RE: USA Africa Dialogue Series - NIGERIA IS A FAILED COUNTRY

Who is a political scientist?

Max Weber was a political economist , philosopher, and a sociologist. He was a co-founder of the Liberal German Democratic party and the author of the much acclaimed study, Politics as a Vocation in the early 20^th century.   He also provided an original definition of the state as an entity ‘with monopoly on the legitimate use of force in its territory’, usually to adjudicate between competing interests and claims on the state’s resources.   In this study Max Weber clearly states that politics is an act of compromise. His definition of the state and description of politics as an act of compromise, weighing the relative benefits and costs of political actions in decision making  is still used in serious works on state formation today. If Weber is not a political scientist, at least he is a political economist.

Hope this helps

Kwaku

Chicago

is "failed state" a term political scientists use?
ken

To reply succinctly to Ken Harrows inquiry, as one of those on this forum who wears two hats as both trained social scientist and literary critic: There is indeed notionally such a thing as a failed state; Nigeria is NOT a failed state. Let me thank Ebele Onwudiwe for stating what was on my mind when the issue under discussion first broke.It is indeed rich of William Bangura to now suggest that most Nigerian are full of pomposity and that is why they could not come to terms with the fact that their nation is a failed state. But more on that later.  What is a failed state?  A failed state is one in which the primary institutions of governance has totally collapsed or in a state of near-collapse. 

 

 If the depredations in the North-East were happening in Abuja to the extent that governance could not take place i.e. The legislature could not meet; the president and his Cabinet could only meet in a bunker;  Raging all out war went on in the federal capital in which no faction had the upper hand: neither the federal forces nor the other factions, then Nigeria would satisfy the definitions of a failed state. But what did we read in the Leadership newspaper posted on the forum instead: Senators met and deliberated on the nations fate with service chiefs appointed by the nation.  Request sent by a lawfully elected Mr President was deliberated upon by legislators with a view to passing laws on them.  Means of empowering the nations lawful armed forces were debated with a view to improving their efficciency.  These are not hallmarks of a failed state.  So what is happening in Nigeria?

 

For sure, Nigerians are their own worst critics.  But critisms are in the main a means of galvanising government to to rise up to its responsiblilities.  Why did Boko Haram find it easy to run amok in todays Nigeria?  Because there are still quite a few in pockets of circles in the North who are uncomfortable with Southern leadership fearing it would end in the gradual erosion of ultimate Islamization of Nigeria-their abiding dream..  It is these elements who provide cover to a cowardly group to gain easy passage to the Nortth East first to discredit Jonathans leadership in the eyes of their  group of providing effective security for them.  You can bet your last kobo on the fact that if itwas MEND or OPC infiltrating the North East n the past 4 years the culprits would all have been rounded up.  Tha is why Boko always managed to elude capture by the nations armed forces.  Jonathans intelligence must have forbade him from visiting relatives of the victims for that reason. He (Jonathan) is the symbol of the nations sovereignty.

 

As for the inane logic of William Bangura, the fact that people like VC Aluko whom he was arracking could leAve the US to assume his present post contradicts his position in his original posting that the federal govt could not afford economic advancement of its citzens.  his (Bangura) posotion is nothing more than inverted envy of Nigerias intellectual class whom he meets in forums.  How many of 'most Nigerians' has he met in the rural areas who are 'pompous?'

 

Olayinka Agbetuyi

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Date: Sun, 18 May 2014 21:04:45 -0100
Subject: Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - NIGERIA IS A FAILED COUNTRY
From: ibdullah@gmail.com
To: usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com

These descriptive tags--failed state; collapse state; vampire state--are never helpful in understanding the complex reality of statecraft in the contemporary world. There is no such thing as a successful or a failed state. State formation or state making is always a work in progress.

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