The Jonathan Presidency Junior and Senior Years Edited by John A. A. Ayoade Adeoye A. Akinsanya Olatunde JB Ojo ~ JOHN ARCHERSIaI PUBLISHERS LIMITED IBADAN Published by JOHN ARJ!HERS (Publishers) Ltd. First Floor Ebun Isola House, 53 Gbadebo Str., Mokola GPO Box 339, Dugbe, Ibadan (f) 0803 4476 916, 0701 085 1055 e-mail: archersbooksonline@gmail.com johnarchers@yahoo.co.uk © John A. A. Ayoade, Adeoye A. Akinsanya, Olatunde JB Ojo 2018 First published 2018 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior permission of the copyright owners. ISBN 978-978-52403-4-4 VI vii nts viii ix xiii tVII ciety and Good Governance - Stephen Lafenwa 'llu Niger Delta Amnesty Programme ///1 . aini Tukur Hassan 'I'" nsformation Ambassadors of Nigeria and Jonathan's IItd f r a Second Term - Ademola Pius Adebisi ( Ii is and Reform in the Oil Industry - Elems U. Mahmud I" • utive-Legislative Relations - Adeoye A. Akinsanya, J:'/(,fnSU. Mahmud, Bariratu Abdullahi, Tanimu Mohammed .md Sylvanus Mohammed Itodo 'l'h 2014 Jonathan National Conference and Ni eria's Future - Adeoye A. Akinsanya, Elems U. Mahmud, Bariratu Abdullai and Tanimu Mohammed I odluck Jonathan's Foreign Policy Challenges and uccesses - Sabella 0. Abidde nderstanding Popular Struggles and Resistance During th Jonathan Administration - Abubakar Momoh and A delaja Odukoya « 1111( lusion - John A. A. Ayoade, Adeoye A. Akinsanya and Olatunde JB Olo hlllll the Editors lu nrt the Contributors Illdt x V 1 27 42 61 93 107 155 175 207 - 214 215 217 List of Tables 4.1 Value and Percentage Share of Old and Non-Oil Exports, 1960-1995 64 4.2 Nigeria's Revenue from Crude Oil, 1961-1995 65 6.1 Composition of 2005 National Political Reform Conference and 2014 National Conference 132 6.2 Official Salary and Allowances of Senators of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 135 6.3 Official Salary and Allowances of Members of the House of Representatives 136 6.4 Non-Regular Allowances for Federal Legislators 137 6.5 Remuneration and Earnings of Federal Legislators at a Glance 138 / VI Dedication TO ALL PATRlOTIC NIGERlANS, DEMANDING AND UPPORTING POLITICAL RESTRUCTURING THAT THE HOUSE CALLED "NIGERIA" MAY NOT COLLAPSE! vii Acknowledgments Ed~ting or.writing a book imposes a debt of gratitude on the editor(s). This one ISno exception. First, we acknowledge the Contributors to this book because they made it possible. Contributing to the book is an intellectual service in the overall interest of knowledge production. Keeping deadlines was not easy and the necessary and regular but constant reminders sometimes invaded the privacy of innocent Contributors. W~also ackn0:vledge the Nigerian electorate who, with great patience and high expectations, went to the polls in February 2015 to elect for themselves a President to grow, nurture, and advance their interests. Democracy is built on the secular faith of an unwritten social contract. ~e ackno,:ledge their steadfast faith which takes them to the polls time after time even when their experience would suggest otherwise. It is particularly appropriate in the case of this current volume to thank the person who did the word processing. The editing necessitated doing it over several times. It was a nice experience to work with someone who was ready to pay for the mistakes of other people cheerfully. John Archers Publishers also falls into this category. They have facilitated the work by beating deadlines. We want to acknowledge the readers, Nigerians and others, who will read this volume. We hope, by this series on the Presidency and Presidents in Nigeria to -add value to political office holding and political performance in Nigeria. We believe that there is a need to institute a syste.m of intellectual reminder to the political process. It may be slow and Imperceptible but it will surely add value. This is why the book on the Buhari Presidency is on the way. Meanwhile, we want to treat Readers to some aspects of the last two Years of the Jonathan Presidency 2013- 2015. Vlll It 11 1"llIlll i. an interestingly complex phenomenon just as Nigerian I1 1 11 Ill: r re breed of creative clumsiness. The combination of tI I IIht i s and Nigerian politicians is an egregious complexity I" 111.1 mywhere else the world ov~r. ~he Nigerian ~nvir?nment " dill W lip Nigerian politics and Nigerian polItICIanSIS said to be III 10\0 ical and human diversity that is capable of producing 'Ill I h.dl nges that only politicians who have learnt not to be part Ih plIII \ ms can resolve. Where politicians themselves are at the 1I I lit n tional challenges as in Nigeria, the problems can only 11111111'\ y ponentially. Nigerian politicians have always accused diversity 11 libi and justification for the inoperability of the nation. They 111.ld frantic efforts at reducing the salience of diversity but usually III d. III re strenuous efforts at frustrating their home spurn solutions. I" I .1lity is the expertise of the national political class to violate n~tio~a1 I"Itlll '\1 future on the altar of sub-national interests. The Nigerian I,. Imate is also, by and large, fixed at its ethnic pole and even when IhI politicians hop from one party to the other for personal advantage, It 11 Y rry the ethnic baggage. There is a thick en~elope of per~onal I'uhll al interest enveloping subnational interests which at conveme~ce VI 11 rate nationhood. The ethnic survive all political weather making .IIIY political party a tapestry of sorts. The parties therefore operate "lid r various sorts of encumbrances particularly because the parties I1 deliberately deprived of a political curriculum. Instead, the parties endorse programmes which hang loose because they are not tethered to .1noverarching body of ideas and principles. Thus, politicians can change p litical parties, win the nomination of their new parties and ~eceivethe lectoral endorsement of the public a few weeks after. OftentImes, such politicians continue to be loyal to their old parties and work against the lectoral interests of their new parties. The parties are therefore rudderless and inefficient political guides to the public in evolving standards of civic accountability. Elections are held after candidates have advertised their programmes ix nd their supposed competence to implement those programmes. Unfortunately, from the foregoing, the public is not provided the parameters with which to assess either the parties or the candidates. --rhe personalities of the parties are ill-defined just as those of the candidates are confusing. Some of the candidates had contested elections on the platforms of the parties they now oppose without espousing new political philosophies. They only chant political slogans that effectively mask their political direction. Any government that is produced under such politically opaque circumstances by political dramatis personae that lack sound political principles is ipso facto unserviceable. This is further complicated by the constitutional requirement that ranks geography over competence in executive recruitment. The product of such a muddled political process is a self-serving administration unhinged from its legitimate constituency. Paradoxically, the political class routinely claims that it derives a mandate from the people. Unfortunately, the environment of the campaigns is deliberately made incongenial for sober presentation by the politicians or careful deliberation by the electorate. The politicians move from constituency to constituency with clumsy dance steps, immelodious music that taunt opponents without enunciating clear-cut programmes, flowing garments that conceal ignorant political insincerity padded with recitation of ill-digested infantile cliches and vacuous promises. Constituents get away from campaign venues without an idea of the direction that the party intends to lead them. There is therefore a disconnect between the people and the government that emerges. The politicians have either proved that they are incapable of presenting winning issues or they wilfully manipulate the election results. The proverbial unreliability of the electoral process was aptly depicted in a short dialogue where somebody inquired of a supposed officer of the election management body if the EMB had got everything ready for the election. The officer responded that even the election result was ready. There is so much skepticism of the electoral process that Nigerians think that there is no comfortable choice between the political parties. As Dr. Azikiwe said in a different context in 1946, the parties are similar bottles of poison with different labels. Such skepticism explains why many registered voters refuse to collect their voters' cards. Many people x h lieve that the votes do not count anyway and even when the votes are rounted the elected officials are neither responsive nor responsible. This lcc1ing ~lso explains another pervasive anti-democratic ~ehaviou~ ~f vot -selling and vote-buying. Many prospective voters think that l~ IS III re rewarding to sell the vote than to expect that their elected officials will deliver the much-touted "dividends of democracy." They also value Individual pecuniary advantage over the common good. All the above ar evidence of inadequate political education, bad political culture and wrong political socialisation. The Nigerian electoral process raises the critical issue whether the ri ht political culture can be gathered successfully on the street or whet~er it is more successful with deliberate civic education. The Babanglda Administration made serious efforts at reforming the political process through deliberate civic education. There were three notable attempts, namely: the Two-Party Option, MAMSER, and the Centre for Democratic Studies. The Political Bureau which was empanell.ed ~o recommend the most appropriate political arrangement for Nigeria recommended two official political parties so as to neutralise the ethnic- based parties of the First Republic. The Two-Pa~ ex~erimen~ ~ad prospects of forcing political integration throu~ ethnic alliance.bu~dmg since no ethnic, large it may be, could satisfy the constitutIOnal requirement of spread. The Two-Party experiment would have neutralised the fissiparous ethnic phenomenon. Unfortunately, the experiment was not perfect. It violated the democratic requirement of the voluntary membership of political parties. While the Two-Party experiment was an institutional reform, t~e MAMSER was established to educate and mobilise the general public. Its mission was to effect behavioural and attitudinal change in order to improve the total society. Unfortunately, it was. turned ~to an arm of the Ministry of Information, thus, becoming an mstrumen~ of propaganda. This negated the advice of the consultants who advised that the best way to create support for any government was through the performance of government in meeting the needs of the people ".N 0 amount of propaganda will replace job creation, improve health, housl.n~, education and welfare. As it turned out, an excellent instrument of CIVIC education was mis-applied. Xl The Centre for Democratic Studies (CDS), Abuja was conceived as an institution for the political class. It was to conduct research into the causes of anti-democratic behaviour and recommend corrective measures. It was also to conduct training for party leaders, women, youths, workers, among others, on