SOCIAL PRODUCTION AND REPRODUCTION, SOCIETAL CONFLICTS AND THE CHALLENGE OF DEMOCRACY IN NIGERIA

Abstract

The broad task of this paper is to find out the relationship between societal conflictual and violent behavior and the construction and consolidation of democracy in Nigeria. This paper interrogates the popular notion and use of democracy as civilian rule. It proceeds from the standpoint of democracy as authoritative decision-making in a polity b at least the majority of the elector and explores the link between -societal conflicts and violence, particularly urban and rural conflicts and violence and democracy. A  theoretical framework of social production and reproduction is used to, explain the link between the number of those involved in authoritative decision making in a plity and the conflicts and violence in a polity. The inference is that more of democracy as conceptualised here means more people involvement in authoritative decision making and therefore determining and producing their own needs and minimizing the sources and basis of societal conflicts. conflicts and violence can therefore be pro or anti-democracy. The paper explores this relationship in Nigeria from pre-colonial time to date. It recommends the popularization of control of knowledge, skills and physical resources so that many more Nigerians will be in a Nigeria polity and thus minimize urban and rural violence.