By Peace Udugba
Olisa Agbakoba has raised fresh concerns about Nigeria’s democratic practice, governance structure and fiscal management, warning that weak institutions, poor leadership discipline and widespread lawlessness continue to undermine national development.
Speaking on Monday during an interview on Frontline, a public affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM in Ilese-Ijebu, Ogun State, Agbakoba said Nigeria’s core challenge is no longer the absence of laws, but the persistent refusal of political leaders and public institutions to obey and enforce them.
He argued that governance has increasingly shifted away from service delivery toward electoral survival, money politics and elite competition for power. According to him, this has contributed to rising poverty, insecurity, economic hardship and weakening public institutions across the country.
Agbakoba expressed concern that even well-designed constitutional and administrative frameworks are routinely ignored in practice, describing the situation as deep institutional decay that has become normalized in public administration.
On local government autonomy, he described the Supreme Court ruling granting financial independence to local councils as a positive development, but alleged that implementation has been deliberately weakened in several states.
He said local governments remain the closest tier of governance to citizens and are constitutionally responsible for basic services such as sanitation, primary healthcare and grassroots infrastructure.
He criticised what he described as the centralisation of local government functions and funds by state governments, arguing that such interference reduces efficiency and weakens service delivery. “Local governments are the base of governance,” he said, adding that many councils have become politically inactive and unable to provide meaningful services despite receiving statutory allocations.
According to him, stronger local government systems would reduce pressure on state administrations and improve welfare delivery at community level.
On constitutional reforms, Agbakoba maintained that legal amendments alone cannot fix Nigeria’s governance challenges without a leadership culture committed to the rule of law. He said impunity remains widespread, noting that court decisions are often disregarded when government interests are involved. He contrasted this with more functional democracies where judicial rulings are consistently obeyed by public officials.
He also criticised Nigeria’s political recruitment process, arguing that it is increasingly driven by financial influence rather than competence or integrity. He warned that the system allows unqualified individuals, including those with questionable backgrounds, to contest elections without adequate institutional checks.
In one of his most controversial remarks, he questioned voter awareness, claiming that a large proportion of voters lack sufficient political understanding and are easily influenced during elections. He suggested that vote-buying and low civic education have weakened democratic accountability, though he acknowledged the sensitivity of the proposal and the difficulty of implementing stricter voter standards.
Reacting to concerns about Nigeria’s rising debt profile, Agbakoba said borrowing is not inherently bad, but warned against what he described as reckless borrowing without transparency or productive outcomes. He called for stronger fiscal discipline and oversight across government revenue and expenditure systems.
He urged the presidency to take a more decisive role in enforcing financial accountability, stressing that sustainable economic reform depends on discipline, transparency and stronger institutional compliance across all levels of government.
