“Nigerians Were Better Off Under the Military” — Donald Duke Argues

Former Cross River State governor and PRP presidential candidate Donald Duke has declared that Nigerians were better off under military rule than under the current democratic system, arguing that 27 years of civilian government have imposed enormous costs without delivering corresponding improvements in the lives of the people.

A Blunt Assessment

In an interview that has reignited debate about Nigeria’s democratic experiment, Donald Duke, former Cross River State governor and presidential candidate of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), has declared that Nigerians were better off under military rule than under the current democratic system.

“The people were better off under the military. At least governance was not that expensive,” Duke said.

A Deteriorating Reality

Duke argued that 27 years of civilian government had failed to deliver the dividends of democracy promised to Nigerians.

“I’m speaking broadly now. If we focus on the well-being of the people, what we term democracy dividends, how much has been delivered?” he asked.

He cited deteriorating conditions across key sectors:

“We’re still having the same problems we had 27 years ago. It’s getting worse. The number of children out of school has not improved; it’s deteriorating. The healthcare system is not improving; it’s deteriorating. Infrastructure deficiency over the last 27 years, are we better off?”

A Nation in Pretence

Duke described Nigeria’s democratic system as a pretence, alleging that neither the legislature nor the judiciary provided effective checks on executive power.

“We don’t have a democracy. We are pretending democracy. We’re not a democracy. You and I know that. And the checks and balances from the National Assembly, you know there’s no check; there’s no balance,” he said.

He cited the speed with which the National Assembly approved the return to Nigeria’s former national anthem as evidence of lawmakers’ failure to interrogate executive proposals.

“We changed the national anthem in a week. Nobody was asking questions. They shouted, ‘On your mandate, we shall stand,’ abdicating their responsibilities,” he lamented.

A Failing Opposition

Duke argued that Nigeria’s governance crisis was worsened by an ineffective opposition and a political system in which election results often failed to reflect the wishes of voters.

“The opposition is terribly weakened and self-centred. Democracy is also in danger. The results you get from the polls often don’t reflect the views of the people,” he said.

He contended that disputed elections had weakened accountability because political officeholders who did not feel answerable to voters could easily disregard their needs.

A Failure of the Elite

Duke blamed the country’s elite for abandoning the political space to people who treated public office as a permanent occupation.

“It’s a failure of the elite more than anything else. We’re elites; we’re enlightened people but we abdicated,” he said.

A Controversial but Honest Assessment

Duke’s remarks are likely to generate controversy, particularly among those who remember the human rights abuses, press censorship and political repression that characterised Nigeria’s military regimes.

However, his frustration with the failure of democracy to deliver tangible improvements in the lives of ordinary Nigerians reflects a sentiment shared by many citizens.

The challenge for Nigeria is not to return to military rule, but to reform its democratic institutions so that they serve the people effectively.

Duke’s critique, however uncomfortable, is a necessary contribution to that conversation.

A Lesson for Nigerian Youths

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Donald Duke’s controversial statement is a reminder that frustration with democracy is not a reason to abandon it.

The same people who romanticise military rule will never allow their own children to live under a dictatorship. Their families are protected.

For young Nigerians, the lesson is clear: democracy is not perfect, but it is the best system we have.

The solution to Nigeria’s problems is not to return to military rule, but to strengthen democratic institutions and demand accountability.

The same leaders who fail to deliver democracy dividends will never allow their own children to be denied their rights.

Demand better democracy. Reform the system. And never forget that the solution to bad governance is more democracy, not less.