Disruptions and Governance in a Post Colonial African State: Analysis of Nigerian Experience in Post Covid-19 Pandemic Era, 2020-2024

Abstract

This paper examined disruptions and their effect in post-colonial African states with the interrogation of the Nigerian experience in the post-pandemic era. The paper situated a post-colonial state and highlighted the characteristics while arguing that disruptions in Nigeria had left disastrous and sour traces. The Nigerian experience with various disruptions highlighted the fact that disruptions were part of the country’s history and the state had always struggled and insisted on addressing the needs and aspirations of the citizens. The discourse extended to the analysis of remedial measures and their sustainability for the transformation of society. It was within this context that four situations in the post-pandemic era were selected for interrogation, its effect on livelihoods, and varied governance responses. Unfortunately, the character of the Nigerian state permitted a number of crises and disruptions that necessarily occurred. While secondary sources were used to gather data used for analysis, the strands of argument posited as objectives of the paper attracted the development of four research questions for interrogation. The paper concluded that the weakness of the state was responsible for its inability to engender hope and aspiration in the citizens.