different aspects of the democratic process. This was thought to be necessary after a long period of military rule. It was a civic debriefing process for transition from military rule. It was remarkable as long as it lasted. Paradoxically, it did not last before it made an impressive impact. What wiped out the commendable reforms of the Two-Party experiment and the behaviour a change programme of the Centre for Democratic Studies was the selfsame Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida "Transition without End" using Oyeleye Oyediran's book title on the subject. The last straw was the stupendous disaster of the nullification of the June 12, 1993 Presidential election by President Babangida. President Babangida was the most astute programmatic leader who systematically addressed Nigeria's political problems. He would easily have gone down as the Maker of a Democratic Nigeria. But he was dissatisfied with his own achievement when he annulled what Nigerians believe to be the best electoral outing in their political history. That catastrophic act threw Nigeria back into the wilderness of political despair. The last two years of Jonathan Administration exemplified the rudderless situation that a government of "business as usual" will get into. President Goodluck Jonathan's Party, the Peoples Democratic Party had no systematic or clear programme except uncoordinated and ill- digested cliches that were ineffectual for a country in a dire need of direction. President Jonathan was the scapegoat of past political neglect and collective political inattention of Nigerians. May 2018 John A. A. Ayoade Adeoye A. Akinsanya Olatunde JB Ojo Xll Introduction John A. A. Ayoade Adeoye A. Akinsanya ( latunde JB Ojo Dr. Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan's penultimate and fin~l years as Nigeria's President were as interesting as they were perplexing to the .tudent of Nigerian Politics. They were interesting because. ?~ the heightened political activities of the political parties .and polItlCIa?s. The President's Party, the Peoples' Democratic Party WItnessed a peno.d of unbundling as members sought individual, regional and/ or ~thmc political comfort zones. Previous political associates diverged on .Issues that previously united them and became m~re. accommodatmg ?f previously opposing positions. Of course, this IS ~o be expecte~ ~n ituations where a political party is just a creative o~port~mstlc contrivance for capturing political power. The dissatis:actlon WIth .the application of power in resource allocation coupled WI~ the pr?rmses or prospects on the opposite political turf could create political restI.ven~ss that challenge the existing political order. Unfo~nately, the ~Ige~an political class has never paid serious arrennon ~o the sCIe~t~fic administration of political parties. Parties have remained soft POlItI~al gels which are malleable at the pleasure of the politicians. !?~parties are not cast in any ideology and nothing changes when a politician hops from one party into another party. The electorate does not hold such .a politician accountable even when he lies against them t~at the. ch~nge IS the difference between six and half-a-dozen. Soft parties thrive m soft political environments of weak constituency contr~l: In such environments it is the elected official that determines the political agenda which he or she can change almost at will. Election periods present .an opportunity for such re-ordering which occurs with the ele~orat~ falling . line with a little prodding. The Nigerian political terrain witnessed In ll'- 1·· I li d politicians criss-crossing previously abomi~able p~ ~tlca mes an justifying the hug and handshake with previous political opponents. xiii 174 The Jonathan Presidency: Junior and Senior Y 11 27. http://thenationonlineng.netlreview-of-nigerias_foreign_11I11 I Okechukwu B. C. Nwankwo. "Shifting the Paradigm in Ni "I,' I I Policy: Goodluck Jonathan and Nigeria's Vision 20:2020," So ., 2, no. 6 (2013): 212-221. Ibid. Ibid. Franklins A. Sanubi. "AssessingNigeria's African-centered F , "I'" I I against an Inside-out Paradigm: A Proposal for an Alternativ I,,, Policy Approach." Africana 6, No. 1 (June/July 2012). O~ogho Obayuwana, and John Okeke. "Nigeria's New For igll 1,,1 Dnve-OurTasksAtAU, UN." All Africa, September 23, 2014. Alii January 27,2016, http://allafrica.com/stories120140923065I.htllll OlugbengaA. Ashiru. "Presentation on the Performance ofth MIIII I, of Foreign Affairs from May 2011 to June 2013," Ministry of J~ If III I Affairs, June 24, 2013. Accessed January 27, 2016, http://fmLgov 11 wp- content/uploadsI2013/06/HMFA-PLATFORM_POWERJ ( I r I1 PRESENTATION-2013-copy-2-2.pdf Ibid. Ibid. Ibid. Ibid. Ibid. "President Buhari's Foreign Trips Not Frivolous - Minister - Charm I Television." Channels Television. December 04, 2015. Accessed Janti 11 V 25,2016, http://www.channelstv.com1201S/I2104/president_buh I foreign- trips-not-frivolous-minister I Ibid. OsitaAgbu. "Leadership and Buhari's Foreign Policy (2)." The Guardi t 11 Nigeria. June 11, 2015. Accessed January 26, 2016, http:1 I www.ngrguardiannews.com/201S/06/1eadership-and-buharis_foreign policy-2I Ibid. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. IIAPTER EIGHT J nderstanding Popular Struggles and sistance During the Jonathan dministration Iubakar Momoh and Adelaja Odukoya Introduction , lonialism is the patrimony of authoritarian rule in Africa. This I( acy was grafted on Nigeria at independence in 1960 through the inherited state apparatuses. The First Republic (1960-1965) suffered Ihe pains of despotism and arbitrariness occasioned by the legacy of decades of colonialism and the authoritarian character of the political order that foisted civil rule. From 1965, the military, an instrument of colonial repression and hegemony, took control of the state and governance in Nigeria dismissing any pretence to civility, ccountability, and rule of law, constitutionalism, human rights and citizens' participation in governance. The Second Republic 1979-1983, under the presidency of Alhaji Shehu Shagari, unable to free itself from the entrenched culture of despotism that had historically characterised !;•.:..Nigc.ian State, was neither civil nor democratic. This, amongst many reasons, accounted for the democratic deficit and the return of the military on December 31, 1983, From the military administration of General Muhammadu Buhari administration, January 1, 1984-August 27, 1985, through the military presidency of General Ibrahim Gbadamasi Babangida, August 27, 1985 - August 26,1993; and General Sanni Abacha, November 17, 1993 - June 8, 1998, Nigeria became systematically and qualitatively dictatorial. Against the background of decades of military government and the husbandry of the transition to democracy by the military, 176 The Jonathan Presidency: Junior and Senior Years .,which as a professional group had become not only politicised but corrupt, those who inherited political power were socialised into militarist political culture. The political elite that inherited power ill 1999 were mostly former military officers, cronies and proteges ( j the military. Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, who became the president, was a military Head of State between February 14, 1976 and October 1, 1979 when he formally handed over power to the civili /l administration of Alhaji Shehu Shagari. This explains the apt description of the government of the country from 1999 to present as being controlled by militicians,' Thus, the institutionalisation of civil rule without democrats an I ex.c~ssivepresence and control by military and civilians with strong military pathology, the culture of impunity, human rights volation. , absence of rule of law and constitutionalism, marked by lack of pubJi . accountability, grand corruption, executive highhandedness and lawlessness and increased exclusion of citizens from governan became the rule rather than the exception. While the failure of government to deliver the much expect d "dividends of democracy" did not result in popular struggles for social justice and collective action, increased and extreme deprivation and the failure ofthe people to find justice in an atmosphere ofvu1nerability and disempowerment promoted the culture of self-help and banal self-definition of rights and freedoms which found expression in th development of militia political action in challenge of the stat monopoly of physical violence. The Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC), the Bakassi Boys, the Movement for the Actualisation of th Sovereign State of Biafra Republic (MOASSOB), the Niger Delta Vigilante and Patriotic Force (NDVPF), Niger Delta People's Volunte r Force (NDPFV) and many other militia groups particularly in th Niger Delta were movements response to the hydra-headed crises of the Nigerian State. The death of President Umaru Yar'Adua, who was Olusegun Obasanjo's successor in office, and the politics that characterised th transition of power to the Vice-President, Dr. Goodluck Ebel Jonathan, a minority from the South-South geo-political zone, was the catalyst that dynamised the civil society into political resistance. Understanding Popular Struggles and Resistance 177 As a result of the refusal of what is euphemistically referred to as the "Aso Rock cabal" under the alleged control of (then) First Lady, Hajia Turai Yar'Adua to hold on to power, the civil society led by the Save Nigeria Group (SNG) and Joint Action Front (JAF) staged mass protests to the National Assembly in Abuja, demanding that power should be ceded as constitutionally stipulated to the Vice- President to act as Nigerian President. 2 This study examines why the SNG and JAF waged popular struggles against the Jonathan Administration. Some of the questions we seek to answer are: What were key demands of the protests? What forces were mobilised? What was the nature of the alliances formed and were the alliances cohesive and what outcomes were achieved? Social Movements and the Nigerian Social Construction Social movements remain one of the most prominent phenomena in contemporary national and international politics. The reasons for this are not far-fetched but two of them stand out. First, social realities and material hardship have created a group of subalterns and vulnerable citizens. Second, new information and communication technology have provided the platform for the externalisation and internationalisation of domestic actions, thereby providing the platform for local groups to pursue national, regional or international groups' actions. It is this capacity to 'internationalise domestic actions' that made it possible for the self-immolation of an ordinary Tunisian produce seller, Mohammed Bouazizi, in a little known Sidi Bouzid village to generate municipal, national and international actions in a contagious series of events that is now referred to as the 'Arab Spring,' 'Arab Awakening' and 'Revolution.' In this section we seek to answer three questions. First, what are social movements? Second, what logic and processes guide their existence and how do they operate? How do social movements carry out their activities or wage their struggles? What framing processes explain their existence? Third, is there such thing as Nigerian social movements? Do social movements exist, stricto sensu, in Nigeria? What factors mitigate the existence of such movements? 