Political Godfatherism, Violence and Sustainable Democracy in Nigeria

The focus of this study was to examine the phenomenon of "Political GodFatherism" and its role in the politics of Nigeria. Though, the concept is as old as politics itself, its recent rise in Nigerian politics gives reasons for the evaluation of the concept and the impact it makes in the politics of the country. The findings of this study indicated that, the character of the State and the nature of politics in Nigeria have impacted on society, negative values that now threaten the fabric of the country's nascent democracy. Competition amongst godfather to control state powers through their favoured godsons has denied the electorates the right to elect their preferred candidates, thereby rendering elections ineffective. Besides, the fierce struggle for state power has also resulted in some of the worst electoral violence in the country, before, during and after elections. It was the candid view of this study that political godfatherism as practised in Nigeria is a potential threat to the sustenance of democracy. The study suggested attitudinal change and positve perception of politics by these groups of people.