Edmund Burke on Democracy: Implications for Power Politics in Nigeria

Abstract

Democracy is a system of government based on popular consent and people-power. It anchors and hinges on the background and foundation of popular participation in a political system. This paper examines Edmund Burke’s conception of democracy showing its implications for the emerging trends and evolving dynamics of power politics in contemporary Nigerian body-politic.  It further explores the possibility of establishing an ideal socio-political order in current democratic experiment in Nigeria using Burke’s social and political philosophy as a single guide with a view to enhancing good governance. It utilizes qualitative research method which is basically descriptive and dwells on textual analysis of both primary and secondary texts. Its epistemological value consists in its clarification of key terms bordering on Burke’s  philosophical enterprise. It provides a basis for strengthening political stability in the Nigerian state. In conclusion,  it posits that democracy is an ideal political system that could guarantee popular participation  notwithstanding Burke’s contempt for it. It recommends a reconstructive adaptation of representative democracy as a national ideology and national philosophy to guide and direct the management of state affairs in Nigeria.