THE NATURE OF DEMOCRACY

1. THE NATURE OF DEMOCRACY eadarkoh

2. The origin and definition of Democracy (cont’d) • Democracy can be traced back to Ancient Greece. • Democracy is derived from the Greek words demos (demos refers to the people-the Greeks originally used the team to mean ‘the poor’ or ‘the many’) and Kratos, meaning ‘power’ or rule. • Democracy thus means ‘rule by the demos’ eadarkoh

3. The origin and definition of Democracy (cont’d) • Democracy has become a ‘hurray! Word, implying approval of a particular set of ideas or a system of rule. • In the words of Bernard Crick (1993), ‘democracy is perhaps the most promiscuous word in the world of public affairs’ . A term that can mean anything to anyone is in danger of meaning nothing at all. eadarkoh

4. The origin and definition of Democracy (cont’d) Among the meanings that have been attached to democracy are as follows: • A system of rule by the poor and disadvantaged • A form of government in which the people rule themselves directly and continuously, without the need for professional politicians or public officials • A society based on equal opportunity and individual merit, rather than hierarchy and privilege. eadarkoh

5. The origin and definition of Democracy (cont’d) • A system of welfare and redistribution aimed at narrowing inequalities. • A system of decision-making based on the principle of majority rule. • System of rule that secures the rights and interest of minorities by placing checks upon the power of the majority. • A means of filling public office through a competitive struggle for the popular vote. • A system of government that serves the interests of the people regardless of their participation in political life. eadarkoh

6. The origin and definition of Democracy (cont’d) • Abraham Lincoln during the Gettysburg address delivered in 1864 at the height of the America civil war, extolled the virtues of what he called ‘government of the people, by the people, and for the people’. • It can be inferred from the above that democracy means different thing to different people. • According to Odukoya (2007), democracy is “a system of governance in which rulers are held accountable for their actions in the public realms of citizens, acting indirectly through competition and cooperation of their elected representatives ”. eadarkoh

7. The origin and definition of Democracy (cont’d) Democracy provides a meaningful and extensive competition among individuals and political parties for position in government through the following: • Regular, free and fair elections; • A highly inclusive level of political participation and selection of leaders and policies; • A level of civil and political liberties sufficient to ensure that citizens can develop and advocate their views and interests and contest policies and offices vigorously; eadarkoh

8. The origin and definition of Democracy (cont’d) • Democracy can be characterized as a system in which institutions constrain the behaviour of political elites; • It is seen as that article of faith that produces political legitimacy, brings good governance and addresses issues of human development; • Democracy also entails mechanism for political change- constitutional frameworks, term limits of leaders, valid elections etc; • It entails consensus building, compromise, and civility of political discourse etc. Democracy is an inherently fragile political system; where consensus dissolves, the whole political order is in jeopardy. eadarkoh

9. The origin and definition of Democracy (cont’d) • Democratization simply means that the government of a country is accountable to the governed and that the latter have the means and power to periodically replace the government of the day to ensure accountability. • According to Robert Dahl (1989), a democratic country exhibits seven basic characteristics • That public policy is made by elected officials; • That elections are free and fair; • That elections are conducted on the basis of inclusive (i.e. universal adult suffrage); • That any citizen has the right to run for office; • That there is freedom of political expression; • That there exist alternative sources of information and • Associational autonomy. eadarkoh

10. Types of Democracy Direct democracy: • Direct democracy is based on the direct, unmediated and continuous participation of citizens in the tasks of government. J. J. Rousseau contends that true democracy is impossible unless all citizens participate in decisions. To him government must embody the “general will” and “will cannot be represented” • Direct democracy obliterates the distinction between government and the governed and between the state and civil society. It is a system of self-government • It was achieved in ancient Athens through a form of government by mass meetings • Its modern manifestation is the use of referendum eadarkoh