178 The Jonathan Presidency: Junior and Senior Ye I Some Conceptual Issues •. Social movements have gained recurrent us' . They reflect the eh . d' age In the SOCI f I I 11 to. It is this that e:~:: ~amIcs that societies have been ~llllll I I between traditional social m: y some have attempted to diflhl I1I (NSMs). Social movements :::~~~a~dthe~ewSOCiaIM()v'lll I bound by a common cause' . esrve an non-cohesive 1'11111 In resrstance and struggl f . could take the form of . il di b . e or JU uc 1/ object of struggle oft h CIV ISO edience or violent resistan ( 1I en as popular and gen l' d of citizens, Social move t era ise appeal to m 1/11111 men s overlap to so d . social forms such as collective behavi m.e egree WIth 01h , there are different types and forms ot;~~~:land Interest grou~s I I (SMOs) such as single SMO 1 . Movement OrgamSalllll1 coupled SMOs, and loosely-c~u~~:~l~c; ~e;or~ed SMOs, till/It movements have continued to be cha s'. et t e roles of o( I I society both at the national d i ~actensed by the nature III an InternatIonal levels: Indeed, rarely does a day go by in which a . . refer to social movement acti ity i I ~aJor daily newspaper doe Ill" contested issues of Our tun'e' abortio re a~on to .one or more of the h011y . on animal right ivil rirights, democratisation enviro ' I . S,Cl nghts, humn., lesbianrights genderequ' ality, nmenta protectIon, family values, gay/ , , governmental intrusi d control, immigration labor and Ion an overreach, gu 11 , management confli t Ireligious freedom te . c , nuc ear weapons, rronsm, war world po rty d 'difficult to think f'mai .' ve ,an so on. In fact it io major national or internan al . I' ." social movements and related collective a . on SOClaIss~es m which one or both sides of the issues.5 cnon events are not mvolved on Snow, Soule' and Kreisi proceeded furth . movements as collectivitI'es cti . h er to conceptualIse social a mg WIt some degr f '. and continuity outside of instituti 1 . ~e 0 orgamsatIOn the purpose of challenging or d ~na d?r orgamsatIonal channels for such authority is institutionall b e edn mg extant authority, whether . y- ase or culturally b d' th orgamsation, society, CUlture, or world 0 d f hi ase ,m e group, For Charles Tilly, the term social mov::: 0 w I~h t~ey are a part. 6 to a sustained interactio b tw .nt applIes most usefully various spokespersons fo n e. een a h specific set of authorities and r a grven c allenge to those authorities. "7 Understanding Popular Struggles and Resistance 179 lule McCarthy and Zald view social movements as those set of IJllnions and beliefs in a population which represents the preferences 1111 changing some elements of the social structure and/or reward distribution in a society," others have conceptualised social movement one form of collective behaviour similar to mobs, riots, fads, sects, , lilts, religious revivals, and revolutions.? Most scholars perceive social movements as a principal social form through which collectivities , press their grievances about social conditions that concern them or others through a number 01ways but especially through street protests 10 demand that such conditions are changed. But beyond such If finitions and conceptualisations, the examination of social movements has reflected varying viewpoints. Morris and Herring note that although there has been "an explosion" in the number of theoretical and empirical writings on the subject matter, scholarly onsensus on its definition will probably never happen. to They proceeded to identify six typologies of social movements that are embedded in approaches such as Marxian, Weberian, collective behaviour, relative deprivation, mass society, and resource mobilisation. It The Marxian approach sees revolutionary movements as the product of historically structured social relations of production. While noting that the "history of all hitherto existing societies (such as slavery and feudal societies) is the history of class struggle," Karl Marx argues that capitalism especially sows within it the seed of its own destruction. Under capitalism, the dialectical conflict and contradictions between the class that owns the means of production and distribution (or the bourgeoisie) and the workers and their affiliates make the emergence of movements a normal process of historical advancement. For Marx, it is the workers that would champion the revolutionary movement, with its affiliate oppressed classes joining in the struggle. Such workers will through economism or for that purpose form Trade Unions, and then national and international networks against the logic of capital. The workers' political struggle is shaped in a "class for themselves," in transition from "class in itself," thus, marking a consciousness in proletarian class-activities. At this class conscious stage, some segments of the bourgeoisie will join the working class struggle. Marxian-orientation thus emphasis 180 The Jonathan Presidency: Junior and Senior Years •.the class origin and interests of social movements. The Weberian conceptualisation of a movement is ground d III the role and responsibility of charismatic authority and charisma III leaders in social change. For Max Weber, charismatic movements 11 obtai~able in societies that are undergoing stress and incapabl I1I me~tIng t~e demands of a significant number of its population. 11 I against this background that charismatic leaders emerge owin III their qualities, as a natural leader of the people. The charism III movements are often unstable and non-routine forms of collectivt action as they emerged independent of the existing social organisati n norms and bureaucracies. To endure for a longer period Weber not ; that charismatic movements must routinise their activities to resolve administrative, economic and leadership succession problems th 'Y might face.12 The collective behaviour theorists conceptualise social movement. as non-institutional social change efforts aimed at the establishment of u. 'new social order. For this group, social movements are non-routine form. of colle~ve action geared towards social change. This view maintains that social movements are by definition non-institutionalised group action ~ha~ c~ase~ to be social movements the moment they becom mstltutlona1is~d.Neil Smelser is a major exponent of this perspective. On their part, mass society theorists argue that certain chara~eristics make social movements possible. This includes cultural confusion, weak cultural integration mechanisms, social heterogeneity, and lack of attachments to secondary group structures. As aptly captured by ~uechler: "With the demise of small social groups, modern society becomes a mass society in which isolation depersonalisation, and alienation prevail. "13 It is this seemingly 'uncaptured groups' of individuals, to rephrase Goran Hyden in his study of the Tanzanian peasantry, that gravitates towards social and collective action. Though the difference between the position of the collective behaviour theorists and mass society theorists is thin the difference between the two is essentially that while the fo;mer examines social movements as a phenomenon, the latter situates social movements within the context of the personalities that constitute such movements. Specifically, the mass society theorists analyse the Understanding Popular Struggles and Resistance 181 properties of society by specifying personality traits and the psychological state of the society that produces them. The relative deprivation thesis as advanced by scholars such as Ted Gurr focuses on the genesis of collective action and social movements especially as it leads to revolution and violent attacks. In this case, collective action is hinged on the extent to which groups of individuals assess their social-psychological levels against those of various reference groups or past or anticipated future situation. 14 Within this theory, James Geschwender examines what he terms 'cognitive dissonance' which Ted Gurr conceptualises as 'frustration- aggression,' thesis; collective action is thus explained in psychological terms as a response to social reality. This view contends that specific level of deprivation in a society leads to some sort of collective response by those that are affected for purposes of change and improvement in their lives. The resource mobilisation adherents argue that society has social movements whether or not there is collective action. They note that while the political party is a tamed and nationalised social movement, the social movement is a party with broad aspirations and a unifying belief systemY Charles Tilly of the New York School of Social Research, while questioning the claim that strain and breakdown consistently produce anomie and that anomie in turn produces either individual or collective disorder, contends that "group solidarity is the key factor in explaining collective action."16 He thus undermines the argument that there is a sharp distinction between routine political struggle and violence by contending that the same political dynamics and solidarity underlay both. Hence, Tilly remains a major exponent of the resource mobilisation view. To a large extent, and from the foregoing, it is apparent that studies on the workings of social movements have not only transversed the social sciences but numerous theories have been used to explain their emergence, survival and demise in society. But how do social movements carry out their activities? Frames and Processes of Social Movements Interest in the study of social movements has increased w j 1hili 182 The Jonathan Presidency: Junior and Senior Years increase in group and collective action, globally. Between 1980 .lIld 19~0, a significant increase in social movements and collective a tiulI was wi~essed in countries such as the Netherlands, Germany, 0111 I the U~Ited States.I8 In recent times, global economic depression .1lid recession led to street protests in European countries. China h,leI witn~ssed the Tibetan monk-led street protests in the restive regruu of :Ibet. The anti-globalisation movement has also held protests If var~ous G8 Summits. This was soon to be followed by what I ~hriste~~d the ''Arab Awakening" and "Arab Uprising" that stall 'd m :UnISIa but ~edto t~e change of governments in Egypt and Liby.I ,":,hilealso leading to violence in Syria and Bahrain. In between th .s vIO~ence,"occupy movements" were witnessed on the streets of tIll United States, Israel and Nigeria, among others. While social movements and SMOs raise funds from the stan through redistribution, others do so from grants and/or from individuals. 