Exploring the Merits of Karl Popper's Piecemeal Social Engineering in Nigeria Africa Democratic Governance
In many countries across the globe, liberal democracy is preferred over and above every other systems of government such as military, oligarchy, diarchy, etc. This is so because, it relatively guarantees peace, equal opportunity, economic prosperity, freedom of choice, citizen's active participation in decision-making process, judicious management of scarce resources, accountability, as it also accommodates and harmonize conflicts of interests, freedom of speech, protects the rights of all citizen, among others. Regrettably however, reverse is the case in Africa and Nigeria in particular, in that, the system has been ravaged by poor political leadership, endemic corruption, ethno-religious conflicts, people remain refugees and internally displaced in their homelands, coupled with constants policy summersaults, endless economic nosediving, electoral frauds, violent extremism, social inequality, political and economic deprivation, etc. Thus, this paper argues that these identified challenges in Nigeria and in Africa democratic governance can be properly fixed if Karl Popper's social engineering theory which advanced for the gradual alteration of social institution without engaging in an unnecessary violence is adopted. With the philosophical tools of analysis and criticality, the study founds Karl Popper's claims as an interesting alternative approach in reforming what I shall calls the '4Ps'which have turned themselves into formidable open enemies that threatens the survival of Nigeria democracy hence the need for continuous reform and readjustment.
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