Injustice, Lack Of Equity Responsible For Nigeria’s Faltering Democracy — Diri

Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, has identified injustice, lack of equity and unfairness as major factors responsible for the persistent challenges confronting Nigeria’s democracy.

Diri also called for the entrenchment of fiscal federalism and the rule of law, arguing that democracy would continue to struggle in the country unless its structural imbalances were addressed.

The governor made the remarks on Tuesday while delivering a goodwill message at the 2026 Goodluck Jonathan Foundation Democracy Dialogue held at the International Conference Centre in Bauchi.

The dialogue, organised by the Goodluck Jonathan Foundation in collaboration with the Bauchi State Government, had the theme: “Beyond Elections: Can Political Parties and the Judiciary Save African Democracy?”

Diri said Nigeria had taken the wrong turn in its democratic journey and needed to correct longstanding structural defects to make democracy more beneficial to its citizens.

Using Bayelsa State as an example, he criticised what he described as the injustice surrounding the exploitation of the state’s natural resources, particularly crude oil, and the manner in which revenues were distributed among the states.

According to him, oil-producing communities in Bayelsa and the wider Niger Delta have continued to suffer developmental deficits despite the enormous revenues generated from their resources for more than six decades.

He cited Oloibiri, the oil-producing community where commercial oil exploration began in Nigeria, as an example of the disparity between resource contribution and development.

“Democracy is built on three pillars — justice, equity and fairness. And I believe that we missed the road of democracy in Nigeria long ago because there is no justice,” Diri said.

He also pointed to the lack of adequate infrastructure in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area, noting that the oil-rich area had remained without road access to its headquarters for decades until the intervention of his administration.

The governor said his administration recently constructed a 630-metre bridge across a river to provide access to the local government headquarters.

Diri further questioned the structure of revenue sharing, noting that Bayelsa has only eight local government areas while some other states have significantly more, yet resources generated from the state are distributed nationally.

He argued that such a system amounted to an unfair arrangement that had persisted irrespective of who occupied the presidency.

The governor also drew a connection between natural resource exploitation and insecurity, citing the discovery and exploitation of gold in some northern states.

He said Nigeria needed to embrace true federalism if democracy was to become firmly established and responsive to the needs of its citizens.

“Until we begin to practise federalism, we will have some pseudo-democratic, pseudo-autocratic and sometimes even a tyrannical government in this country,” he said.

Diri commended former President Goodluck Jonathan for establishing and sustaining the annual democracy dialogue, describing such platforms as important for promoting meaningful conversations on Nigeria’s democratic development.

He said the country needed to continue to “jaw-jaw” through constructive dialogue in order to strengthen its democratic culture and build a better nation.

The event was chaired by former President Olusegun Obasanjo and attended by former President Goodluck Jonathan and his wife, Dame Patience Jonathan; former Vice President Namadi Sambo; Bauchi State Governor, Senator Bala Mohammed; former Senate President and former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Anyim Pius Anyim; and presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress and former Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi, among other dignitaries.