Political education in Nigeria: the mobilisation theory thesis perspective

Abstract

The role of Civil Society Organizations in development has been reinforced in recent times by the emphasis on participatory development and democracy. In this regard, they are seen as the gate-keepers of our polity. In Nigeria’s grand design for good governance, the populace assign to them enormous responsibility to take development and democracy down to the people. Unfortunately, this is not backed up with adequate infrastructure, knowledge of democracy, development and resources. Their role is also circumscribed by an over-centralized state and persistent top down approaches to development. While the state does not fully understand which types of engagement with Civil Societies would work on the one hand, Civil Societies on the other do not fully perceive the importance of a partnership with the state. Their proposed involvement in voter education and mobilization of the electorate during elections provide another opportunity to experiment with Civil Societies’ participation in governance. This initiative was specifically designed to support the entrenchment of participatory democracy and drive it to a sustainable level in Nigeria with Civil societies mobilizing and sensitizing the electorate to increase voter registration and ensure a free and fair election in 2015.