Search results for: coalition politics

Authors: Olufemi Adedamola Oyedele

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Infrastructure provision in Nigeria is now at its lowest ebb in spite of its being critical to the socio-economic and political development of any nation. This is partly because the policy that will ensure its adequate provisioning is missing and partly because politics is affecting its provision. Policy is the basic principles by which a government is guided. Infrastructural development is the basis for measuring the performance of governments and it is the foundation of good governance. Demand for infrastructural development is higher and resources used in its provision are limited. Ethnic-interest agitation and lobbying for infrastructure provision are common things in multi-ethnic state like Nigeria. Most infrastructures are now decayed and need repair or replacement. Government is the system that organizes, control and sensitizes the people in a society in other for all to have an acceptable level of living. Governments have the power to put in place all measures that they deem fit will make an environment conducive for living for everybody. Infrastructure development in any environment requires needs assessment, feasibility and viability studies and carrying out physical development of the project. The challenge in Nigeria is largely carrying out development where they are not needed but where the people are loyal. There are numerous abandoned projects because they were started due to politics and not because they are feasible. Policies and politics greatly affect infrastructure provisioning in Nigeria and this is the premise of this paper.

Keywords: infrastructure challenges, infrastructure development, policy making, politics, project finance

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Authors: Collins Nkapnwo Formella

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The democratic wave of the 1980s and 1990s brought a lot of hopes to the politics of African states as many nation-states adopted ‘democracy.’ The end of the Cold War ushered in, with a lot of rush, pro-democracy movements, which led to multi-party politics, following constitutional reviews. For the very first time since independence, Africans revolted against personalized dictatorship and adopted the idea of limited office terms for the presidents. This paper dives deep into the history of Africa post-independence with the aim of allowing the readers to understand the nature of the differences in the political setups that currently govern the continent and the central region in particular. Time has proven the euphoria that characterized post-Cold War African politics at least for many countries short-lived, as their leaders were unable to re-design the institutions of governance from the compromise and interest-oriented structures handed down after independence. The result has been that politics in many of the countries have been tailored down along the lines of winner takes all approach, with the accumulation of state power being the sole objective of the leaders. The paper contends that 21ˢᵗ Century African politics is exactly the politics of inclusion/exclusion based on ethnic and interest groups, leading to the flourishing of patrimonial authoritarian regimes. It also puts to the test, whether authoritarian responses to delivering growth (economic, political, social) and peace as has been the model adopted by many leaders is superior compared to democracy. This paper then concludes by adding that the practice of democracy in the Central African region in its current form is inherently flawed from its foundations, thus incapable of rooting out the crises faced in the region.

Keywords: authoritarianism, democracy, development, power, institutions

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Authors: Ratih Andaruni Widhiantari

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The combination of the expanding population of aid agencies and the act of politicization in humanitarian intervention blurred the distinction between what humanitarianism accept as universal human rights in theory and their practices in humanitarian intervention. Humanitarian organizations were now venturing into the formerly taboo territory of politics that place individuals at risk, for examples, cooperating and coordinating with the intervening states, considering moments of destruction as opportunities for political change and even taking on functions that had once been the exclusive preserve of government. Hence, aid agencies were becoming involved in matters of local or even international politics. This study focuses on the comparison between Oxfam and Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) or Doctor without Borders different attitudes against political influences in humanitarian aid. It aims to untangle the bewilderment whether the contradictory approach to politics will becoming a barrier to performing their principles as humanitarian actors and also the consequences of taking that one particular position. The analysis of quantitative data and qualitative literature analysis are presented. The findings indicated Oxfam is actively engaged with politics. It welcomed government and private sector to shared cooperation to reach its goals to alleviate global inequalities. On the other hand, MSF has always taken a strong position to refuse any politics influence within their aid programmes. With no financial assistance from any government, MSF is free from any direct politics intervention. Hence, it can work efficiently with a clear objective to respond the demand side pressures from the people in needs. It is still publicly against politic involvement in the humanitarian activity, but practically, it has been moving forward to politicization in its own definition.

Keywords: humanitarian agencies, humanitarian intervention, humanitarian principles, politicization of humanitarianism

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Authors: Jamilu Adamu

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Radical political activities among the people of Northern Nigeria and Sabon Birni, in particular from the formation of the Northern Element Progressive Union (NEPU) and Northern People Congress (NPC) in the last decade of colonial rule, led to the dramatic spread of radical ideas that were expressed through party politics. The above two parties were said to be more prominent in each of the movements throughout the period covered by this study. The NEPU and NPC were said to have opposed one another in an attempt to establish their political control in the area. What is apparent about the nature of the opposition is that the earlier NEPU and People Redemption Party (PRP) emerged from the idea of liberating the common man (Talakawa) against all forms of oppression, thereby rejecting a contrary idea of supporting the native elites and their colonial collaborators as envisaged in the ideology of the later NPC and National Party of Nigeria (NPN). This laid the ground for ideological confrontation between the supporters of the two opposing wings all over the northern emirates and the Sabon Birni district in particular. The study used a qualitative method of data collection. This study examines the historical developments of radical party politics among the Gobirawa people of the Sabon Birni District of Sokoto. It also investigates the factors that inspired opposition politics among the Gobirawa people of Sabon Birni. These were analyses side-by-side with the role of the traditional leaders in the area in suppressing the activities of the opposition party.

