Political Leadership and National Development in Nigeria

Abstract

Nigeria has practised democratic leadership for decades yet, the country has continued to suffer various social problems like; poverty, unemployment, insecurity etc. which has overtime, impeded national development possibly because the country has the wrong people in strategic positions of leadership. This has made it pertinent to investigate the nexus between political leadership and national development in Nigeria and the leadership challenges that impedes national development in Nigeria. The study anchored on the circulation of elite theory by Italian sociologist Vilfredo Pareto. It adopted a descriptive research design and a systematic random sampling technique. Data was derived through non-participant observation and questionnaire. A sample size of 3221 was derived using a sample calculator. Data derived were afterwards, presented in tables and analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Findings revealed that the political leadership has failed to facilitate national development judging from the rate of poverty, insecurity and unemployment in the country. Based on this, the study recommends that corruption be tackled and that the rule of law, patriotism and nationalistic consciousness be upheld to curb the leadership challenges in Nigeria and facilitate national development in the country.