*Obasanjo, Mahama seek reform, protection of democracy in Africa

*If I wanted third term, I would have got it, says Obasanjo

Chuks Okocha in Abuja

Former President Goodluck Jonathan has said any leader who fails to perform should be voted out of office if proper elections are conducted.
This is as former President Olusegun Obasanjo and the President of Ghana, John Dramani Mahama, called for the reform of democracy and its protection in Africa.
Obasanjo also denied allegations that he sought a third term in office when he was president, insisting that if he had wanted a third term, he would have got it, adding also that no Nigerian can produce evidence to support such allegations.

Jonathan, who described electoral manipulation as one of the biggest threats to democracy in Africa, said that unless stakeholders come together to rethink and reform democracy, it may collapse in Africa.
Jonathan spoke at the 2025 edition of the Goodluck Jonathan Foundation (GJF) Democracy Dialogue, held in Accra, Ghana.
In a statement issued yesterday, the Communications Officer at Goodluck Jonathan Foundation, Mr. Wealth Dickson Ominabo, quoted the former president as saying that where democracy fails to meet expectations, desperation can open the door to authoritarianism.

He added that leaders must commit to the kind of democracy that guarantees a great future for the children, where their voices matter.
He said: “Democracy in the African continent is going through a period of strain and risk of collapse unless stakeholders come together to rethink and reform it. Electoral manipulation remains one of the biggest threats in Africa.

“We in Africa must begin to look at our democracy and rethink it in a way that works well for us and our people. One of the problems is our electoral system. People manipulate the process to remain in power by all means.
“If we had proper elections, a leader who fails to perform would be voted out. But in our case, people use the system to perpetuate themselves even when the people don’t want them.

“Our people want to enjoy their freedom. They want their votes to count during elections. They want equitable representation and inclusivity. They want a good education. Our people want security. They want access to good healthcare. They want jobs. They want dignity. When leaders fail to meet these basic needs, the people become disillusioned,” Jonathan added.

He also spoke on youth participation in governance, describing it as very encouraging, but emphasised that for the youth to succeed in governance, they need the wisdom and experience of older people to guide them.
Also speaking, the President of Ghana, Mahama, said democracy would not survive unless Africans actively worked to protect and strengthen it.
He warned that weak institutions, elite capture, exclusion, leadership deficits, and external interference erode citizens’ trust in democracy.

“Democracy will not survive if we don’t work for it. We need a reset of democracy and governance to ensure accountability. Anybody who wants to serve must be accountable to the people. Our citizens are tired of corruption, misgovernance, and lack of opportunities.
“To renew democracy, we must strengthen institutions, deliver development, and educate our citizens. We must protect the media and civic space. A free press is democracy’s immune system. Democracy dies when citizens lose faith, when leaders abandon integrity, and when institutions succumb to capture. But democracy can be renewed when citizens rise to defend it.”

On his part, former President Obasanjo, who was the chairman of the event, warned that democracy risks collapse if it continued to be practised in its current form without urgent reforms.
He said Africa’s current democratic practice is unsustainable and must be urgently reformed.
The elder statesman said democracy was originally conceived as “government of the people, by the people, and for the people.”

Obasanjo, however, added that it has drifted far from that vision.
“Democracy dies because democracy has refused to be reformed,” he declared. “There are three aspects of democracy that cannot continue to exist the way it was as defined by the American president: government of the people, by the people, and for the people.

“In that definition, democracy is meant to be for all people. And if democracy will not die and be buried, democracy must be reformed in context, in content, and in practice.”
Obasanjo likened the failures of democracy to a local proverb in his part of the world, “the thing that killed the vegetable is the insect in the vegetable.”

He explained that democracy was being destroyed from within due to the way it is currently practised.
“The thing that is killing democracy and will kill it is the practice of democracy,” he warned.
“All the essentials that should be part and parcel of democracy are being ignored or bastardised in such a way that democracy has failed to deliver. And democracy cannot deliver unless it is reformed. If it is not reformed, it will not only fail, it will die and be buried.”

The former president, however, argued that despite its flaws, democracy remains irreplaceable.
“Is there any real substitute for democracy as it was originally designed, government of the people, all the people. What we have now is a government of some people, by some people, over all the people,” he lamented.
He further criticised the interpretation of democracy as simply “government of the majority,” insisting that this perspective marginalises minorities and undermines inclusivity.

“And they talk of a government of democracy as a government of the majority. If you talk of the government of the majority, what do you do with the minority? Then the minority is not part of the people?” Obasanjo queried.
He condemned leaders who overstay their welcome and consider themselves indispensable, describing such an attitude as a “sin against God.”

“I think I’m not a fool. If I wanted it, some thought I wanted it, I know how to go about it. And there is no Nigerian, dead or alive, who will say I called him and told him I wanted the third term. None.”
According to him, securing debt relief for Nigeria during his administration was a greater challenge than obtaining a third term in office.

“I keep telling them that, ‘look, if I wanted to get debt relief, which is more difficult than getting a third term and I got it, ’ if I wanted a third term, I would have got it too,” he said.
President of the ECOWAS Commission, Dr. Omar Touray, stressed that democracy must go beyond elections to include accountability, service, and discipline.

“For many, democracy is all about elections, but that is a narrow view. Democracy is about accountability, discipline, and results. Unless accountability governs the relationship between citizens and governments, unless discipline permeates our social fabric, and unless results drive our public engagement, we will continue to sit on gold mines and oil wells but wallow in poverty. Any system, democratic or otherwise, will die if it does not deliver results.”
The keynote speaker, Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah, called on politicians to demonstrate patriotism through their conduct and commitment to democratic norms.

“A deliberate effort must be made to ensure that the lifestyle of public officers reflects service and inspires confidence. Politics should not become a do-or-die affair or a ticket to self-enrichment. Institutions such as the judiciary and electoral bodies must inspire confidence.
“Despite the appeal of ethnic or religious emotions, leaders must rise above being seen merely as champions of their ethnic or religious groups.”

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