Keywords: NEPU, NPC, radical politics, Sabon-Birni District

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Authors: Mary Edokpa Fadal, Frances Agweda

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Considering the volatile and evolving nature of the political environment in the developing countries, it is important that the subject of effective leadership practices that focus on transformational and systematic political development and values be reviewed. If the attitude towards partisan politics and the played politics by political parties is relatively deviated from expected adherence to acceptance, safe, efficient and practical standard, the political parties will continue to struggle endlessly in an effort to maintain a system that works. The analysis is situated in the context of political parties and partisan political behavior in contemporary societies and developing nations. Recent research of empirical evidence shows that most of the political parties are more or less, not too active in playing their instrumental role in the political system, such as unifying, simplifying and stabilizing the political process. This is however traced to the problem of ethnic politics that have been dominated by tribalism. The rising clamor for political development needs re-structuring and correcting the abnormalities in the center of the polity to address the flaws in our political system. The paper argues that political parties and political actors are some of the vital instrument of attaining societal goals of democratic principles for peace and durability. Issues of ethnic and partisan politics are also discussed, as it relates to question pertaining to political ideologies. It is in the findings that this paper examines some of the issues that have been seen revolving the true practice of political parties and its activities towards the democratic trend of a society, that help to resolve questions surrounding the issues of politics and governance in developing countries. These issues are seen as an aberration that have characterized politics and political behavior especially in the aspect of transparency and fulfilling its purpose of existence. The paper argues that the transition of the developing nature of states largely depends on the political structures and party politics and the nature of constitutionalism following the democratic awakening. The paper concludes that politics and political behavior are all human factors that play a vital role in the development of contemporary societies. They drive the wheel of nations towards its goal attainment. This paper relies on documentary, primary sources of data collection and empirical analysis.

Keywords: development, ethnicity, partisan politics, political behavior, political parties

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Authors: Mohammed Mutala Surazu

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The origin of Islam is traced back to the time of Prophet Mohammed (SAW), 571 AD, who thought the six main articles of faith and the five pillars of the region. Today, Islam is regarded as one of the fastest growing religions in the world, another peaceful one and very accommodating to other religions. Politics dominates in Islam and, as a result, divisions into various groupings, including the Ahmadiyah, Tijania, Suni and many others. Despite all believing the Qur’an as the only holy book used, they are all affiliated with different types of hadiths, including the al-Nawawi’s. These divisions are the reasons for tension in Islam, and it is necessary to conduct this research to investigate political situations in Islam within the society. Over the past three or two decades, there have been diverse and divided opinions about politics and religion (Islam). Many believe that politics and religion are inherently subjective and should be accepted as such, and the further argument for a relativistic approach is that individuals' and communities’ beliefs and values should be acknowledged and respected since no single political or religious ideology can claim absolute truth and superiority over the other. The perspective view is that emphasis is placed on tolerance and coexistence between different political and religious views; moreover, society is comprised of individuals with different backgrounds, opinions and interests, so it is necessary to find common ground and create space where diverse ideas can peacefully coexist in order to promote dialogue, understanding and mutual respect to maintain social harmony and peaceful relation in the society. Also, some individuals in society argue about the universalism of certain moral principles, which should be certain and agreed upon by all. For example, the Jewish people believe that eating pork is wrong, and if someone of another religion is asked if they agree with that, objectively, the non-Jewish would be comfortable with that. Others still argue that a continuous relativistic approach to politics and religion can lead to a breakdown of shared moral standards, loss of ethical principles, doubting faith or loyalty and uprising against agencies of politics and religion. And within the political groupings, they believe in the same ideologies to propagate their message, likewise the religious belongings (Christianity, Islam, Judaism and others) who also ensure that their religious perspectives or beliefs are deeply rooted in the society. This forms the basis for research about the perspective of politics and religious relativism in this modern era to respond to the questions and the challenges of religious politics in Islam.

Keywords: relativism, religion, universality, politics

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Authors: Tugba Ayas Onol

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The paper revisits Jean-François Lyotard’s interpretation of the Kantian Sublime as a tool for understanding politics after modernity. In 1985 Lyotard announces the end of rational politics based on consensus and claims that new strategies are urged to recognize the political imperatives of marginalized groups. The charm of the sublime as a reflective judgment is grounded on the fact that the judgment of sublime is free from any notion of consensus or common sense in particular. Lyotard interprets this feature of the sublime as a respect for heterogeneity and for him aesthetic judgments can be a model for understanding justice in postmodern times, in which it seems hard to follow a single universal law among different phrase regimes. More importantly, the Kantian sublime speaks to what Lyotard addresses as the incommensurability of phase genres. The present paper shall try to evaluate Lyotard’s employment of the Kantian notion of the sublime in relation to its possible political import.