19 It must be noted that leading actors in social movement accor~ing to Kriesi" tend to over estimate the opportunities tha; collective action provides. In doing this, they must convince 'oth I' participants that their cause is the right one and that their goals would therefore be accomplished if they persist. In realisation of thi numerous tools have been used to ensure recruitment, mobilisatio~ an~ therefore collective action. But what is the nature of contemporary socIal. movements and collective action? How do they operate and ~ha~ ISthe role of information and communication technology (ICT) m this regard? Social m~vement~ operate within a context that is socially and culturally fluid. For mstance, Kriesi identifies three variables that underline such framework: structures, cOnfiguration of actors and interactio~ cont~xts. 21 By stru~es he means 'political opportunity structures that influence the choice of protest strategies to be used. These structures could be open (allowing access to the political system) or closed (constraining access to the political system) structures. In general, the degree of accessibility of political structures of political systems could be "distinguished between exclusive (repressi:e, confrontational, and polarising) and integrative (facilitative cooperanve, and assimilative) strategies. "22 By configuration of actors Understanding Popular Struggles and Resistance 183 Kriesi maintains that movements exist within an ecological context that has three' configurations/components of actors: the protagonists or the configuration of allies (policymakers, public authorities, political parties, interest groups, the media, and related movements), antagonists or the adversaries (public authorities, repressive agents, counter-movements) and the bystanders or the not directly involved but nevertheless attentive audience." This configuration determines the possibility of conflicts and the outcomes of movemen~s' acti.vi~es. The interaction context is that "level of the mechanisms linking structures and configurations to agency and action, and it is at this level that the strategies of the social movements and their opponents come into view. "24 It is such that during a collective action, movements-government interaction could have a varied outcome as represented by reforms, threats or both. Reform is a situation wh~re the authorities respond favourably to the issues raised by the SOCIal movement through changing policies that are being protested against. Threats are situations where authorities' response is unfavourable in such a way that it persists with its original policies. Response of authorities could also be a mixture of threats and reforms or "no response at all. "25 These interaction contexts could be actual or anticipated. McAdam, McCarthy and Zald on their part attempt to address the emergence, development and outcomes of social movement~ by engaging three interrelated factors that speak to the following: mobilising structures, opportunity structures, and framing processes. The mobilising structures are those mechanisms through which individuals are organised for collective action. This includes social structures as represented by formal configurations (such as the social movement organisation, churches, and mosques) and informal configurations (such as friendships and activists' n~tworks). A~art from social structures, the mobilising structure also includes tactical repertoires which represent those forms of protests and collective actions that activists are familiar with. This explains why some supporters are likely to rally in support of an issue as against other issues. . . The opportunity structures are those environmental conditi 11 that facilitate or constrain the activities of social mov nW1I1 184 The Jonathan Presidency: Junior and Senior Years McAdam specifically identifies four of these environmental conditions thus:27 the relative accessibility of the political, the stability Or fragmentation of alignments among elite, the presence of elite allies , and the state's capacity and propensity for repression. Apart from McAdam's four conditions, other conditions such as access to information and education also shape the activities of social movements. As such environmental conditions range from the extent to which a polity is democratic to the extent to which there is totalitarian manifestation of leadership; and the level to which the needed information and education are available to groups. In both extremes, social movements find the tactical repertoires to sUPPOrt and justify their existence. The framing processes represent the contestations for justification of actions, as exhibited by social movements on the one hand and the institutions, organisations or movements that they direct their actions towards. These contestations are in terms of language, rhetoric and narratives which for instance shape the form of representation by mainstream media of the actions of social movements. They often question the workings of international fmancial institutions as being 'anti-globalisation' while activists' publications often refer to the same actions of movements as a quest for 'global justice' or 'fair trade.:> The framing processes, just as collective action as a whole, are however influenced by a number of factors. Of these factors , contemporary social movements have bene fitted from the actual and potential benefits of information and communication technology (K'T) especially as represented in what has come to be described as "new media." As Garrett notes, new leT such as cell phones, e-mail and the World Wide Web are changing the ways in which activists communicate, collaborate and demonstrate." Unlike in the pre- internet era where publications of pamphlets and newsletters were expensive for social movements and social movement organisations (SMOs), today a laptop and a modem have transformed social movements and their leadership into publishers through the creation of an online identity, knowledge-base and networks which is marked by the ownership of blogs, websites, online conferencing and e-mails. Through these new media, movement leaders are not only conversant Understanding Popular Struggles and Resistance 185 with the activities of their colleagues elsewhere but they also leverag on the attendant social networking that the new media provides. An attendant benefit of the foregoing is that activities and goals of social movements are more easily publicised than ever before. This means that membership will be easily expanded through the internet as represented by the electronic highway and community. In sum, leT reduces the cost of communication and participation in social movements as well as facilitates social movement formation, recruitment and retention while also promoting collective identity that supports collective action. 30 The Nigerian Social Movement There is an efflorescence of social movements in Nigeria, and there are several reasons for this. First is the alarming mass poverty. Even with the transition to civil rule in May 1999, the socio-economic plight of millions of Nigerians has not improved. The latest expression of this reality is the confirmation by an agency of the Nigeria state, National Bureau for Statistics that about 70 percent of Nigerians, that is, 112,518,507 citizens, of total population of 160 million Nigerians, are poor. Yet, and in spite of this huge poverty, corruption remains a major problem. The state has remained a veritable means to easy and looted funds and therefore wealth for some members of the political elite. This has made violence part of the competition for spoils, even among the political elite. The contestation for power has therefore also taken a violent dimension, with high casualty rate. The list of political casualties include Aminasori Dikibo (Vice President of the Peoples' Democratic Party) who was shot in the head on his way to a meeting of the South-South zone of the PDP; Funsho Williams, a leading governorship contender in Lagos State PDP, was murdered after he defected from the Alliance for Democracy (AD) to PDP; Ogbonnaya Uche, an ANPP stalwart who was preparing to contest for a seat in the Nigerian Senate, was killed inside his hou in Owerri a few days after he defected from the PDP; Harry Ma h JI (Dikibo's predecessor) was murdered in a hotel room in Abuj ,wit I he had gone to attend a meeting of the ANPP, a party h d Cl (I d 11 186 The Jonathan Presidency: Junior and Senior Years few days to.his death; Chief Bola Ige, a serving Attorney-Genera/Ill •. the Fede~atIO~and Minister of Justice, was killed at his residen ( III Ibadan, m spite of his police guards; Eze-Odimegwu Okonkw 1'1 ANPP stalwart in Anambra State, was murdered in Nnewi; Barn' I I Igwe, an out-spoken Chairman of the Onitsha branch of the Nig rin BA' . • 11ar ssocianon (NBA), and Abigail his wife (both lawyers) W'I( gruesomely m~rdered; Theodore Agwatu, Principal Secretary to Gove~or Achike Udenwa was killed at his residence; Odunayo ~lagbaJu, ~ me~ber of ?sun State House of Assembly, was similarly killed at hIS residence In the wake of political crisis in the Stat . Ahmed Patagi, Chairman of PDP in Kwara State was assassinated: Dele ~oja, .PDP governorship candidate, was murdered in Lagos; and DIPO Dina, a gubernatorial candidate in Ogun State was also murdered. 31 . M~tarism (perceived), political exclusion and marginalisation have gIven nse to ethnic militias and violent youth organisations such as the Oo.du~ Peoples' Congress (OPC), Egbesu, Movement for the EmancIpatIO~ of th.e.Niger Delta (MEND), and currently the Boko Haram. Identity politics and the citizenship question have also affected the mi1i~arisati~n of social life. It is in this light, for instance, that ~uch orgies of VIOlencebetween the Yoruba and the Hausa at Sagamu, In Ogun State, and at Mile 12, Lagos State; the incessant Birom- !fausa clashes in Jos, which have now extended to Fulani pastoralists m many part of North Central should be understood . .Another impetus for collective action is the presence of the Trade Un~on~and labour movement. The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) wh~chISthe umbrella body for junior workers in Nigeria and the Trade Union Con~ess of Nigeria (TUC) have remained influential actors. Through strikes they have challenged the policies of government since the era of military rule. The student movement has also been a necessary complement to the activist role of the Trade Unions as has been th.e role of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU). Yet w~I1e the aforementioned conditions tend to provide the bases for social movements ~oflo?rish, a number of factors have challenged emergence and functIOnalIty of a truly Nigerian movement. Three of these factors are worth mentioning: politics of entryism, \ Understanding Popular Struggles and Resistance 187 spontaneity and opportunism. Many Left Wing and radical individual~, have increasingly been coopted into accepting State offers of public positions within the same ruling class. Second, many of the struggles led by the labour movement have not been as coherent and ~ohe~ive, and therefore have not had enduring character, due to factionalism, internal leadership problems and organisational challenges. Finally, opportunism, and romance with the State in the contex~ of social movement struggles, have sometimes made the leadership of such movements to compromise the struggles. In spite of this, struggles by social movements are a reali~ in Nigeria. This is exemplified in the January 2012 protest against government's policy to remove subsidy leading to increased pump price of fuel on January 1, 2012. The action of government had generated reactions and there were collective action across th: coun~ especially in Lagos. The NLC called upon its members to strike while students and lecturers alike carried placards on the streets. The protest which was to be tagged "Occupy Nigeria," witnessed the presence and sometimes performance of popular and top artists