Money Politics and The Nigerian Delegate System: Implications for Democratic Governance

The study investigated money politics and the Nigerian delegate system; implications for democratic governance. In Nigeria, the delegate system, intended to ensure credible candidate selection, has been undermined by pervasive money politics. Financial inducements to delegates distort internal party democracy, favouring wealth over competence. This practice threatens the quality of leadership and weakens democratic governance. The objectives of the study were to examine the influence of money politics on the Nigerian delegate system, with particular focus on the conduct of the 2023 Presidential party primaries, and evaluate the implications of monetised delegate politics on the quality of leadership and democratic governance. The study adopted the Elite Theory propounded by Vilfredo Pareto in 1935; Gaetano Mosca in 1939; and Robert Michel in 1965 and 1966. The study employed a descriptive research design and applied secondary sources of data; data were sourced from academic journals, books, conference papers, newspaper articles and official documents, among others. The study concluded that the use of the delegate system in the conduct of party primaries in Nigeria has largely failed to live up to expectations. Party primaries, especially high-profile ones like the 2023 Presidential primaries, were marked by irregularities, widespread vote-buying, and corruption. Instead of choosing candidates based on merit, the process was transactional, with political offices often going to the highest bidder. The study recommended that political parties and electoral authorities should ensure the strict enforcement of laws and internal regulations to eliminate money politics during delegate-based primaries, with active monitoring and penalties for vote buying, to uphold the integrity of candidate selection and strengthen the delegate system.