Keywords: Kant, Lyotard, sublime, politics

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Authors: Djehich Mohamed Yousri

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This paper aims to address the dialectic of law and politics in the philosophy of the state of the philosopher Hegel by addressing the concept of law, which refers to its general meaning to the set of rules and legislation that man sets to apply them within society, as it is considered one of the primary and necessary conditions for the functioning of And organizing social life, when it defines the rights and duties of every individual belonging to the state, by approaching it with central concepts in political philosophy, such as the state, freedom and the people. The most prominent result that we reached through our analysis of the details of the problematic research is the relationship between law and politics in the philosophical system of Hegel; on the one hand, We find that the state is rational only to the extent that it resorts to the law and works under it, and the latter does not realize its essence and effectiveness unless it is extracted from the customs, traditions, and culture of the people so that it does not conflict with the ideal goal of its existence, which is to achieve freedom and protect it from all possible. A state does not mean at all to reduce the freedom of the people, so there is no conflict between law and freedom.

Keywords: hegel, the law, country, freedom, citizen

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Authors: Poonam Mishra, Shiv Kumar Sharma, Sanjeev Swami

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Purpose: The Purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship of percieved organizational politics with three levels of antecedents (i.e., organizational level, work environment level and individual level)and its consequents simultaneously. The study addresses antecedents and consequents of percieved political behavior in the higher education sector of India with specific reference to a central university. Design/ Methodology/ Approach: A conceptual framework and hypotheses were first developed on the basis of review of previous studies on organizational politics. A questionnaire was then developed carrying 66 items related to 8-constructs and demographic characteristics of respondents. Jundegemental sampling was used to select respondents. Primary data is collected through structured questionnaire from 45 faculty members of a central university. The sample constitutes Professors, Associate Professors and Assistant Professors from various departments of the University. To test hypotheses data was analyzed statistically using partial least square-structural equations modeling (PLS-SEM). Findings: Results indicated a strong support for OP’s relationship with three of the four proposed antecedents that are, workforce diversity, relationship conflict and need for power with relationship conflict having the strongest impact. No significant relationship was found between role conflict and perception of organizational politics. The three consequences that is, intention to turnover, job anxiety, and organizational commitment are significantly impacted by perception of organizational politics. Practical Implications– This study will be helpful in motivating future research for improving the quality of higher education in India by reducing the level of antecedents that adds to the level of perception of organizational politics, ultimately resulting in unfavorable outcomes. Originality/value: Although a large number of studies on atecedents and consequents of percieved organizational politics have been reported, little attention has been paid to test all the separate but interdependent relationships simultaneously; in this paper organizational politics will be simultaneously treated as a dependent variable and same will be treated as independent variable in subsequent relationships.

Keywords: organizational politics, workforce diversity, relationship conflict, role conflict, need for power, intention to turnover, job anxiety, organizational commitment

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Authors: Hsiao-Yung Wang

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This study aims to explore the visual roots of classical rhetoric and its implication for gender politics by the constant reference to Mikhail Bakhtin’s theory of novelist time. First, it attempts to clarify the argument that “visuality always has been integral to rhetorical consciousness” by critically re-reading the rhetorical theories of roman rhetorician such as Cicero and Quintilian. Thereby, the vague clues of visuality would be realized from the so-called ‘five canons of rhetoric’ (invention, arrangement, style, memory, and delivery), which originally deriving from verbal and spoken rhetorical tradition. Drawing on Mikhail Bakhtin’s elaboration of novelist time in contrast to epic time, it addresses the specific timeline inherent in the dynamics of visual rhetoric involves the refusing the ‘absolute past’, the focusing on unfinalized contemporary reality, and the expecting for open future. Taking the primary visions of Taipei LGBT parade over the past 13 years as research cases, it mentions that visuality could not only activate the rhetorical functions of classical rhetoric, but also inspire gender politics in the contemporary era.

