The continuity of 'autocratic presidency' in Africa's democratisation project Online publication date: Wed, 14-Jan-2015
by Dickson Ogbonnaya Igwe
International Journal of Public Policy (IJPP), Vol. 7, No. 1/2/3, 2011
Abstract: This paper is about the movement of African states toward, or away, from democratisation with position that capacity building is a check to the predominance of political dictatorship and authoritarianism. Literature reverberate the contribution of presidents and in that context their roles in the dislocation of democratic values. Taking a sway on the neoclassical orientation of African presidents, the paper surmised that to mean nothing altruistic but pervasive and informal personalisation of state resources, using patron-client networks. These ties radiate down from the biggest 'big man' the imperial president to his lieutenants and allies serving as patrons to lower-level power brokers, down to the fragmented mass of ordinary citizens, trapped in relations of dependence on their local political patrons. The political economy of power relation in Africa beyond national boundaries is located within the network of neo-colonial institutional gamix over the colonised generating inequality, dependency that sustains autocratic presidency.
Existing subscribers:
Go to Inderscience Online Journals to access the Full Text of this article.
If you are not a subscriber and you just want to read the full contents of this article, buy online access here.Complimentary Subscribers, Editors or Members of the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Public Policy (IJPP):
Login with your Inderscience username and password:
Want to subscribe?
A subscription gives you complete access to all articles in the current issue, as well as to all articles in the previous three years (where applicable). See our Orders page to subscribe.
If you still need assistance, please email subs@inderscience.com
Our Blog 
Follow us on Twitter 
Visit us on Facebook