such Dbanj, Don Jazzy, Banky W, Seun Kuti, and Dede Mabiakwu. The solidarity was almost total except for a few States that did not participate. It must however be noted that even as social movements have mainly based their collective actions against government, there are instances where movements have supported government's policies. In other words, just as there are student movements that opposed the military dictatorship of General Sani Abacha, so were others that supported it such as Daniel Kalu-led Youth March in Abuja dubbed Youths, Earnestly Ask for Abacha (YEAA). Social movements, just as in other societies, are present in Nigeria. The recent Occupy Nigeria movement shows a potential of a Nigerian-wide movement devoid of sectarianism and narro,:- mindedness embedded in ethnicity. Second, social movements m Nigeria will continue to be a major influence o~ the ma~~er government manages its resources, human and matenal. The nsin number of youths with access to the internet and the attendant Facebook Twitter and numerous blogs means that requir I informatio~ for recruitment, mobilisation and collective action 11 188 The Jonathan Presidency: Junior and Senior Years be at the fingertips of actual and potential members of movem 111 •.As t~lecommunications companies strive to provide cheaper int 111('1 ~ervIces these possibilities increase. In addition, continued deer .11>1 In the social indicators of development in Nigeria will also D r '( individuals to take part in social movements. This will even h( propelled by the incidence of unpunished corruption and insecurit The existence of these realities goes a long way to enhance th propagators of such movements as the Occupy Nigeria. Howevc I the determination of whether or not violence will be at the centr ; the emer~ng body of movements can only be determined by a mort ~ystema.t1cstudy that will analyse the motivations, capacities and thr interaction contexts of emergent social movements. Political and Economic Background of the Protest The Jonathan Administration was a child of circumstance but for the death in Saudi Arabia of President Umaru Yar'Adua who was on medical treatment. Were he to be alive, under the Peoples Democrati Party (PDP) zoning arrangement, the late president would hav contested for a second term in office. The politics of transition following the death of President Yar' Adua shook the nation to its foundation with a power cabal led by his wife and some influential members of the cabinet who struggled to hold on to power by default. But fo~ the principled and popular struggle of the civil society championed by the Save Nigeria Group (SNG) under the leadership of Pastor Tunde Bakare and Professor Wole Soyinka which forced the Na~ional Assembly adoption of the 'Doctrine of Necessity' Resolution, Dr. Jonathan's emergence as Acting President may have been impossible. The eme~gence of Dr. Jonathan as Acting President was not only unexpected; It challenged or indeed undermined the zoning formula of the ruling PDP under which the presidency was zoned to the North till 2015. President Jonathan's decision to contest the 2011 Presidential election, a position zoned to the North by the ruling party polarised the PDP a~d created s?me antipathies. However, Jonathan's campaign theme dunng the Presidential election in 2011 anchored on his humble background and material challenge while growing up, in some measure Understanding Popular Struggles and Resistance 189 ndeared him to many Nigerians and this reflected in his electoral victory. . The Nigerian masses voted at the General 2011 ElectIons for the eradicatioll of Poverty and the delivery of the "dividends of democracy" by President Jonathan who publicly confessed that ~e had similarly experienced the pains and agony of poverty captured In the political metaphor of a "shoeless school boy."32 Hence, the decision of President Jonathan to withdraw the subsidy on petroleum products, which the toiling people saw as the only benefit from the nation's commonwealth, was thus perceived as a breach of a sacred covenant between them and the leadership of the nation. The indignation of Nigerians to the removal of subsidy was further exacerbated by the unedifying level of corruption under the Jonathan presidency. This was the context in which the stru~gles and resistance against the Jonathan Administration was waged In January 2011. Joint Action Front (JAF) and the Save Nigeria Group (SNG) The Joint Action Front (JAF), formerly known as Joint Action Forum is a coalition formed by civil society organisations in alliance with the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) in 2003. JAF is a reaction to the debilitating e~e~s of neo- liberal policies of the Obasanjo Administration and their Impact on the impoverishment and disempowerment of Nigerians. Hence, its determination to oppose and resist all policies and programmes that may result in mass poverty and worsening social living c~nditio~~ of millions of Nigerian" The TAF makes no pretense of Its political objective and ideological commitment to socialism as a prefen::ed system of government for Nigeria. Through popular protest and stnke actions, JAF declared thus: "regime change is our objective, mass struggle is our vehicle, system change is our goal." Its .leading ~embers are Leftists and core socialists such as Dr. OladIpo FashIna and Abiodun Aremu. The JAF is well schooled in anti-fuel subsidy removal struggles. Since 2001 it has waged many protests again t neo-liberal government policies, pa.rticularly the deregulation of th petroleum sector. Indeed, between June 20 and 24, 2007, JAP C( I( ,I the Yar'Adua Administration to reduce the price of petrol urn (I' I 190 The Jonathan Presidency: Junior and Senior Years .,to N65 per litre which it had increased to N75 per litre. The Save Nigeria Group (SNG) emerged in the Nigeri n POlllll I turf in the context of the dormant, if not inept, role of civil eIt II I in the face of de-democratisation and despotism of close to f dc' 1.1. after the departure of the military. According to the group, "Tlu • I Nigeria Group (SNG) was founded on January 7, 2010 in the IIlld I of the "crisis of impunity threatening the soul of Nigeri ." 'lie ill-health of (then) President Yar'Adua and the attempt by a 1\101'1' led by the wife of President Umaru Yar'Adua to unduly and ill 'g," I cling to power, after the president's transition in Saudi Arabia pr videII a rallying point for the civil society under the leadership of P 1111 Tunde Bakare, the Vice-Presidential candidate to Muhammadu Buh.u: of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) in the 2011 President I," Election. The Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka lent credibilny to the SNG protest to the National Assembly in Abuja whi It eventually put pressure on the federal lawmakers to find ways around the constitutional impasse and hence make Dr. Goodluck Jonath 11 Acting President, as constitutionally stipulated, in the absence President Umaru Yar'Adua. The Road to the Protest No sooner did Dr. Goodluck Jonathan have a popular mandate from the Nigerian people than a campaign over the controversial removal of subsidy on petroleum products dominated the Nigerian media. In June 2011, the government hinted on its plans to remove subsidy on petroleum products against the background of the huge government subsidy which it claimed was negatively impacting on government's expenditure. This was despite the views of many Nigerians, and groups such as JAF and SNG, that the so-called subsidy on petroleum was tor the rommon good. Indeed, as JAF put it, "As far as we in JAF are concerned, there is nothing like fuel subsidy. "33 The government's argument that the beneficiaries of the subsidy on petroleum products are the rich and that there is large scale corruption in the subsidy regime was not acceptable to the citizens. The people saw this as an abdication of state social responsibility and a plan to impose unnecessary hardship on Nigerians. According to JAF: Understanding Popular Struggles and Resistance 191 The recycled argument being canvassed by Government and its rented spoke-persons that only a cabal ofprofiteers benefit from the subsidy clearly exposed it as irresponsible and anti-poor if, with all the apparatuses of pOWG at its disposal, the Jonathan Presidency cannot deal with the profiteers and private sharks that are looting funds in the name of subsidy, then we must protect ourselves." Furthermore, Nigerians were at a loss as to why the Federal Government since May 29, 1999 has found it difficult to repair or embark on Turn Around Maintenance (TAM) of the oil refineries and build new refineries which would have made the need for importation of petroleum products and hence so-called subsidy unnecessary. Since the subsidy regime is a function of the international price of petroleum products, domestic production would have multiplier effect on the country; it will increase productivity, save scarce foreign exchange and earn additional revenue for the country from the sale of refined petroleum products. For the toiling Nigerian, nothing but selfish interest and corruption could prevent government from embarking on this economic path which has the potential of putting the nation on a sound developmental footing. JAF used the evidence of failure and inefficiency of the private sector to build new refineries despite the issuance of about 20 licenses since 2002 to conclude that the private sector is only interested in primitive accumulation without production. According to JAF: The fact is that the so-called private sector investors will not invest in long- term, capital intensive projects like refineries, but rather prefer quick and speculative h""ir..::.:~p~with super profit like importation of oil. They are the same ruling cabals and cronies that got licenses to build refineries and at the same time the profiteers who import refined fuel products and loot so-called fuel subsidy" Between June 2, 2011 when the government first hinted on its plan to increase the prices of petroleum products and November 23, 2011, JAF called on Nigerians to resist and reject fuel increase. In a media briefing on December 21, 2011, JAF called on Nigerians to commence mass action from January 3, 2012. The desperation and determination of the Jonathan Administration to foist a new regime 192 The Jonathan Presidency: Junior and Senior Years o( petroleu~ price on the people was obvious, especially with Ih scale of mamstream media propaganda bordering on blackmail ~ouble-t.alk and reacti:at~~n of the usual neo-Iiberal theolo y CI/: There IS No Alternative (TINA). The evidence and intell III.d challenge of Professor Tarn David West, a former Minist I 0/ Petroleum, on the cost of producing petroleum in Nigeria and till hoax of s~bsidy was ignored by the Administration. Indeed, Profe '0' Tarn David- West who was originally billed to appear before the House of Representatives Ad Hoc Committee on the Petroleum Subsid questI?n was abruptly urged not to appear, and no reason was giv n for this. The final prelude to the January mass protest was set with the JAF protest march in collaboration with Mrs. Ganiat Bukola Fa~eh~mi, widow of Gani Fawehinmi, from Ikeja to Gani Fawehinmi Solidarity Park at Ojota on December 31, 2011. According to Abiodun Aremu "It was the JAF struggle of that day with