11. Merits of direct democracy • It heightens the control that citizens can exercise over their own destinies, as it is the only pure form of democracy • It creates a better informed and more politically sophisticated citizenry, and thus it has educational benefits • It enables the public to express their own views and interests without having to rely on self-serving politicians • It ensures that rule is legitimate in the sense that people are more likely to accept decision that they have made themselves eadarkoh

12. Types of Democracy (cont’d) Representative Democracy: • Representative democracy is a limited and indirect form of democracy. It is limited in that popular participation in government is infrequent and brief, being restricted to the act of voting every few years. • It is indirect in that the public do not exercise power themselves-they merely select those who will rule on their behalf. • This form of rule is democratic only insofar as representation establishes a reliable and effective link between the government and the governed-through an electoral mandate. eadarkoh

13. Merits of representative democracy • It creates a practical form of democracy (direct popular participation is achievable only in small communities). • It relieves ordinary citizens of the burden of decision-making, thus making possible a division of labour in politics. • It allows government to be placed in the hands of those with better education, expert knowledge and greater experience. ( is this the case in Africa?) eadarkoh

14. Merits of representative democracy (cont’d) • It maintains stability by distancing ordinary citizens from politics, thereby encouraging them to accept compromise. • It is suitable for complex societies with different and pluralistic interests. • It allows citizens’ participation in determining the orderly succession of rulers (Jackson and Jackson, 2003). Aristotle argues that “an expert cook knows best how to bake a cake, but the person who eats it is a better judge of how it tastes” (accountability) eadarkoh

15. Types of Democracy (Cont’d) Liberal Democracy: A type of democracy that is popular in the west. It is an indirect and a representative form of democracy. Liberal democracy has the following features: • Free and fair elections; • Comprehensive fairness in political competition; • Extensive public freedoms of speech, press, information, association, assembly, movement etc; • Popular participation; • Responsiveness of elected officials to the needs of the society and • Political equality among the citizens –democracy must put some floor of political capacity underneath all citizens (Larry Diamond, 2005). eadarkoh

16. Procedural and Substantive views of Democracy Procedural Democracy: Procedural democratic theory (PDT)sets forth principles that describe how government should make decisions. The principle address three distinct questions (Janda, Berry and Goldman, 1999) • Who should participate in decision making? • How much should each participant’s vote count? • How many votes are needed to reach a decision? eadarkoh

17. Procedural and Substantive views of Democracy (cont’d) • Who should participate in decision making?–Procedural democratic theory argues that all adults should participate in governmental decision making; everyone within the boundaries of the political community should be allowed to vote. (Universal participation) Q. should resident immigrants be allowed to vote? • How much should each participant’s vote count? According to PDT, all votes should be counted equally. This is in line with the principle of political equality. eadarkoh

18. Procedural and Substantive views of Democracy (cont’d) Please note that the principle of political equality and universal participation are two distinct principles. All votes must carry equal weight. It is reported that President Lincoln once took a vote among his cabinet members and found that they all opposed his position on an issue. He summarized the vote and the decision this way: “seven noes, one aye-the ayes have it”. Everyone participated, but Lincoln’s vote counted more than all the others combined Q. Should Presidents run their cabinets democratically?) How many votes are needed to reach a decision? • PDT prescribes that a group should decide to do what the majority of its participants ( 50 plus one person) want to do. This principle is called majority rule eadarkoh

19. Principles of Procedural Democratic Theory • Universal participation • Political equality • Majority rule • Government’s responsiveness to public opinion Q.should governments pander to public opinion? eadarkoh

20. Substantive Democratic Theory (SDT) • SDT focuses on the substance of government policies, not on the procedures followed in making those policies. • It argues that in a democratic government, certain principles must be incorporated into government policies. eadarkoh

21. Substantive Democratic Theory (SDT) (cont’d) The basic criterion of SDT is that: • Government policies must guarantee civil liberties( freedoms of behaviour, religion, worship, expression etc); • It includes privileges that government may not arbitrary deny to individuals, such as protection against discrimination in employment and housing etc; and • The quality of democracy of a country is measured by how governments ensure that citizens are not denied these liberties and rights. eadarkoh

