Political activist and former presidential candidate, Dr Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, believes much needed to be done by African politicians to make democracy work according to global standards in the continent.
Presidential aspirant under the platform of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, has warned that democracy in Africa risks sliding back into dictatorship unless political leaders make tangible concessions to the people by embedding social welfare and economic justice into governance.
Speaking at the National Conference on the Future of Democracy in Nigeria, organized by the Peering Advocacy and Advancement Centre in Africa (PAACA) in Abuja, the former presidential candidate said democracy must go beyond elections to deliver prosperity, jobs, and hope to citizens.
Olawepo-Hashim referenced a former Head of State who once remarked that “people will not eat democracy,” stressing that unless democracy translates into food on the table and better living conditions, it will lose legitimacy among the populace.
“When democracy ceases to offer opportunity or hope, despair breeds nostalgia for authoritarianism,” he cautioned.
The political activist noted that under a decade of APC rule, Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) had declined from $574 billion in 2014 to $259 billion, a contraction that reflects the worsening poverty and despair across the country.
Drawing lessons from history, Olawepo-Hashim compared Africa’s current democratic struggles to Europe’s experience after World War I, when fragile democracies collapsed under economic hardship and social division—ushering in dictators like Mussolini, Hitler, and Franco.
“If African democracies continue to produce hunger and insecurity, relapse to autocracy is inevitable,” he warned.
The presidential aspirant maintained that constitutional reforms alone are not enough to save democracy, insisting that the strength of institutions ultimately depends on the integrity of those who run them.
“Institutions are only as strong as the values of the individuals who manage them,” he said. “Even under military rule, some judges defied pressure to uphold justice. Many African nations once came to Nigeria to ‘export judges’ because of our integrity.”
He particularly praised former Chairman of the defunct National Electoral Commission, Prof Humphrey Nwosu, for his courage in conducting the historic June 12, 1993 presidential poll despite enormous political pressure and fake court injunctions.
“Without Nwosu’s values, there would be no June 12 to remember. His conduct remains legendary and should be celebrated.”
Olawepo-Hashim urged Nigerian leaders to rebuild public confidence in democracy by delivering performance, fairness, and accountability rather than relying on the empty rituals of periodic elections.
“Our democracy must deliver, must make sense, and must endure. Like our youths would say, ‘make it make sense.’ We must make our democracy make sense,” he stressed.
