria

USMAN A. TAR

Tauris Academic Studies
LONDON • NEW YORK
Published in 2009 by Tauris Academic Studies,
An imprint of I.B.Tauris & Co Ltd
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175 Fifth Avenue, New York NY 10010
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In the United States of America and Canada, distributed by Palgrave
Macmillan, a division of St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York
NY 10010
Copyright © 2009 Usman A. Tar
The right of Usman A. Tar to be identified as the author of this work has
been asserted by the author in accordance with the Copyright, Designs
and Patent Act 1988.
All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in a review, this book, or
any part thereof, may not be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a
retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior
written permission of the publisher.
International Library of African Studies 22
ISBN: 978 1 84511 656 9
A full CIP record for this book is available from the British Library
A full CIP record is available from the Library of Congress
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: available
Printed and bound in India by Thomson Press Ltd
From camera-ready copy supplied by Oxford Publishing Services
To Fatima and our children – Mustapha, Abubakar and Aisha – for
being great companions. And, to our extended families for all the
unconditional support.

Contents
List of Tables and Figures viii
Abbreviations ix
Acknowledgements xii
Preface xiv
Maps xvii
Introduction 1
1 Global and Local Discourses:
Civil Society and the Achievements of Democracy 17
2 External and Internal Dimensions of Democratic
Expansion: Towards a Synergy 54
3 The Evolution of Civil Society:
Contemporary Character and Democratic Potentials 89
4 Confrontations with the State:
Labour Movements and Civic Associations 127
5 Civil Society and Electoral Process:
From Illusion to Reality 171
6 Conclusion: A Critique of Neoliberal Democracy,
the State and Civil Society 210
Appendix: Methodology 225
Notes and References 232
Bibliography 245
Index 265
List of Tables and Figures
Tables
1.1 The Liberal Conception of the Role of Civil Society 26
1.2 Local Discourses on Civil Society 38
2.1 The External and Internal Dimensions of Neoliberal
Democracy 60
2.2 Nigerian Military/Democratic Rulers, and their
Ethnic/Regional Origin, 1960–Date 67
2.3 Military Regimes and Transitions to Democracy in
Nigeria: Many Failures, Few Successes, 1966–Date 68
2.4 Democratic Renewals and Consolidation in Nigeria:
An Endless Game 70
3.1 The Regulatory Framework of Civil Society Organisations
under the Military 109
3.2 Selected Military Decrees Relating to Civil Society and
Associational Matters in Nigeria 110
3.3 Geopolitical Distribution of Selected Pro-Democracy
Associations in Nigeria 114
3.4 Distribution of Pro-democracy ‘Interest Groups’ in
Nigeria: Jega’s Count (1998) 119
3.5 Distribution of Selected Pro-democracy Groups in
Nigeria: Field Count 119
4.1 The Labour Movement, Civic Associations and Class
Struggles in Nigeria: An Analytical Framework 132
4.2 A Sample Profile of Pro-democracy Civic Associations
in Nigeria 151
5.1 Sites of the Research 229
Figures
3.1 Distribution of Civil Society Organisations in Nigeria
by Year Established 103
3.2 Geographical Density of Civil Society in Nigeria 115
Abbreviations
ASUU Academic Union of Universities
BBC British Broadcasting Corporation
BOCODEP Borno Coalition for Democracy and Progress
CAC Corporate Affairs Commission
CAMA Companies and Allied Matters Act
CAPP Community Action for Popular Participation
CBOs Community-based Organisations
CD Campaign for Democracy
CDD Centre for Democracy and Development
CDHR Committee for the Defence of Human Rights
CFCR Citizen’s Forum for Constitutional Reform
CLEEN Centre for Law Enforcement Education
CLO Civil Liberties Organisation
CNN Cable News Network
CRD Centre for Research and Documentation
CRP Constitutional Rights Project
CSOs Civil Society Organisations
CSPN Civil Society Pro-democracy Network
DANIDA Danish International Development Agency
DfID Department for International Development (UK)
DFRRI Directorate of Food, Road and Rural Infrastructure
ERN Electoral Reform Network
ETP Economic Transition Programme
EU European Commission/Union
EU-EOM European Union Election Observation Mission
FCT Federal Capital Territory
FGN Federal Government of Nigeria
FRN Federal Republic of Nigeria
GFSA Gani Fawehinmi Solidarity Association
HRM Human Rights Monitor (Nigeria)
HRW Human Rights Watch (USA)
HURILAWS The Human Rights Law Service