22. Models of Democracy Four contrasting models of democracy can be identified as follows: • Classical democracy • Protective democracy • Developmental democracy • People’s democracy eadarkoh

23. Classical Democracy • Classical democracy is based on the polis or the city-state of Ancient Greece. • It operated in Athens during the Fourth and Fifth centuries B.C • It is the only pure form of popular participation • It was a government of mass meeting eadarkoh

24. Classical Democracy (cont’d) The major political institutions in Athens were as follows: • The Ecclesia- the assembly • The Council of 500 • The Court system • The Ten Generals The major social institution were: • Citizens • Aliens (metics) • Women • slaves eadarkoh

25. Classical Democracy (cont’d) Political ideals • Citizenship • Patriotism • High level of responsibility and accountability • High level of participant political culture • Respect for law eadarkoh

26. Classical Democracy (cont’d) Criticisms: • Plato argued that the mass of the people possess neither the wisdom nor the experience to rule wisely on their own behalf. • He further argued that democracy puts more emphasis on elections and thus promotes amateurism over professionalism, mediocrity over excellence and ignorance over true knowledge-He therefore argued for the establishment of philosophical rule led by Philosopher King. • The Athenian democracy excluded a mass of the population from political activity. Participation was restricted to Athenian-born males who were over 20 years of age. Slaves, foreigners and women had no political rights whatsoever. eadarkoh

27. Protective Democracy In the 17th and 18th centuries, democracy was seen less as a mechanism for participation and more as a device for the protection of citizens. • Liberal thinkers especially want to enhance individual liberties and tame the overbearing tendencies of governments. The desire to control over-mighty government had been earlier expressed by Aristotle who responded to Plato’s Philosopher King; “who will guard the guardians? • John Locke supported this protective democracy by arguing for a limited government based on consent. He further opined that if a government fails to protect lives, liberties and properties, that government has no business staying in power. eadarkoh

28. Protective Democracy (cont’d) • The more radical notion of universal adult suffrage was advanced by Jeremy Bentham and James Mill- They based their argument on utilitarian case for democracy. • Bentham posits that since all individuals seek pleasure and avoid pain a universal franchise was the only way of promoting the “greatest happiness for the greatest number”. • Protective democracy is limited government. • It is government based on consent. eadarkoh

29. Protective Democracy (cont’d) • It emphasizes the guarantee of individual liberty, life and property. • It therefore encourages the strict adherence to the principle of separation of powers- creation of separate executive, legislature and judiciary. • Protective democracy aims at giving citizens the widest possible scope to live their lives as they choose. eadarkoh

30. Developmental Democracy This development is concerned with the development of the human individual and the community. The developmental democracy is based on the political philosophy of J. J. Rousseau. • Rousseau argues that democracy must ultimately aim at enhancing the freedom or autonomy of individuals. • He recommends “obedience to a law one prescribes to oneself”. He opines that citizens are only free when they obey the laws they participated directly and continuously in enacting. eadarkoh

31. Developmental Democracy (cont’d) • Rousseau insist that freedom means obedience to the “general will.” • Rousseau posits that radical developmental democracy requires both political equality and economic equality. • Rousseau therefore proposed that “no citizen shall be rich enough to buy another and none so poor as to be forced to sell himself”. eadarkoh

32. Developmental Democracy (cont’d) • Rousseau is the architect of participatory democracy-grass root democracy. Another form of developmental democracy has been advanced in support of representative government. This is rooted in the writings of John Stuart Mill. • In the view of Mill, the central virtue of democracy was that it promotes the “highest harmonious” development of individual capacities. By participating in political life, citizens enhance their understanding, strengthen their sensibilities, and achieve a higher level of personal development. Democracy is essentially an educational experience. eadarkoh

