EBEN ENASCO REPORTING.
Every June 12, Nigeria marks Democracy Day with speeches, parades, and promises.
But scratch beneath the surface and you will hear different vocabulary in market squares, offices, and social media spaces, like; “Borrow-cracy, Selfo-cracy, Wayo-cracy, and Demonstration of craze”.
Despite Nigeria sustaining uninterrupted democratic governance since 1999, making it the country’s longest period of civilian administration since independence, genuine dividends of democracy have eluded citizens.
Amidst plenty, citizens now lobby for what to eat, drink and power daily necessities.
Waves of self aggrandizement, notorious policies and deepening
Judiciary corrupt practices heaping loads of concern with no end in sight for the commons.
The words sting because they point to a gap between the idea of democracy and the way it feels to live in it.
Today, citizens no longer believe that Nigeria practices democracy, but engulfed in “borrow-cracy, selfo-cracy, wayo-cracy, and demonstration of craze”
“Borrow-cracy” captures the growing reliance on debt to fund budgets, projects, and even recurrent spending.
Citizens watch governments borrow from domestic and foreign lenders, then wonder who will repay and what will be left for schools, hospitals, and roads.
When loans become the main tool of governance, accountability shifts from voters to creditors.
For Selfo-cracy, it speaks to the perception that power serves the few.
Political party leaders only remember their families during appointments. Their children remain a priority when making choices for juicy positions.
They see others as only good for rough tackles on opposition voices while their children remain oversea studying lucrative courses.
It is the frustration that elections change faces but not outcomes, that public office becomes a vehicle for personal gain rather than collective progress.
When people see decisions made to protect insiders, trust in institutions erodes.
Wayo-cracy reflects the shortcuts, the “connections” that matter more than rules.
Getting a job, a contract, or even justice often depends on who you know, not what the law says. The Federal character system has long been assassinated by the political few.
That undermines the principle of equal citizenship at the heart of democracy.
And “demonstration of crase” – a blunt, street-level verdict suggests that what plays out in public is less governance and more chaos, less deliberation and more theater.
None of this means Nigerians have abandoned democracy. Turnout at elections, activism on social media, and the sheer volume of public debate show people still care deeply about self-rule.
But the wordplay signals a demand: make democracy tangible.
Let borrowing be transparent and tied to results. Let power check itself. Let the “way” be the law, not who you know.
Democracy is not a label you declare once a year. It’s tested in budgets, in courtrooms, in police stations, in classrooms.
Nigeria has kept the structures of democracy alive through regular elections and transfers of power, but governance outcomes remain a major concern.
While elections are central to political life, issues like vote buying, political violence, weak enforcement of electoral rules, and public distrust continue to undermine credibility.
Political competition is often limited to a small circle of actors who move between parties, with little grassroots involvement in candidate selection or governance.
These have steadily flagged a weak institutional accountability and inconsistent anti-corruption enforcement as key challenges.
In the economy, democracy has not significantly improved living standards for many Nigerians, where unemployment, inflation, poverty, and rising inequality have become factors shaping public perception.
Until these spaces work for the many, not the few, the slogans will keep mutating and the questions will keep coming.
WHAT THE PEOPLE ARE SAYING
….KELLY OSUNBOR, Activist Benin.
For Kelly OSUNBOR, a Nigerian activist based on Benin, said we have left democracy in oblivion as citizens have not enjoyed democracy. He noted: “Democracy should reflect around equal distributions of the country’s common patrimony, there should be good health care facilities, education and citizens’ welfare. We cannot say we are democracy when basic amenities don’t exist. During the military regime I can travel around the country without fear. But, I can no longer travel from Benin to Ekpoma, Irrua, Abuja, Lagos, even to my inherited property in my state now we are practicing democracy for fear of being kidnapped”.
.. CLINTON ONOBUN, ACTIVIST/ TAKE IT BACK ADVOCATE
He said, “as a citizen, today should have been a day to celebrate my freedom from Western slavery but insecurity has become paramount and an order of the day. The government tends to be aiding and abetting crimes. Everywhere is bleeding and kidnappers take their turns. I can’t celebrate democracy given the present standards. Transportation hike, fuel and food hikes. Democracy is supposed to be of the people and by the people but is now for the rich and their families”. Adding, “we are saying no to that”.
…..ATUNAGA PETER
ACTIVIST/ TAKE IT BACK ADVOCATE.
He said, “The government needs to be by the people, meaning our vote must count. The current leaders have not been part of us, they aren’t one of us. They only represent themselves and family members”.
After 27 years of Democratic process in Nigeria, democracy has largely been reduced to a recurring electoral process rather than a system that guarantees the welfare, rights, and voice of the people.
Amidst systemic corruption, the concept of a government “of the people” frequently functions as a system that serves the political elite rather than the masses.