Nigeria @66: Giant Still In Search Of Its Stride

Today, Nigeria marks 66 years of independence from British colonial rule. The flag that went up at midnight in 1960 still flies, but the questions that followed it have grown louder: Has the giant of Africa fulfilled its promise, or merely survived it?
At 66, Nigeria has been resilient and restless, a nation-state that has avoided disintegration but has yet to achieve cohesion.
Nigeria’s longest stretch of unbroken civil rule is now in its 27th year, a feat for a country that has experienced six military coups in its first 39 years.
Still, democracy has not translated into quality governance and enlightened politics. Elections remain fiercely contested and litigated, with voter turn...