Political Nomadism and Its Implications on Political Development in Nigeria: A Critical Analysis

Abstract

Political nomadism; that is the nature of the game, politics without principles; understand it by whatever nomenclature, acronym or synonym you may so desire: political port - de - port, political party defection, cross carpeting, floor crossing, party defection or deflection, party decamping, political party prostitution and the likes; this writer prefers the term political nomadism not for any derogatory intent but for the primary purpose of capturing the vitiating nature of that phenomenon in the political prospect of Nigeria. Political nomadism is self-serving as it leaves the politician without a bus stop pursuant to self-aggrandizement. The concern of this paper however is not on political nomadism per se as much as it is on the political development of Nigeria viewed from the binocular of democratic consolidation. At the heart of Nigerian ruling class politics is a fundamental inability to serve the genuine interests of the Nigerian people. The APC’s emergence represents a major gain for the historically fractious oppositional segment of the Nigerian ruling class and in truth; they must be commended for coming so far to the point where they are increasingly becoming a serious alternative to the PDP. As the battlefield ‘election 2015’ is drawing nearer, Nigeria is witnessing more and more political nomadic movements, which may spell impending doom to our fledgling democracy. Drawing extensively on secondary sources of literature and leaning on the post-colonial state framework, this paper exposes the historico-evolutionary trends of political nomadism, rationalizes its causative factors and critically analyses its implications on political development in Nigeria. Based on the findings of this study political nomadism rests on a tripod of factors, namely: constitutional or legal inadequacies, irresponsible political ruling class and absence of internal democracy. Recommendations are therefore suggested for policy cum legal reforms for strengthening democratic practices.

Key words: political nomadism, political development, democracy, party defection, internal democracy.