Keywords: classical rhetoric, gender politics, Mikhail Bakhtin, visuality

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Authors: Majeed Mohammed Midhin, Clare Finburgh

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To maintain a healthy balanced loyalty between art and politics posits a debatable issue. The artist is always on the look out for the potential tension between those two realms. Therefore, one of the most painful dilemmas the artist finds is how to function in a society without sacrificing the aesthetic values of his/her work. In other words, the life-long awareness of failure which derives from the concept of the artist as caught between unflattering social realities and the need to invent genuine art forms becomes a fertilizing soil for the artists to dig deep into its origin. Thus, within the framework of this dilemma, the question of the responsibility of the artist and the relationship of the art to politics will be illuminating. The present paper tackles the idea of the amorality of the artist in selected plays by Tom Stoppard. However, Stoppard’s awareness of his situation as a refugee has led him to keep at a distance from politics. He tried hard to avoid any intervention into the realms of political debate, especially in his earliest work. On the one hand, it is not meant that he did not interest in politics as such, but rather he preferred to question it than to create a fixed ideological position. On the other hand, Stoppard’s refusal to intervene in politics is ascribed to his feeling of gratitude to Britain where he settled. As a result, Stoppard has frequently been criticized for a lack of political engagement and also for not leaning too much for the left when he does engage. His reaction to these public criticisms finds expression in his self-conscious statements which defensively stressed the artifice of his work. He, like Oscar Wilde thinks that the responsibility of the artist is devoted to the realm of his/her art. Consequently, his consciousness for the role of the artist is truly reflected in his two plays, Artist Descending a Staircase(1972) and Travesties(1974).

Keywords: amorality, dilemma, aesthetic, responsibility of the artist, political theatre

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Authors: Stylianos Galoukas

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since the eve of human societies, the need for survival and covering even the most basic needs such as hunting for food, led to the realization of the need for regulation between the personal and common interest. This led to the establishment of initially unwritten and later on, written rules which then became the Law. Transparency as a word has been used for more than 2.500 years. Born in ancient Greece around the 5th BC century and although it was not originally correlated to political or public administration acts, its enclosed principles and rules, were given even then, great attention. In today’s times of fake news and meta-politics, transparency has greatly correlated with the fight against corruption especially in the financially related matters. It is believed however that transparency, being a much wider than corruption meaning, has an even greater role to play than the corruption counterpart. It can be further used to unveil or examine the genuineness of the will towards the public interest, behind every public policy or political act. Therefore, herein the timeless and fundamental principles of institutional and public administration transparency are made clear as well as their application rules that can and ought to be used as evaluation criteria.

Keywords: evaluation citeria, policies, politics, principles, rules, transparency

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Authors: Umar Ubandawaki

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Political participation involves voluntary and deliberate efforts by the members of a political system to determine the kinds of political institution and individuals that will govern them and equally influence the mobilization and allocation of the available societal resources. Over the years, youths in Nigeria participated actively in political party rallies and voting to elect their leaders and representatives in governance. This paper examines categories and nature of participation in politics as well as factors that derived youths into politics in Sokoto State. Through the use of qualitative and quantitative data generated from focus group discussions, interviews and questionnaire, the paper find out that youth, in Sokoto State, have been induced in participatory activities that encourage political thuggery and manipulation of electoral outcomes. Moreover, they are neglected in the mobilization and allocation of the available resources of the society i.e they are denied dividends of good governance. The paper recommends that youths should be engaged into positive participatory activities for ensuring inclusiveness and promotion of good governance in Nigeria. It is hoped that this will enlighten youth and policy implementers on the constructive strategies in controlling youth’s participation in politics in Nigeria.

Keywords: democracy, governance, inclusivenes, participation and politic

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Authors: Mohammad Hossein Badamchi

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As Leo Strauss demonstrates in his works, Political Philosophy in the western tradition is an epistemic-naturalistic tradition insofar Hanna Arendt mentioning the deep conflict between philosophy and politics, opposed to be named “political philosopher” prefer the title “political thinker” for herself. In fact, the Western political philosophy’s tendency to derive politics from natural law and epistemic argumentations makes a paradox between the actual “the political” and the theoretical “natural politics” in the western tradition. In this paper, we want to show that Hanna Arendt, in her exploration to find a new realm of the non-naturalistic way of thinking about the political is walking on a completely different tradition of political philosophy which was first established by Al-Farabi, the founder of Islamic political philosophy around thousand years after Greek Philosophy. Despite Aristotelian Polis which is a Natural community based on true natural rationality to reach the natural purposes of mankind, Al-Farabi’s Madine (his reconstructed concept of Aristotelian Polis) is completely constructed against natural cities, which are formulated by necessity logic of natural arguments and natural deception of humanity. In fact, Farabi considers the natural understanding of politics as Ignorant ideologies used by governments to suppress people. Madine in Farabi’s work is not a natural institution but is a collaborative constitution founded by citizens. So despite Aristotelian thinking, here we don’t have just A Polis that is the one true polis, but we have various multiple Madines among one, is virtuous not by definition but by real action of citizens and civil relations. Al-Farabi’s political philosophy is not a Naturalistic-epistemic Political Philosophy but is a Phronetic Political Philosophy which Hanna Arendt wants to establish outside of western contemplative anti-active political philosophy tradition.