Mrs. Fawehinmi that changed the park's name from Gani Memorial Park to Gani Fawehinmi Solidarity Park and declared it a Convergence Centre for struggles. " Despite the promise by senior members of the J onathan A.dministration including Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Minister of Finance and the Coordinating Minister of the Economy that there woul~ be el~borate consultations and the fuel subsidy regime would stay till Apnl 2012, Nigerians woke up on January 1, 2012 to learn that the Administration had increased the pump price of petroleum from N65 to N141, an increase of 117 per cent. I~ a Press Statement by JAF issued on January 1,2012 in a quick reaction to the announcement of the increase in the pump price of pe~oleum. products, JAF urged Nigerians to: (i) boycott and shut fillmg s~atIons that sell fuel above the prevailing prices prior to the new pnce announced by the government; (ii) use mass action to ~nfor~e s~ay-at-home and embark on strike actions in compliance with tile directives of Labour and Civil Society Coalition (LASCO). JAF, under its Chairman, Dr. Oladipo Fashina, a former President of ~he Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Comrade A:blOdunAremu and Mrs. Ganiat Gani Fawehinmi were the first to hit the streets in protest against the increase in prices of petroleum Understanding Popular Struggles and Resistance 193 products. This electrified many Nigerians and spread like the prairie fire. Following its successful protest on January 7, 2011 over the attempt to undermine (then) Vice President Jonathan, the SNG became popular as a platform that wages struggles against injustice and in defense of rule of law and constitutionalism. The SNG under the leadership of Pastor Bakare gave the peoples' protest against the removal of fuel subsidy a big push. The decision of the SNG to use a separate or different platform from JAF to wage the same struggle over the removal of subsidy on petroleum products is borne out of experience of aborted popular struggles waged under the aegis of Trade Unions in the past two decades. According to Yinka Odumakin, the spokesperson of the group, the SNG had no confidence in labour because of its antecedent of betrayals of popular struggles due to its uncomfortable partnership with the government. Hence, many struggles waged in the past were compromised and tactically thwarted by Trade union leadership, principally due to a self-serving agenda and the Trojan horses in the trade union leadership. With regard to the January 2012 fuel subsidy protest, the SNG was simply a midwife of the protests. The protesters were in the mood for battle and indeed "self-mobilised" issues such as massive corruption in government, poor infrastructure and inability of government to deliver on its campaign promises and above all the subsidy withdrawal, made the protesters highly aggrieved. What the SNG did, according to its leaders, was to read the mood of the people and provide them a coherent platform to resist oppression and misrule. For Lakernfa," the SNG and its leadership were simply opportunistic as the whole idea of the protest and the use of the Gani Fawehinmi Park, Ojota that became the symbol of the protest were the products of JAF and Labour. The charge of opportunism is difficult to sustain given the SNG record of protest as well as the human and material resources the group committed to sustaining the daily increasing Ojota crowd that was abandoned by LASCO. As Loremikan argues: "SNG hired sound system for daily use, printed t-shirts and fliers and on daily basis goes back to review the day's activities and planned for the next day."37 Strategically, the SNG fixed the protest to coincide with the lab "' 194 The Jonathan Presidency: Junior and Senior Years strike on the increased price of fuel. Focus was less on the issu of tite price increase and more on the causes of the crises in the politi ill economy. This was said to be corruption, hence the slogan;" ill Corruption, Not Nigerians." To reach out to the youth and heavil mO?ilise them, popular culture and music were massively deploy I dunng the protest. The rallying point and symbol of the protest in Lagos was th Gani Fawehinmi Freedom Park, Ojota. The protest which lasted f I a we~k before Nigerian soldiers took over the Park, was highly organised and the protesters were disciplined. No incident of violenc was recorded all through the carnival-like protest. The success and peac~ful nature of the protest at Ojota baffled government, especially President Jonathan, who made the assertion that the protest was sponsored although it could not provide the names of the sponsors. Additionally, the government claimed that the protesters were induced with food and drinks. The calibre of people at the daily protests was composite; it included subalterns, artisans, de-classe, traders, unemployed youth, middle class, entrepreneurs, professionals and civil servants. As such, the protest was trans-class in social Structure and ideologically it was pan-Nigerian in outlook with people from diverse ethnic and religious backgrounds. The protest was a rainbow coalition with multiple platforms springing up or being replicated all across the country: Mushin, Falomo, Lekki, Ojota, Ikorodu, Iyana-Ipaja, Egbeda, Badagry, Ibadan, Benin City, Kano, Kaduna, and Port-Harcourt, to mention a few. Live broadcast and the social media assisted in the national spread of the protest. The mobile strategy of the LASCO was primarily responsible for the spread of the protest in different locations across the country. The presence of popular artists, especially musicians and Nollywood stars, such as Femi Kuti, Seun Kuti, Desmond Elliott, Salawa Abeni, Wasiu Ayinde Marshall, Ganiat Gani Fawehinmi and her son Mohammed Fawehinmi all assisted in capturing national attentio~ and galvanised mass interest in the protest. These artistes were mobilised by Pastor Bakare." The January 2012 Subsidy Protest enjoyed the overwhelming IPPOrt of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), as a body, despite Understanding Popular Struggles and Resistance 195 the seeming anti-people and reactionary position of some individual lawyers who often deployed their forensic expertise in the service of those seen as oppressors of the people. As leading members of the petty-bourgeois class, it should not be surprising that members of the legal profession used their legal knowledge and position to defend the status quo and for class advantage often against the interest of the people. However, since G~epresidency of Mr. Aka Alao- Bashorun, Priscillia Kuye, and Olisa Agbakoba the NBA as a corporate personality had become progressive and pro-people in orientation. Several lawyers such as Gani Fawehinmi, Femi Falana, Festus Keyamu, Bamidele Aturu, to mention a few have over the years acted as the defenders of the toiling people at the risk of their personal liberties, comfort and even lives. The Ikeja branch of the NBA is also associated with this kind of progressive legal activism. There was no need for any formal mobilisation for protest. It was the first of its kind since the struggle for the de-annulment of the June 12, 1993 Presidential election." According to Sina Loremikan: "It was an automated movement, no driver, no conductor, no speed l.mir, no guide and no rescue team.'?" Furthermore, as Odumakin stated: "the strugglewas forced on the people, no preparation. The logistic required were not available." There were many people involved. New forces emerged and a new spirit was forged among Nigerians." It should be stated that the strength of the alliance forged over the struggle against fuel price hike was also impinged upon by these loose and uncoordinated platforms that correlated with the protest movement. While JAF is an institutionalised alliance with experience of almost a decade of struggles by its affiliatingpartners, same cannot be said of the SNG platform. Even at that, the civil society partners in JAF felt let down by labour in their negotiation with the government on the reduction of the prices of petroleum products. As Abiodun Aremu states: Our experience is that alliance building is a process, whose weaknesses and strength cannot just be determined by one struggle. The challenge of every struggle ultimately determines the direction of the alliance, which may be immediate or long-term or strategic. But every struggle actually needs a unity of all forces which share common social class interest to succeed." 196 The Jonathan Presidency: Junior and Senior Years ~The Demands of the Resistance Movement Whil e all the protesters found a common ground on the need for th t~tal reversal?~ the price of fuel to N65 and continuation of dialo c different participants and actors in the protest have other agend gu d demands that are specific and exclusive. For instance as Ab~dan Aremu further n t d JAF' ' un b . doe, went mto the January protest with three aSIC emands.? 1. TOTAL REVERSAL (not decrease) in the prices of petroleum products (not just the petrol price from N141 t N65) but also the prices of diesel and kerosene to the June 2007 labour agreement with the Federal Gf 11 . overnment o owmg the LASCO protest of June 20-24 2007 . the then increase in fuel prices increase in V'A Tfr 5 agamst10 ,J-\. om percent to. percent ~nd th~ fraudulent transfer of public assets to pnvate hands, mcludmg refineries. 2. Rejection of the IMF/World Bank policies of P' t' . and D gul . nva isanon ere anon. 3. System Change. . Th~ third demand of JAF may be viewed as a maximalist ideological dema~d ',Abiodun Aremu also called attention to the lack ~ con~ensus ~Ithm the JAF affiliates involved in the protest bccOrdmg to hIm:. "It ~ust be noted that the first demand stated :h o~ebwas the one-Item m which we were in partial agreement with e a our partners, i.e. REVERSAL of the price of petrol from N141 to N b 65..As to the reversal in prices of other petroleum products it was asically a JAF demand.v" ' dIn ~n ~~equivocal declaration which exemplifies the ideological un erpmnmg of the JAF involvement in the fuel subsid t Aremu declares that: y pro est, As far as we are concerned in JAF it was a struggle bevond hike i . f fuel It is a struggle agai ., J em pnces 0. ,e ,agamst the Nigerian class of exploiters' economic agenda of,ne,o-h~rahsm a,n~ all it represents as privatisation, deregulation commercialisation, et al. It ISa continuous struggle against th ' ' regi , S l Adi - e successive mes tructura Adjustment Programmes that have been responsible \ Understanding popular Struggles and Resistance 197 for the untold hardships and mass suffering of Nigerians in the midst of abundant resources and potentials. It is a struggle to reverse the decades of backwardness and underdevelopment, and these issues were clearly reflected in all public statements and handbills issued by JAF at various times in the past seven (7) years. And it is a struggle we must continue until Nigerians triumph with a SYSTEM CHANGE of the unjust exploitative socio-economic polity and ensure a true agenda of social and economic transfonnation that will make Nigeria work for Nigerians. 