Party system and the administration of political parties are critical factors in determining the direction of politics and democracy. Three political parties contested at the inception of Nigeria’s Fourth Republic in 1999, but the number increased to more than 91 as at 2019. This paper raises fundamental questions as to whose interest – public or private interest of promoters and financiers - these parties serve, and whether the increase in the number of political parties has significantly entrenched democratic values in the country? These questions are compelling because of several events in political party operations in the 20 years of the Fourth Republic. These include controversial and vexatious party primaries preceding every major election, often leading to protracted and distractive litigations and rampant political defections. Unregulated use of money has, in particular, restrained ample participation by women and youths, while violence is almost becoming a norm and permanent characteristic of the electoral and political system. The paper draws data from secondary documentary sources for its conceptual and theoretical contents. Primary data are generated from events analyses by the authors as observers at party conventions and other meetings for the selection of candidates for political offices as well as during general elections. This is complimented by content analyses of relevant documents including electoral laws, court and law reports, and reports by special committees such as the Electoral Reform Committee (ERC). A combination of the ecological approach and conspiratorial theory is deployed for the paper’s analytic frame.

Money and politics are understandably inseparable because much democratic political activity is dependent on financial resources. This paper examines the effects of the unregulated use of money in political activities in Nigeria. Data for the conceptual and theoretical sections of the paper are drawn from historical and contemporary documents on people, economy and politics. This is complemented by the observation of events by the authors, together with content analyses of reports from primary data generated during the tracking of political finance in Nigeria’s recent general elections, particularly those of 2019. For its analytic framework, the paper utilises a combination of structural theory and the institutional approach.

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