Nigeria And The The Politics Of Unreason

When Obasanjo was sworn in as a democratically elected president of Nigeria in May 1999, hopes were high that his regime would help wake the country up from its deep slumber and fix most of the problems caused largely by decades of unimaginative military autocracy. President Obasanjo himself promised to reverse the incident of worsening poverty, give the treasury looters a good fight and improve the appalling conditions of education, the economy, social infrastructures and security of life and property. Victor E. Dike, a regular contributor to debates on Nigeria, assesses how far the Obasanjo regime has lived up to its promises between 1999 and 2003, and concludes that the president's Ostrich leadership-style has turned the country into a place where socio-political and economic problems remain perpetually unresolved.