Former President Goodluck Jonathan has decried the growing influence of political thuggery in Nigeria, describing the country as the only nation in Africa where thuggery has become a profession.
Jonathan spoke on Wednesday at the opening ceremony of the Nigerian Bar Association Law Week in Abuja, where he called for reforms in Nigeria’s electoral and judicial systems to strengthen democracy and restore public confidence in elections.
The former president added that it is also a she that thugs earn more than professors in the country as it is not an unusual occurrence to see them fly first class while a professor struggles to afford economy.
“Look, Nigeria is the only country where thuggery is a profession in Africa. I don’t want to mention the state. Some thugs, when they are travelling out of this country, fly first class, while university professors struggle to manage to buy economy tickets.
“So when we have a country where the thugs will fly first class, and the university professor will fly economy, that country is like a cone turned upside down and as a nation, we must do something. We must run elections that thugs will have no role to play”.
The former president stressed the need for credible elections, insisting that political violence and electoral malpractice must be discouraged.
“We must make sure that election processes are credible, and those who will be declared as winners are those who really succeed in the field,” he said.
Jonathan noted that unlike Nigeria, youths in many African countries do not engage in violence during elections.
“Nigeria, I’m not sure if 1% of young people live with guns but during the election, they will go with their guns”.
Jonathan noted that Nigeria’s democratic future depends on strong institutions, credible elections and adherence to the rule of law.
“As a nation, we must ask ourselves difficult but necessary questions. What kind of Nigeria do we want to leave behind for our grandchildren? What kind of democracy are we building? Are our institutions becoming stronger or are they getting weaker?” he asked.
Jonathan warned that democracy could become endangered when foundational institutions are weakened adding that when they are weakened, democracy becomes endangered.
The former president emphasised the importance of the independence of the Independent National Electoral Commission and the judiciary.
“The Independent National Electoral Commission, must remain independent not only in name but in practice. The credibility of elections is central to public trust in democracy.
“Every Nigerian voter must have confidence that their vote counts, that electoral outcomes reflect the genuine will of the people, and that no citizen is disenfranchised.
“Once citizens lose confidence in the electoral process, democracy itself becomes endangered. Electoral integrity is therefore not negotiable,” he said.
Jonathan cautioned the judiciary against becoming an instrument for political manipulation.
“The courts must never become instruments for political manipulation of partisan interests. The judiciary must not let itself become that tool deployed by unpatriotic but powerful politicians to overturn the people’s will,” he said.
Drawing comparisons with other African countries, Jonathan said election-related litigation was unusually high in Nigeria because many politicians believed the courts could overturn electoral outcomes.
Recalling an interaction with a South African official who didn’t know that they could go to court after losing the election, Jonathan said, “at the end of every round of elections, the number of cases that go to courts is overwhelming. and it’s not because our population is high. That has nothing to do with the reason why we go to court. When I was Vice President, I was always worried about the number of cases, the delays and so on.
“I asked this lady how they do in South Africa, how to manage this electoral litigation. The fact is that the lady was a bit quiet for some time, as if she didn’t understand what I said but then she asked me, why would somebody go to court after losing an election? So I was wondering, why would you go to court after losing election? That means that in South Africa, going to court after losing election is strange.
“The deputy president didn’t know that he could go to court after losing the election. While in Nigeria, not going to court is strange. So I ask, tell me, why do we go to court? And some of the people that go to court, I’m a politician, we know ourselves. Some of the people who go to court, even their family members won’t vote for them but they go to court simply because we believe that the judiciary could be manipulated to declare people who are not supposed to win the election as those who have won the election and that’s why I’ve always been saying, that we must change our laws. The judiciary will do their work, but they should not declare any candidate. If they are not satisfied with the process of the election, and the election, then they should go back to the field,” he said.
Jonathan also lamented low voter turnout in Nigeria, describing it as the lowest in Africa despite the country’s large population.
“While we claim to be the most populous country in Africa, in terms of voters turnout, Nigeria has the least for all this period,” he said.
Citing Senegal’s recent election, Jonathan said credible polls could be achieved without sophisticated technology if stakeholders were committed to doing the right thing.
“The last election in Senegal, you will see that there was no technology used at all. No technology but everybody, whether it’s a politician, the security people, the electoral management, everybody decided to do the right thing,” he said.
He further called for reforms in the nation’s electoral adjudication process, suggesting the establishment of a constitutional court or a single tribunal to handle election disputes.
“In Nigeria, we need to change. Either we should set up a constitutional court, or probably we should set up a tribunal in a way that just one tribunal will take a decision on electoral matters,” he said.
Former Attorney General of the Federation, Mohammed Adoke in his speech, faulted the culture of excessive monetisation of political process in Nigeria stressing that the practice is weakening democratic participation.
He urged political parties to uphold internal democracy and promote inclusive governance noting that political parties had a responsibility to safeguard democracy through voter education, inclusive participation and people-oriented policies.
He warned that high nomination fees were being used to edge out credible candidates from political contests.
“Excessive monetisation of the political process has been a mitigating factor to effective participation and should be addressed. The cost of expression of interest and nomination should not be used to eliminate candidates from political contests deliberately,” he said.
The former AGF also criticised the growing use of consensus arrangements in political parties, saying the practice was replacing democratic participation with the “coronation of candidates.”
According to him, voters must take their responsibilities seriously by electing competent leaders and removing underperforming officials through the ballot box rather than ethnic or religious considerations.
Adoke stressed that democracy could only survive through strong institutions, accountable leadership and active citizen participation.
“Democracy is not preserved by the constitution alone, nor by anger, nor by the court. It is preserved by people who refuse to let it die. Nigerians must be vigilant and avoid complacency,” he said.
He added that institutions must be prioritised above personalities.
He praised former President Goodluck Jonathan for conceding defeat peacefully in the 2015 presidential election, describing him as “a democratic leader, a global icon of peace, a democrat by essence.
Adoke said Jonathan chose “to leave the scene without a treaty” despite having grounds to challenge the election outcome while he also commended his work ethic and respect for the rule of law during his time in office.
President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Afam Osigwe (SAN), also expressed concern over what he described as the increasing judicialisation of Nigeria’s democratic process, warning of how the judiciary now plays a growing role in determining electoral outcomes.
Osigwe said it was troubling that 27 years after Nigeria’s return to civil rule, concerns about safeguarding democracy still persisted. According to him, the situation reflected the need to deepen democracy, strengthen institutions and ensure that election outcomes truly reflected the will of the people.
“It speaks volumes about the worries of Nigerians that the democratic process may have become more judicialized, that the judiciary now plays a critical and increasing role in determining who represents us or who occupies an electoral process,” he said.
Osigwe also warned against electoral violence, thuggery and manipulation, stressed that democratic governance must remain rooted in constitutional principles.
“Despite the provisions of section 1 of the constitution that no person shall take power in Nigeria except through the democratic process, that oftentimes without people mounting a military coup, people through violence, thuggery and other forms of rigging and electoral manipulations come to power in Nigeria,” he stated.
The NBA president commended former President Goodluck Jonathan for his democratic credentials, recalling Jonathan’s statement that his ambition was not worth the blood of any Nigerian.
“That should be the mantra, that respecting the rule of law is much more important than their personal ambition,” he said.
He expressed hope that the 2027 elections would become “a reference point” for credible democratic practice in the country.