Keywords: al-farabi, hanna arendt, natural politics, the political, political philosophy

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Authors: Diya Sarkar, Prafulla C. Mishra

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In a parliamentary system, party discipline is the impulse; when it falls short, the government usually falls. Conceivably, the platform of Indian politics suffers with innumerous practical disorders. The politics of defection is one such specie entailing gross miscarriage of fair conduct turning politics into a game of thrones (powers). This practice of political nomaditude can trace its seed in the womb of British House of Commons. Therein, if a legislator was found to cross the floor, the party considered him disloyal. In other words, the legislator lost his allegiance to his former party by joining another party. This very phenomenon, in practice has a two way traffic i.e. ruling party to the opposition party or vice versa. The democracies like USA, Australia and Canada were also aware of this fashion of swapping loyalties. There have been several instances of great politicians changing party allegiance, for example Winston Churchill, Ramsay McDonald, William Gladstone etc. Nevertheless, it is interesting to cite that irrespective of such practice of changing party allegiance, none of the democracies in the west ever desired or felt the need to legislatively ban defections. But, exceptionally India can be traced to have passed anti-defection laws. The politics of defection had been a unique popular phenomenon on the floor of Indian Parliamentary system gradually gulping the democratic essence and synchronization of the Federation. This study is both analytical and doctrinal, which tries to examine whether representative democracy has lost its essence due to political nomadism. The present study also analyzes the classical as well as contemporary pulse of floor crossing amidst dynastic politics in a representative democracy. It will briefly discuss the panorama of defections under the Indian federal structure in the light of the anti-defection law and an attempt has been made to add valuable suggestions to streamline remedy for the still prevalent political defections.

Keywords: constitutional law, defection, democracy, polarization, political anti-trust

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Authors: Jiraporn Weenuttranon

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The ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) shall be the goal of regional economic integration among ASEAN countries. The goal of establishing AEC is to transform the region into a single market and production base with a highly competitive advantage to make it a stable and prosperous region. However, with the wild range of economic conditions in each country, the implementation of its objectives under the limited resources available in the past showed the weakness of the region. For this reason, the group of countries in the region should allocate its rich potential of the region by collaborating effectively.

Keywords: impact, AEC, influence, direction, politics, Thailand

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Authors: Jihan Mahmoud

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This paper examines the role played by Arabic novelists in revolutionary change in the Arab world, discussing themes of identity, sexuality and fundamentalism as portrayed in a selection of modern and contemporary Arabic novels that are either written in English or translated from Arabic into English. It particularly focuses on the post-Naguib Mahfouz era. Taking my cue from the current political changes in the Arab world, starting with 9/11/ terrorist attacks in the USA and the UK, the ‘Arab Spring’ revolutions, the rise of political Islam and the emergence of Isis, the Islamic state in Iraq and the Levant, the study analyses the differences in the ways contemporary Arab novelists from different Arabic countries represent the interaction between identity, sexual politics and fundamentalist ideas in the Arab world, with a specific focus on the overlap between literature, religion and international politics in the region. It argues that the post-Mahfouz era marked a new phase in the development of the political Arabic novel not only as a force of resistance against political-religious oppression, but as a call for revolution as well. Thus, the Arabic novel reshapes values and prompts future action.

Keywords: Arabic novel, Islam, politics, sexuality

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Authors: Grace Anweh, Patience Achakpa-ikyo

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The issue of women unfavourable representation in the mass media is long standing. While it is a worldwide problem, developing countries in Africa especially Nigeria are considered peculiar. This paper, ‘mass media representation and the status of women in the 2015, general elections in Nigeria’ therefore aimed to assess the current trend of role playing in the mass media and how this has affected general status of women in Nigeria politics with particular reference to the 2015 general elections. The study employed a review of secondary literature and data regarding previous performances of Nigeria women in politics from 1999 to 2015 and the picture that has been paid by Nigerian mass media about women. Anchoring the paper on the agenda setting theory of the mass media, the paper analysed secondary literature and discovered that from 1999 to date, women have been participating in politics but rather than improve their status in elective offices, the percentage of women for such offices is rather declining. This trend the paper concluded is attributed to the way and manner women are represented in the mass media - as not good for policy making offices except as kitchen and home managers. The paper therefore recommends that, the country should adopt the quota allocation for all the political parties in order to give women a chance to compete with their male counterparts. While women should strive towards the managerial and ownership of media houses in order to represent the interest of women in politics thus offering the opportunity for the favourable representation of women and role models for those who may want to tour a similar part.

Keywords: mass media, media representation, Nigeria elections, women

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Authors: Adekunle Saheed Ajisebiyawo

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This paper examines the influence of identity politics on the development of electoral democracy in Nigeria. The paper was anchored on a theory of African democracy adopted the qualitative methodology and deployed data from secondary sources to evaluate the 2023 presidential election, and found that ethnicity, religion, and regional sentiments played a major role in the election. The practical implications of this paper are that while Nigeria’s democracy is tending towards consolidation, if the unexpected does not happen, e.g., military takeover, religious and ethnic identities can mar the country’s development as competent candidates that have good policies will be voted out based on religious and ethnic sentiments. Thus, there is a need to de-emphasize religion and ethnicity in the Nigerian polity. Candidates and parties that campaign based on racial or religious narratives should be barred from contesting elective positions. The paper concluded that identity politics is inimical to Nigeria’s democratization process as well as efforts aimed at uniting and integrating the country; it, therefore, recommended that to establish a sound electoral democracy and a strong united country, the menace of ethnic, religious, and regional cleavages should be addressed. To achieve this, efforts should be intensified towards providing a set of principles for nation-building which should be included in the constitution. In addition, the paper urges the media to support the formation of an inclusive government, cutting across tribes and religions in the country to reduce the negative impact of ethnicity and religion in the country.

