On April 16th, Dr. Sheriff Folarin, a visiting lecturer in the department, delivered a presentation on political clientelism and its impact on Nigerian politics at the department’s monthly Inkling’s meeting. Attended by more than a dozen faculty members and graduate students, his presentation began by exploring the political significance of the Nigerian phrase “Emi lo kan” which translates to “It’s my turn.” First invoked by Nigerian politician Bola Tinubu to justify his claim to the presidency, the phrase has since become a symbol of clientelism in Nigeria as it represents the complex relationship between wealthy political investors and their indebted clients. Dr. Folarin explained how these investors use their wealth and social capital to politically elevate their clients in exchange for various acts or services such as securing political appointments, receiving preferential state contracts, or even inheriting political power all together.
Dr. Folarin also provided a historical analysis to explain how clientelism developed in the nation and offered several solutions as a panacea to alleviate the country’s clientele woes. Some of these solutions involve reducing the attractiveness of political office and controlling the monetization of the democratic process.
The original Inklings consisted of a small group of intellectuals (whose ranks included J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis) who met weekly at Oxford University to read aloud and discuss their works in a spirit of fellowship and civil conversation. In the spirit of these Inklings, the Department of Political Science at Texas State University has held similar gatherings for more than two decades.
For more information on the series, please contact Dr. Arnold Leder at al04@txstate.edu.
