Abstract
This paper examines public policy making at the second tier level of government, namely the state, in Nigeria. It adopts a comparative approach by looking at the state of policy making under the current democratic government and the immediate past military regimes. Questionnaires were administered to some bureaucrats for this study. It found that personality of the individual leader and his perception of governance was a crucial variable in explaining the nature and pattern of public policy at the state level in the country. These factors were relevant regardless of the nature of government.
In addition, while the paper recognizes the differences in ambience of policy making under the military and democratic regimes, it argues, on the strength of empirical evidence, that the extent to which all relevant actors can meaningfully participate in the policy making process in a democratic era is a factor of the extent to which democratic and constitutional values are upheld. When these values are subverted, then policy making in a democratic setting becomes as vulnerable as policy making in a military era. In the Nigerian case, at the state level of policy-making, certain factors have tended to impede these values.
Recommended Citation
Obiyan, A. Sat
(2005)
"Public Policy Making at the State Level in Nigeria: A Review of Contemporary Developments,"
Journal of African Policy Studies: Vol. 11:
No.
1, Article 5.
Available at:
https://ecommons.udayton.edu/joaps/vol11/iss1/5