Keywords: cleavages, democracy, ethnicity, election, identity politics, religion

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Authors: Hsiao-Yung Wang

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This paper aims to elaborate the standpoint of neo-Marxism of Russian philosopher Mikhail Bakhtin by critical reading his concept of Bildungsroman; thereby, it aims to map the theoretical implication of spatial rhetoric and its time politics/emancipatory politics in late Bakhtin’s thought. First, it aims to outline the two revolving rings of spatiality in Bildungsroman, proceeding from 'recollecting the past' to 'foreseeing the future' on the basis of visuality and materialistic realism. Herein, Bakhtin has temporarily been leaving his previous research concern on polyphonic novel. Second, it aims to demonstrate that although Bakhtin has constantly emphasized the necessity of reconstructing opened future space, his insistence on 'emergence' has still generated a seemingly theoretical lacuna which needs to be filled. 'Doubled heterotopia,' as popularized by contemporary rhetorician Saindon, might be an adequate approach to articulate and present the rhetorical functions and dynamics of Bakhtin’s spatial rhetoric dialectically. Based on the research findings, this paper argues that Bakhtin indeed attempted to go beyond the deterministic model of Marxism and neo-Marxism strategically and reciprocally.

Keywords: Bildungsroman, double heterotopia, emergence, Mikhail Bakhtin, neo-Marxism, spatial rhetoric, time-politics, visuality

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Authors: Patrick Dzimiri

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This chapter discusses the military-orchestrated leadership change in Zimbabwe that transpired in November 2017. Fundamentally, the chapter provides a critical examination of military interference in the country's politics and its implications for a political transition in the post-Mugabe dispensation. This chapter offers insight into Zimbabwe's political crises propelled by the lack of a succession plan. It emerged that the succession battle within ZANU-PF got complicated by the militarisation of factionalism. The chapter builds from an extensive review of primary and secondary data sources on political developments before and post-Mugabe era. Vilfredo Pareto's (1848-18923) theory on elite circulation is deployed herein to explain the absence of a succession mechanism within ZANU-PF and the militarisation of socio-politics life Zimbabwe. The chapter argues that what transpired in Zimbabwe’s power wrangle within the ZANU-PF political elites was triggered by a lack of a clear succession policy. Building from insights offered by Pareto's theory of elite circulation, it is averred that the removal of Mugabe by the military did not herald any form of political transition but rather a mere power play of one elite replacing another. In addition, it is argued that the lack of political reform by the Mnangagwa government affirms the position that political elites seek power for personal self-actualisation and not the public good. The chapter concludes that Mnangagwa's rise to power is nothing but a new elite displacing the old elite structure and does not herald a positive transition and transformation in the politics of Zimbabwe.

Keywords: military, politics, zimbabwe, governance, political transition

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Authors: Samanwita Paul

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Borrowing from Kabeer’s framework of empowerment, participation of women at Panchayat level politics (grassroots level of politics in India) has been conceptualized as a resource in the study and the impact of the same in influencing the policies at the grassroots as an agency. The study attempts to examine such intricacies in the dynamics of participation and policy formulation at the Panchayat level and to assess its overall impact in altering the recognition and redistribution of women. A conscious attempt has been made to go beyond formal politics and consider participants of the informal political processes as subjects of the study. Primary surveys were conducted for data collection in 4 Panchayat villages (from Jalpaiguri district in West Bengal) of which 2 wards from each were selected based on the nature of reservation of the panchayat seats. In-depth interviews with the Panchayat members and an approximate of 80 voters from each of the villages were conducted. This has been further analyzed with the aid of appropriate statistical tools and narratives. Preliminary findings show that women from vulnerable sections tend to participate more in the political process since it offers them a means of negotiating with their vulnerabilities however in case of its impact on policy formulation, the effect of women’s participation does to appear to be as profound.

