@article{MAKHILLPJSS20201747781,
    title = {Machine Politics, Intra-Party Polyarchy and Democratic Recession in Nigeria},
    journal = {Pakistan Journal of Social Sciences},
    volume = {17},
    number = {4},
    pages = {242-247},
    year = {2020},
    issn = {1683-8831},
    doi = {pjssci.2020.242.247},
    url = {https://makhillpublications.co/view-article.php?issn=1683-8831&doi=pjssci.2020.242.247},
    author = {Omeh,Abada,Nwoke,Chukwu,Ozor,Ubong,Aligwara,Madu,Oguwuike and},
    keywords = {Elitism,democracy,godfather,political party,vote buying},
    abstract = {The dismantling of autocratic dynasties in
Africa by the forces of colonialism and much later, the
independence of several developmental states, swiftly
ushered in democracy in post-colonial Africa. As a
political entity, Nigeria having gotten her political "flag"
independence in 1960 has significantly been influenced
by the exogenous forces. But in as much as the wave of
democracy seems to be appreciated, it has been truncated
by the post colonial characteristics of African political
demagogues, internal wrangling among elites in the
political parties striving to select candidates for their
personal aggrandizement at the expense of the mass
members of the party. This, no doubt, affects the
entrenchment of democratic values in Nigerian political
system. It is the objective of the paper to investigates how
leaders of political parties in Nigeria have been implicated
in the selection of candidates, political party decision
making and their implications in withering the democratic
modulation in the country. The study utilized qualitative
method of secondary data collection while content
analysis was employed. The theoretical frame work of
analysis is adequately anchored on the theory of elite. The
finding of the study significantly revealed that the
inabilities of developmental states to appreciate the
dividends of democracy is chiefly attributed to unholy
democratic characters exhibited by big party stalwarts
while selecting candidates to contest vacant political
positions in the country. Therefore, the study recommends
among others that political parties should strive for
democratic holiness.}
    }