33. Developmental Democracy (cont’d) To enhance the development of the individual and the state, J.S. Mill advocated the following: • Broadening of popular participation to include women ( Mill on subjection of women). • The establishment of strong and independent local authorities in the belief that this would broaden the opportunities available for holding public office. eadarkoh

34. Developmental Democracy (cont’d • Mill rejected the idea of political equality. • He recommended plural voting. • He argued against the tyranny of the majority. • His main concern was that democracy had the tendency to undermine debate, criticism and intellectual life. • It encourages people to accept the will of the majority, thereby promoting uniformity and dull conformism. But the majority is not always right and that wisdom cannot be determined by the simple device of show of hands. eadarkoh

35. Social democracy In Europe, the major challenge to liberal democracy is social democracy (SD). SD is linked to the socialism. • From the SD perspective, the key to democracy is equality-equal power in society and government • SD argues that Liberal Democracy puts the poor at the mercy of the rich. • SD sees money as the main source of power-those who have wealth have power over those who do not have. • The use of wealth to gain power and influence is seen as undemocratic by SD. eadarkoh

36. Social democracy (cont’d) • SD argues that people must have equal power in society. • There must also be equality of power and nearly equal distribution of economic power. • They advocate for social control rather than private control of natural resources. • SD advocates for the preservation of civil liberties and competition for political office. eadarkoh

37. Rival views: Pluralist view of democracy It is traced back to early liberals such as John Locke, Montesquieu and James Madison (in the Federalist Papers) • Madison argued that unchecked democracy can lead to majoritarianism. • The modern exponent of plural theory is Robert Dahl • Dahl coined the term “polyarchy”-rule by many rather than rule by citizens. In this system of rule parties and interest groups dominate. eadarkoh

38. Pluralist theory (disadvantages) • It prevent the majority (the propertyless masses) from exercising political power. • It may lead to “pluralist stagnation”-groups and economic interests become so powerful that they create a log jam, leading to government “overload”. • It tends to concentrate political power in the hands of the few, and deprive the many because of unequal ownership of economic resources. eadarkoh

39. Elitist View of Democracy Elite rule is an inevitable and desirable feature of social existence. • The elite theorists such as Pareto, Mosca and Michels regard democracy as foolish illusion because power is always exercised by a privileged minority. • To Mosca, in every society there are two classes-those who rule and those who are ruled. A cohesive minority will always rule or control the masses. eadarkoh

40. Elitist View of Democracy • Pareto contends that the qualities needed to rule are those of one of two psychological types: “foxes” (who rule by cunning and are able to manipulate the consent of the masses), and “lions”( whose domination is typically achieved through coercion and violence) • Robert Michels developed what is termed “the iron law of oligarchy”- The tendency within all organizations, however democratic they might appear, for power to be concentrated in the hands of a small group of dominant figures rather in the hands of the apathetic rank and file. eadarkoh

41. New Right view • They are keen advocates of free market, believing that economies work best when left alone by government. • They believe that excessive reliance on corporatist’s view may empower sectional groups , enabling them to make demands on government for increased pay, public investments, subsidies, state protection etc. • This will inevitably lead to state intervention and economic stagnation. eadarkoh

42. New Right view (cont’d) • Government “over load” is a consequence of the electoral process- politicians compete for power by offering unrealistic promises. • New Right View is that “democracy is to adult as chocolate is to children: endlessly tempting; harmless in small doses; sickening in excess”. • The New Right theorists see democracy in protective terms and not as a means of bringing about social transformation. eadarkoh

43. Marxist view • Marxist view of democracy is rooted in class analysis. • Political power reflects in the distribution of economic power and unequal ownership of productive wealth. • They argue that power cannot be widely and evenly dispersed in society as long as class power is unequally distributed. • They emphasize the importance of the factors of production. • Neo-Marxists are less dismissive of electoral democracy . They have, however, drawn attention to the inherent contradictions and instability of capitalist democracy. The desire of government to respond to popular demands may lead to the expansion of the state responsibilities in economic and social life. eadarkoh