Keywords: recognition, redistribution, political participation, women

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Authors: Kamal Donko

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In the frontier zone of Benin Republic, land seems to be a fundamental political resource as it is used as a tool for socio-political mobilization, blackmail, inclusion and exclusion, conquest and political control. This paper seeks to examine the complex and intriguing interlinks between land, identity and politics in central Benin. It aims to investigate what roles territorialisation and land ownership are playing in the electioneering process in central Benin. It employs ethnographic multi-sited approach to data collections including observations, interviews and focused group discussions. Research findings reveal a complex and intriguing relationship between land ownership and politics in central Benin. Land is found to be playing a key role in the electioneering process in the region. The study has also discovered many emerging socio-spatial patterns of controlling and maintaining political power in the zone which are tied to land politics. These include identity reconstruction and integration mechanism through intermarriages, socio-political initiatives and construction of infrastructure of sovereignty. It was also found that ‘Diaspora organizations’ and identity issues; strategic creation of administrative units; alliance building strategy; gerrymandering local political field, etc. These emerging socio-spatial patterns of territorialisation for maintaining political power affect migrant and native communities’ relationships. It was also found that ‘Diaspora organizations’ and identity issues; strategic creation of administrative units; alliance building strategy; gerrymandering local political field, etc. are currently affecting migrant’s and natives’ relationships. The study argues that territorialisation is not only about national boundaries and the demarcation between different nation states, but more importantly, it serves as a powerful tool of domination and political control at the grass root level. Furthermore, this study seems to provide another perspective from which the political situation in Africa can be studied. Investigating how the dynamics of land ownership is influencing politics at the grass root or micro level, this study is fundamental to understanding spatial issues in the frontier zone.

Keywords: land, migration, politics, territorialisation

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Authors: Naresh Kumar Verma

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Nuclear energy being adapted as a renewable energy source and its production by developing countries has turned into a major strategic concern and politics by the developed world. The West seem to be the sole proprietor of such energy source and any country opting for such energy production either face significant hurdles or geopolitical challenges in developing such energy source. History of West Asia is full of interference by external powers which has been integral in the incessant conflict in the region. Whether it was the creation of Israel, the Gulf war of 1991, or the invasion of Iraq in 2003, and more recently the Iranian nuclear conundrum, the soil of West Asia has always been a witness to the play of extra regional powers game. Iran, being a theocratic state has been facing such threats and challenges, regarding its intentions and its capability in such energy production. The paper will try to assess the following issues: -Politics of Renewable Energy Generation. -Geographical and strategic significance of Iran’s nuclear programme. -Challenges in the path of Iran developing nuclear energy as a RE source. -The interests of the regional and extra-regional actors in challenging Iranian Nuclear Programme.

Keywords: developing countries, geopolitics, Iran, nuclear energy, renewable energy

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Authors: Valentina Piric, Maja Martinovic, Zoran Barac

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The application of marketing to the domain of politics has become relevant in recent times. With this article the authors wanted to explore the issue of the current political engagement among young people in Croatia. The question is what makes young people (age 18-30) politically active in young democracies such as that of the Republic of Croatia. Therefore, the objective of this study was to discover the real or hidden motivations behind the decision to actively participate in politics among young members of the two largest political parties in the country – the Croatian Democratic Union and the Social Democratic Party of Croatia. The study expected to find that the motivation for political engagement of young people is often connected with a possible achievement of individual goals and egoistic needs such as: self-acceptance, social success, financial success, prestige, reputation, status, recognition from the others etc. It was also expected that, due to the poor economic and social situation in the country, young people feel an increasing disconnection from politics. Additionally, the authors expected to find that there is a huge potential to engage young people in the political life of the country through a proper and more interactive use of marketing communication campaigns and social media platforms, with an emphasis on highly ethical motives of political activity and their benefits to society. All respondents included in the quantitative survey (sample size [N=100]) are active in one of the two largest political parties in Croatia. The sampling and distribution of the survey occurred in the field in September 2016. The results of the survey demonstrate that in Croatia, the way young people feel about politics and act accordingly, are in fact similar to what the theory describes. The research findings reveal that young people are politically active; however, the challenge is to find a way to motivate even more young people in Croatia to actively participate in the political and democratic processes in the country and to encourage them to see additional benefits out of this practice, not only related to their individual motives, but related more to the well-being of Croatia as a country and of every member of society. The research also discovered a huge potential for political marketing communication possibilities, especially related to interactive social media. It is possible that the social media channels have a stronger influence on the decision-making process among young people when compared to groups of reference. The level of interest in politics among young Croatians varies; some of them are almost indifferent, whilst others express a serious interest in different ways to actively contribute to the political life of the country, defining a participation in the political life of their country almost as their moral obligation. However, additional observations and further research need to be conducted to get a clearer and more precise picture about the interest in politics among young people in Croatia and their social potential.

