Although they historically played a pivotal role in the fight against colonial rule-as they have in recent attempts to entrench multiparty democratic processes-the role of youth in political parties in West Africa has received less than commensurate attention in studies on democratization. Unlike in advanced democracies where parties are key agents of political socialization and leadership, parties in West Africa are built on ethno-religious foundations. A peculiar character of highly marginalized youth thus becomes inevitable, both in politics and decision-making processes of the state. To assert themselves, the youth have also become agents of destabilization of the democracy they partook to build. Apart from their involvement in political violence, youths are now available as unconscientious "foot soldiers" of ethnic militias and terrorist groups that are constituting increased social problems in West Africa. In this article, we examine how parties and youth have interacted to define the emergence and character of threat to the nascent democracies in contemporary West Africa. The article interrogates how the notions of "youth" and "political participation" have continued to play out in different West African countries within the context of the opportunities and challenges of Africa's youth bulge on the democratization process. The article observes that the marginalization of West African youths has been part and parcel of history only that their situation has further raised the stake as agent of social disorder in the absence of positive engagement in the recent times.

There are several accounts of the genealogy and manifestations of the myriad governance crises, which Nigeria continues to face five decades after independence. Although no single account is sufficient to explain the governance misadventures, one key point resonating is that progress and development have proved elusive over the years. In this article, we seek to move away from the dominant characterization of this governance crisis as deriving directly from the consequences of a monolithic oil economy, a deeply fractured and volatile political terrain, or even corrupt and patrimonial rule. Instead, the article locates the root of Nigeria’s governance crisis in the queer pattern of the emergence, reinvention, and manipulation of proto-nationalisms characterized not by any nationalistic quest for independence and spatial liberation but one pursued to gain foothold in governance and to partake in its perquisites. Invariably, the post-colonial nation-states that emerged at independence in many African countries, for the most part, neither followed through with any logical expression of genuine nationalism nor mobilized toward a shared vision of nationhood. The article shows how individuals and groups within the polity soon became locked in contested and irreconcilable positions that further made the construction of a truly nationalistic identity difficult, if not forlorn. This article submits that successive post-colonial administrations unimaginatively followed the divide-and-rule traditions of the colonial state and thus failed to mobilize the popular support required for the construction of a broad-based national identity that is key to managing the protracted governance crises the country has experienced since independence.

A challenge gaining momentous notoriety in the discourse of governance crisis is the pattern of underperformance at the grassroots. This paper delved critically into the factors that accounts for this oft-touted performance crisis, with emphasis on areas of the discourse not hitherto examined. Focusing on peculiar characteristic of the Nigerian state, its 'unitarised' federalism occasioned by prolonged military administrations, regional politicking, and constitutional subjugation into excessive control from the component units, the paper interrogated what the fates of the local government might have portend were contrary to be the cases. Added to this is the pervasive corrupt environment and administrative bottlenecks under which the local government administration in Nigeria is subjected. The paper concluded, among others, that proper devolution of powers is critical to enhanced service delivery at the grassroots in Nigeria.

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Storytelling has become a peacebuilding tool used by both men and women following the protracted conflict between Ile Ife and Modakeke in the Ife Kingdom in Osun State, Nigeria. Prior to the use of storytelling, various methods of conflict resolution had previously been attempted without success. The inhabitants of the two communities used storytelling to construct symbols, signs and gestures that supported a lasting peace. This paper uses Symbolic Interaction theory to explain how storytellers communicate peace through interpretative understanding. The study area comprised the towns of Ile-Ife and Modakeke, and data collection entailed qualitative interviews with 28 participants across the two communities. It was found that storytelling is a powerful tool for building peace between these two communities. It has healing power and can bring peace, security and stability. It is concluded that governments should provide support to help storytellers become professional peacebuilders.

The minimalist conception articulated in the advanced democracies of the West, and typified by liberal political theory and thereafter im(ex)ported to Africa hook, lines and sinkers have not produced the desired 'fruits'. Going by the waves of democratic upheavals in most part of the continent, the kind of procedural, formal or institutional democracy, which stresses political rights, focusing on elections and multi-partyism has been practiced in Nigeria in all its forms with, for the most part, the fear and fate of the citizenry exacerbating by the days. This paper investigates the political history of one of Africa's most influential and forlorn democracy-Nigeria-within the ambit of competitiveness and western democratic practices. The paper observed that ever since Nigeria attained independence in 1960, despite several elections and democratization processes, records show that one of her major challenges is achievement of good governance through democracy whether in the Westminster model or presidential system. The study also found evidences that the prevailing opinion on Nigeria's democracy is that even though confidence that election can ensure integrity of governance and accountability is rife, such confidence has actually waned due to the protracted history of mean electoral practices. The paper concluded that integrity of elections, among others, is critical to ensuring true democracy and good governance in Nigeria.

Scholars have long sought answers for the socio-economic and political discomfort of immigrants. Migrants became underclass and exploited in their new environment. In a field survey conducted in Ondo State, Nigeria, the study examined the ontological submissions about immigrants’ plight for employment and the host community’s potentials at tapping high skills available among the migrants. The study anchored on Talcott Parson’s AGIL- Social System Theory of societal survival, most especially its functional prerequisites, notably adaptation, goal, integration and pattern maintenance. The overall finding emerging from the study is that social integration links positively to migrants’ acquired work ethics, acceptance into formal workforce, and socio-communal interactions. Consequently, standardised integration of skilled-migrants into workforce shaped cordial relationship and lasting peace between migrants and the host community.

From the resource curse perspective, this article investigated how Tunde Kelani's twin-movies, Saworoide and Agogo-Èèwò, explored the vulnerability of leaders in natural-resource dependent state to corrupt practices, leading ultimately to governance crisis. Textual and mythical representations in the movies are critically analysed to explain the significance of tackling governance crises during the leadership-making process. Significantly, the article investigated the historical revisionism contained in the films as a predictive imagination of how the future (political-economy) will remain bleak in the face of the continued maladministration of the resources in Nigeria. Focusing on the socio-economic and political malaise that has continued to play out since the discovery of crude oil at Oloibiri community in Nigeria by mid-1950s, the article sought to unravel what Tunde Kelani's allegorical postulations in Saworoide and Agogo-Èèwò reveal about leadership experiences of states depending solely on natural resources income. It explained how the absence of shared goal and dearth of mass mobilization strategies, which were successfully deployed in the films for denouncing despotism and yokes of elitism, are lacking in the present-day Nigeria. The insulations against irresponsible public administration, which the leadership-making process in Saworoide and Agogo-Èèwò rigidly built into the leadership-making process in Saworoide and Agogo-Èèwo, arguably, showcase the consequences of unscrupulous choices emanating from gamed electoral system inherent in the modern liberal democracies. In doing so, the study showed how the conjoined films are a unique art that figuratively lends itself to explanations of leadership challenges arising from natural resource endowments. Taiwo A. Olaiya ABOUT THE AUTHOR Taiwo A. Olaiya (Esq.) is multidisciplinary. He successfully bagged degrees in Demography & Social Statistics, Laws, and Public Administration from the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria where he is currently a senior faculty member affiliated to the Department of Public Administration. His specialisation includes African studies, comparative political governance, policy analysis, financial management, and research methods. PUBLIC INTEREST STATEMENTFocusing on the socio-economic and political discontent that has continued to play out since the discovery of crude oil in Nigeria by mid-1950s, the article explores the allegorical postulations in Tunde Kelani's Saworoide and Agogo-Èèwò to explain the leadership experiences of states depending solely on natural resources income.