45 On its part, the SNG was interested in the reversal of the price of petroleum products to its pre-January 1, 2012 position. While the SNG was not totally averse to deregulation, it insisted that there are many things that must be addressed such as the state oflocal refineries and the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill into law before the full deregulation of downstream sector of the Nigerian petroleum industry. The SNG was also vociferous on the need for a determined state assault on corruption. As far as SNG was concerned the problem was not subsidy, but corruption which was being treated with kid gloves. To this end, it called for a full scale probe of the subsidy regime and how the funds voted for the Turn Around Maintenance (TAM) of the four refineries in Nigeria have been expended since May 29, 1999. For the SNG, regime change was never part of the agenda at the inception of the protest. However, as the protest advanced, the leadership lost control of the direction and people openly started demanding for regime change. Thus, the SNG was caught in the web of the radicalisation of the protest. For labour, all through the protest regime change was not part of the agenda. The logic of regime change in the protest was based on the belief that the Jonathan Administration has no Blueprint for Nigeria. The deployment and militarisation of the Gani Fawehinmi Park, Ojota by the state was hinged on the plan to use the protest to overthrow the Jonathan Administration. While admitting that the issue of change of government came up in the cause of the protest, Owei Lakemfa stated unambiguously that the allegation was misplaced because at no time, before and during the protest did labour contemplate change of government. 46 He addt d that President Jonathan was not only enjoying a democratic m 11 lnlr, labour and civil society coalition have not capacity to tak (Ive I III 198 The Jonathan Presidency: Junior and Senior Years Governrr:e~t o~ ~he Federation and it feared the possibility of II opporturustic military coup. Ajaero has noted that it was the frustrati n of Nigerians with the Jonathan Administration that brought to th fore the issue of regime change, though labour was not brought int the protest any campaign for regime change." According to Ajaero: "Labour does not believe in regime change, nor does it have mandat to do that. Labour plans before action. "48 Though there was a reduction in the price of petroleum from N 140 to N97 contrary to the initial position of the government about the finality of the increase, this was contrary to the demand for the total reversal of the price to its previous price of N65. The belief th~t the N9? price was arrived at through a government negotiation w~th organised labour led to accusation of betrayal by the labour anstocra~, thus validating the position of SNG of the opportunistic pa~e~ship between the state and labour to the detriment of people's aspiration for change and better life. Aremu has observed: None of the demands were met. The firstdemand ended with price reduction from N 141 to N97 for a litre of petrol, which JAF totally rejected and urged Nigerians to brace up for future struggles to reverse Nigeria's dependence on fuel importation, and building of additional refineries and proper maintenance of the old ones in order to ensure availability of petroleum products at lower prices. However, it should be pointed out that the last two demands are not demands we expect the FG to meet, they were demands placed before Nigerians in terms ofbuilding a political alternative that will ensure the emergence of a new political and economic ~~n.gement, in .which the resources and potentials of the country will be judiciously apphed to adequately fund and create equitable access to the majori~ Nigerians on education, healthcare, mass employment and productive opportunities, social welfare, electricity, and infrastructure. 49 Expectedly t~e state deployed police in strategic places during the p~otests. While the police at Ojota were highly professional in han.dlmg the protesters this was largely due to the highly peaceful and festive nature of the Ojota crowd, there were reported cases of trigger- hap~y police men who killed protesters in some parts of Lagos, Ilorin, KOg!and Kano states. In Ogba, Ifako-Ijaiye, Lagos, for instance, police Understanding popular struggles and Resistance 199 shot at young boys who took advantage of the deserted road to play football, killing one of the boys, in the process. With the deployment of soldiers and occupation of the Gani Fawehinmi Freedom Park and its surroundings in the wee hours of January 16, 2012, security personnel brutalised some of the protesters. The popul~ move~en~ resented the deployment of soldiers takeover of the Garu Fawehm:m Park, Ojota. This action by the state was seen by all the socI~1 movements involved in the protest as a violation of the democratic rights of the Nigerian people to freely associat~ ~nd asse~b~e without any encumbrances. The Chairman of the TransIoon Morutonng Group (TMG) , Ibrahim Zikirullahi notes that "The deployment of .~oops to Gani Fawehinmi Park was seen by all as a ploy to quell1egItImate protests. It was an affront on the fundamental rights of ci~,zens ~o peaceful assembly." As a consequence, as Lak~mfa notes: JAF ~n Lagos decided to test the military and Aremu said let us see what WIll happen on the street. Labour Union in Lagos joined Aremu before they were stopped by the military at Ikorodu road.T" An Assessment of the Protest The protest in many ways was historic. Its spo?ta~eous and pan- Nigerian orientation demonstrated that though NIgenans are.to1era~t of their leaders, they equally have the capacity to exerCIse ~~elf democratic rights, by questioning government decisions and policies. The comprehensive and total nature of the strike action as well as sacrifices of the protesters who trekked several kilometres underscored their determination for change. Also, the protest was a veritable rainbow coalition in~olvin~ a critical mass and unity across ethnic and religious lines. The interfaith solidarity displayed at the protest venue with Christians pr.o~iding shield for Muslims during prayer session in context of anticipated Boko Haram bombing was quite instructive. The House of Representatives Fuel Subsidy Probe panel led by Honourable Farouk Lawan and its ground breaking revelations , I( also the fallout of the protest. President Jonathan was compelled hv the protest to put on trial some oil marketers who were impli Ill! d III 200 The Jonathan Presidency: Junior and Senior Years the fuel subsidy seam, either by the Lawan-led probe panel, or the Cothmittees constituted by the Ministry of Finance or the Federal Government constituted panel headed by Nuhu Ribadu. It is apt to note that as a consequence of the January protest many state institutions of accountability are now being strengthened. For example, the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) which was metaphorically on life-support has started giving people feedback through an interface between it and the civil society. Furthermore, as a consequence of the protest, Nigerians are more informed and better educated about how their country is being governed. Pastor Tunde Bakare succinctly captures this thus: But perhaps what would turn out to be really interesting is that Nigerians didn't just limit themselves to protesting against the fuel prices. They protested against corruption, the cankerworm that unrepentantly luxuriates in Nigeria's vegetable. The protest would go on for days during which the ranks of protesters swelled. During the period, one of the things that we ensured in the protests I participated in at Freedom Park, Ojota, Lagos, was a crash course in civic education. We showed, with reliable facts and figures, that the whole subsidy thing, to begin with, was a seam. Even though over the years, people had been swindled, things were about to get worse because the president and his cronies were bent on extorting from the people, more taxes to sponsor their profligacy. We carried on for days and during which time, it was obvious the state officials became discomfited. Faced with the power of the people, they feared what an educated citizenry would be able to achieve. The state agencies, after empty sloganeering of "Power to the People" for years, feared what empowering people with knowledge would really translate to. They were rattled and then backed down from their high horse to concede a 33 percent decrease. 51 Additionally, the state has much to learn from the protest in terms of strategies for popular mobilisation for nation-building through the effective use of popu1ar culture, music and social media. The protest gave voice to the voiceless Nigerians with the people openly speaking out against what they perceived as wrong in the Nigerian system and how to fix it. The coverage of the protest by the mass media assisted in no small measure with the effective dissemination of the activities of the protesters; but that also had a boomerang effect, because as Understanding Popular Struggles and Resistance 201 the attendance and participation in the protest dwindled ~a~h day ~he protest lasted, this was also reported. This shows the limits of live coverage of events. . . The protest had its drawbacks. First, the organisation of th~ pro~est manifested evidence of indecision. The protest at the Park m Ojota ended after every speech by Pastor Tunde Bakare, usually around 1.00 pm and 2.00 pm daily, when the crowd was still soaring. The decision of the organisers not to fully occupy the park and prolong their stay despite the determination of the protesters to do so, called to question the sacrifice the leadership of the protest. It was apparent to many people that the organisers were overwhelmed by the mammoth crowd of protesters and had no clue as to how to manage them or even decipher what the subtext was. There was also a serious debate amongst the leadership whether to continue the protest through the weekend or break and resume the following Monday. The decision to have a weekend break and resume on Monday allowed the state to abort the protest by taking over the Ojota Park. The lesson is clear: the struggle for change m~st be enduring and sustainable. It shou1d not be ad hoc and undulating. Mention must also be made of the lack of cohesion and unity amongst the civil society groups involved in the prot~st. There were cases of suspicion, accusations and counter-accusatlOns of sellout. Some believed that labour insisted on smashing Ojota Park proteste~s before the strike could be called off. Many also felt that the leaderS?lp oflabour acted unilaterally and in bad faith by accepting the reduction in fuel price from N141 to N97 as against t~e forme~ price of N65 that was the talking point of all the groups involved m the. p~otest. Contrary to the claim that labour sold out through the negotianon of a reduction 52 Acting Secretary General and Deputy President of the Nigerian L~bour Congress (NLC), respec:ively clai~ed that there was no negotiation. The reduction was unilaterally amved at by the Jonathan Administration without due consultation with NLC. . A major concern was the question of synergy amongst the so t, I movements and civil society organisations that coalesced to I the historic protest. It must be realised that as a spont~n 1 popular protest the subsidy protest was largely on auto-driv lid 11 202 The Jonathan Presidency: Junior and Senior Years propelling with protest actions by multiple groups and platforms. In a way, ego and rivalry made collaboration and coordination difficult, if not impossible. This was not helped with the lack of clear-cut leadership for the protest movement. While the SNG was apparently on its own, the core social movement as represented by LASCO, built on their historic alliance of popular struggles and worked all through the January 2012 subsidy protest. As evidence of the synergy between labour and its civil society partners, immediately the government announced the removal of petroleum subsidy on January 1, 2012, Owei Lakemfa, the Acting Secretary General of the NLC called the Secretary of JAF, Abiodun Aremu; and LASCO Co- Secretary with Lakemfa, who replied with a text message on the decision of JAF to stage a warning rally in Lagos on January 3,2012, for which Lakemfa mobilised labour. Furthermore, in Lagos, according to Ajero, LASCO met daily to discuss the protest operation for the following day.54 Be that as it may, for the leadership and various civil society groups that were involved in the subsidy protest in January 2012, the alliances forged and the experience gained would be useful for future struggles. There is a need to marry protest with the organisational capacity in order to achieve intended outcome. This is not however to conclude that there was a total lack of synergy. For JAF and labour represented by LASCO, there was to a large extend synergy even if there were disagreements on some issues which were resolved based on democratic principles. One of such issues was the decision to call-off the strike. 