Keywords: Croatia, marketing communication, motivation, politics, young people

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Authors: Christian Nounkeu Tatchou

Abstract:

The concept of mediatization of politics describes changes with regards to media and politics, as the political sphere is increasingly shaped by the media and conforms to its logic. The mediatization of politics in established democracies of the West has been the object of several researches. However, there is an overwhelming paucity of literature on this reconfiguration of the political life around the media in the emerging democracies of the Sub-Saharan Africa. A majority of Sub-Saharan countries have been progressively experiencing the modernization of their societies and significant developments with respect to political communication since the early 1990s. This has been facilitated by factors such as the adoption of democratic reforms, the development of mass media, the advent of social media and the rapid spread of new information and communication technologies. Thus, this paper investigates the extent to which political communication in Sub-Saharan Africa is mediatized, especially with regards to the social media. Through in-depths interviews with twenty political leaders and political observers in Cameroon and Ghana, this article argues that the social media has become the main arena of voters’ mobilization and political participation in Sub-Saharan Africa. However, a greater extent of freedom for political activism on social media is observed in the new democracy of Ghana, unlike in the enduring authoritarian political system of Cameroon where the government attempts to control the use and content of political discourse on social media.

Keywords: mediatization, political communication, social media, sub-saharan africa

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Authors: Chuenaarom Chantimachaiamorn

Abstract:

This study is an analysis of the roles of the Thai monks i.e. the Sangha in the development of the civil society, democracy and politics in Thailand. This study may be significant for determining the relation of Buddhism and its Sangha to the Thai society and polity. This study is based upon the documentary research from the sources of Pali Scripture, historical documents, and other publications and related matter, including with the interviews concerning political thought and role of high senior monk, scholarly monks and Dhamma-espousing monk who are well known and accepted by people in general for their political role in contemporary Thai society.

Keywords: Buddhism, role, monk, Sangha, civil society, politics

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Authors: Bharti Yadav

Abstract:

Global migration and the rise of far-right parties have expanded the significance of political discussions enclosing multiculturalism. This research paper will focus on the rise of far-right political parties in Europe over the last nearly two decades and how right-wing politics affect multiculturalism in a detrimental way; major European leaders have publicly stated that multiculturalism in their countries has failed. This paper also discusses the main reasons for right-wing politics is normalizing in Europe. Far-right political parties are the fastest-growing parties in Europe, and multiculturalism is an unescapable significant political issue. The rise of far-right anti-immigrant parties diminishes mainstream party support for multiculturalism. Mainstream parties are more receptive to both increasing in ethnic minorities’ electoral power and the rise of far-right parties.

Keywords: political parties, far-right, migration, multiculturalism

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Authors: Abhivardhan, Ritu Agarwal

Abstract:

The role of entrepreneurial ethics is connected with materializing the core components of human life, and the flexible and gullible attributions dominate the materialization of human lifestyle and outreach in the age of the internet and globalization. One of the key bi-products of the age of information – Artificial Intelligence has become a relevant mechanism to materialize and understand human empathy and originality via various algorithmic policing methodologies with specific intricacies. Since it has a special connection with ethnocentrism – it has the potential to influence the approach of international law and politics owed to the rise of and approach towards perception and communication via populism in progressive and third world countries. The paper argues about the cultural persona of artificial intelligence, and its ontological resemblance in human life is connected with the ethnocentric treatment of cyberspace, with an analysis of the influence of the ethics of entrepreneurship in international politics. The paper further provides an analysis of fake news and misinformation as the sub-strata of communication strategies involving populism determined as a communication strategy and about the legal case of constitutional redemption in recent legislative developments in Europe, the U.S, and Asia with reference to certain important strategies, policy documentation, declarations, and legal instruments. The paper concludes that the capillaries of the anthropomorphic developments of cultural perception via towards artificial intelligence have a hidden and unstable connection with the common approach of entrepreneurial ethics, which influences populism to disrupt the peaceful order of international politics via some minor backlashes in the technological, legal and social realm of human life. Suggestions with the conclusion are hereby provided.

Keywords: ethnocentrism, perception politics, populism, international law, slacktivism, artificial intelligence ethics, enculturation

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Authors: Abdulsalami Muyideen Deji

Abstract:

Nigeria as nation got independence in 1960 from British government which allowed indigenous people to form self-government and rule themselves base on the acceptable laws and orders provided by indigenes. All citizens saw it as a welcome development that gave them opportunity to develop at their own pace. Certainly, this occurred at the first instance up to the first republic of 1963. But things became worse for the country when the first military coup of January 15, 1966 sowed apple of discord between the three major tribes in Nigeria Hausa, Yoruba and Igbo as a result of miscarriage of well-conceived plan of master-minder of that coup Major Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu. Although, the argument had emanated from different quarters that if Nigeria was given opportunity to develop at the pace it was going at that time probably the Nigeria would have been among developed nation today, but that ill-fated coup was a clog in the wheel of nation’s progress. The base of this argument is that Nigeria achievements after independence still depend on the work of leaders who secure independence and also directed the affairs of nation within that short period of time up till today. Since then Nigeria has been grasping with different system of government, yet, the nation is still far from the solution. This paper will analyze Nigeria politics from independence, offer suggestion on the way forward. The source is strictly base on secondary source from textbook, newspapers, internet and journals.

Keywords: politics, government, independence, development

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