55 According to Lakemfa, Dipo Fashina, the Chairman of JAF and Co-Chairman of LASCO was at the meeting to call-off the strike though he was not in support of the decision. 56 The protest failed to achieve its core objectives despite its many sided benefits. It appears the changes occasioned by the protest were cosmetic or short-lived. It is in this context that Ronaldo Munck warns of "a slippery path for social movements that is being bamboozled by neoliberal globalisation into a controlled environment where even critical voices serve the overall purpose of stabilising the existing order." Understanding Popular Struggles and Resistance 203 Conclusion Th tru gle of JAF and SNG show the strength and limits ~f popular s~~e:in Nigeria. They also point to the divisio~s = umt:: among popular platforms over shared vision and the Nigerian project. The protest of January 2012 over the fuel increas~ also showed .the ideological division among groups between reformism and re:olutlOn. Different notions and framing of the basis of the protest also informe~ different interpretations of the outcome of the protests-whether It was a victory or defeat. . The popular anger of the citizens especially yout~~ was squandered' but the lack of synergy of programmes, a definition of the endgam'e, lack of trust in and by leade~hip and the weak nature of the alliances formed all militated against the str~ggle and the ultimate realisation of its objectives. The fact that people m the struggle worked at cross purposes was equally a major dra:v~ack.. The efficacy of popular action against maladml~lstratlOn and bad governance has been demonstrated. This was succinctly captured by Tunde Bakare of SNG thus: But while the protest ended abruptly, and didn't.qu~te ~chiev~the goal of permanently stamping out corruption in Nigena, It did ~chleve several things. It galvanised Nigerians, re-energised them to realise the power of protest and popular struggles. They realised how much the sa~e people who swore an Oath to protect their best interests are cheating them. Nigerians were able to see that contrary to the urban legend that we are natural beast of burdens, we actually have a tipping point. :es, when we are pushed far enough, we can fight and we w~ fight. We will fight for,~ur . hts We will fight to demand dignity. We will fight to show that to w~ ng . . d e shall not SItthe people" belong the power and the sovereignty an no, w back and watch our humanity desecrated. 57 The key question remains unanswered: was the core agend~ of the January 2012 protest movement regime c~ang~ or. corruptlo~? Or was there an interface between both? What implicauon does thi have for the future of both JAF and SNG? It i~possible that t~ n t round of popular struggles in Nigeria, just like the ~ampat 11 1111 Democracy (CD) which led the pro-democracy groups m th till 204 The Jonathan Presidency: Junior and Senior Years for the de~annulment of the June 12, 1993 Presidential election ma stem on Its tempo and tenor; it is also possible that new social movements may be conceived in the womb of the existing ones to lead future popular struggles. Notes 1. A: M?~,oh: "~emocracy, De-Democratisation and Development in Nigeria. Nigerian Journal of Intemational Affairs 32 (2006)' 61-85 See John A Ayoade t al Th . ... , e. . e Jonathan Presidency: The First Y; (Lanham, MD.: University of America Press, 2013). ear D.A. Snow, et. al., "Maping the Terrain" in The BlackweIl C .S . ,ompamon tpobl~Cl~ Movements, edited by D.A Snow, et. al. (Oxford: Blackwell u ishing, 2004), p. 7. Ibid., p. 10. Ibid., p. 4. Ibid., p. 11. C. ~illy, "Social Move~ents and National Politics." In State Making and So~al ~ovements, edited by C. Bright and S. Harding (Am Arb MI . University of Michigan Press, 1984), p. 305 or, .. J.D. Mc Carthy and M.N. Zald, "Resource Mobilisation and Social Movements and New ICTs," The American Journal of Sociolozv 82 (1977): 1217-1218. . on S.M. Buechler, "Strange Career of Strain and Breakdown Th . Collecti A' " . eones 0. ve ctlO~, m The BlackweIl Companion to Social Movements, ~ 50, A Morns and C. Herring, "Theory and Research in Social ~vement," inPolitical Behaviour Annual, edited by S.Long (Englewood Cliffs, NJ.: Ablex, 1987), pp. 137-198. Morris and Herring, passim. Ibid. Ibid. Buechler, p. 50. Ibid., p. 49. Morris and Herring, passim Buechler, p. 52. Ibid. Snow, et. al., p. 45. B. E~~ar~ a?~ J.D. Mc Carthy, "Resources and Social Movement Mobilisation, m The Blackwell Companion to S . 1 Mocra ovements, 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. Understanding popular struggles and Resistance 205 pp. 116-152 20. H. Kriese, "political Context and Opportunity," in Ibid., p. 68. 21. Ibid., pp. 69-79. 22. Ibid.,;, 71. 23. Ibid., p. 74. 24. Ibid., p. 77. 25. Ibid., p. 78. 26. D. McAdam, et al, "Comparative Perspectives on Social Movements," in Protests in An Information Society, Information, Communication and Society, 9(1996): pp. 202-224. 27. Ibid. 28. R.K. Garret, "Protests ir, an Information Society," pp. 202-224. 29. Ibid. 30. Ibid. 31. AT. Oshodi, "Political Corruption and Paradox of Representation." In Governance Issues and Corruption, edited by Shri B. Dahiya and Kavita Chakravarty (Rolitak: Intellectual Foundation, 2011), pp. 29-47 32. John A Ayoade and Adeoye A Akinsanya, Nigeria's Critical Election: 2011 (Lanham, MD.: LexingtonBooks, 2013). 33. Joint Action Forum, "JAF Calls for A General Strike and Mass Action to Reject Increases in Fuel Prices and Demand That Soldiers Vacate PHCN Facilities," Press Conference Addressed by JAF, November 23, 2011, Lagos, p. 1. 34. Ibid. 35. Ibid., p. 3. 36. See 0. Lakemfa, "Phone Interview," October 2015. 37. See Sina Loremikan, "Phone Interview," Lagos, November 28, 2015. 38. Interview with Sina Loremikan, Lagos, December 2016. 39. See Adeoye A. Akinsanya, Nigeria in the Throes of Crises (Ibadan: John Archers publishers, 2015). 40. See Sina Loremikan, "Field Interview," Ikeja, Lagos, July 4,2012. 41. See Y. Odumakin, "Field Interview," Ikeja, Lagos, July 20, 2012. 42. See Biodun Aremu, ••Email Interview," July 25, 2012. 43. See Biodun Aremu, "Field Interview," July 23,2012. 44. Ibid. 45. Supra Note 42. 46. Supra Note 36. 47. See Ajaaero, "Field Interview," November 2016. 48. Supra Note 42. 206 The Jonathan Presidency: Junior and Senior Years 49. LM. Zikirullahi, ••Email Interview," November 2015. 50. Supra Note 26. 51. T.Bakare "Welcome Address at SNG's State of th Nation," Public Lecture by Save Nigeria Group, November 12,2012. 52. Supra Note 36 and 47. 53. Supra Note 36. 54. Supra Note 47. 55. Supra Note 36. 56. Ibid. 57. SupraNote51. About the Editors John A.A. Ayoade, unti12008 when he retired from active University Service, was a Professor of Political Science at the University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. He was Chair of the Department and one-time Dean of the Faculty of the Social Sciences of the University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. He is currently a Professor of Political Science and Dean of the Faculty of Social and Management Sciences at the Bowen University, Iwo, State of Osun, Nigeria. Adeoye A. Akinsanya, until recently, was a Professor of Political Science at the Tai Solarin University of Education, Ijagun, via Ijebu Ode, Ogun State, Nigeria. He was Chair of the Department of Political Science at the Universities of florin and Calabar a well as the Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago- Iwoye, Ogun State. He is currently a Professor in the Department of Public Administration and one-time Chair of the Department of Public Administration, N asarawa State University, Keffi, Nasarawa State, Nigeria. Olatunde JB Ojo, until 2009 when he retired from active University Service, was a Professor of Political Science at the University of Port Harcourt, Port-Harcourt, Nigeria. He is currently an Adjunct Professor of International Relations at the Osun State University, Osogbo, State of Osun, Nigeria. About the Contributors 1. Ademola Pius Adebisi is the Registrar of the Federal College of Agriculture, Akure and Adjunct Lecturer in Political Science at the Joseph Ayo Babalola University, Ikeji Arakeji, State of Osun, Nigeria. Bariratu Abdullahi is an Assistant Lecturer in the Department of Public Administration, Nasarawa State University Keffi, , Nasarawa State, Nigeria. Adeoye A. Akinsanya, until recently, was a Professor of Political Science at the Tai Solarin University of Education, Ijagun, via Ojebu Ode, Ogun State, Nigeria. He was Chair of the Department of Political Science at the Universities of florin and Calabar as well as the Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye, Ogun State. He is currently a Professor in the Department of Public Administration, and was one-time Chair of the Department of Public Administration, N asarawa State University, Keffi, Nasarawa State, Nigeria. Hussaini Tukur Hassan is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Public Administration, Nasarawa State University, Keffi, Nasarawa State, Nigeria. 2. 3. 4. Sylvanus M. Itodo is a Lecturer in the Department of Public Administration, Nasarawa State University, Keffi, Nasarawa State, Nigeria. 6. Stephen Lafenwa is a Senior Lecturer in Political Science at the University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. 5. 7. Elems U. Mahmud is a Lecturer in Department of Public Administration, Nasarawa State University Keffi Nasar: w ••, , State, Nigeria. 8. Abubakar Momoh, until he passed away, was a Prof CII III Political Science atthe Lagos State University, Ijanikuu, I 216 The Jonathan Presidency: Junior and Senior Years Nigeria and Director-General of the Electoral Institute, INEC, Abuja, Nigeria. 9. Adelaja Odukoya is an Associate Professor in Political Science at the University of Lagos, Lagos, Nigeria.