Posted by Chester Morton / Wednesday, 8 March 2017 / No comments
How to prevent the military from venturing into politics
Introduction
Military intervention refers to the situation where the
military move out of their barracks and take over political power from their
civilian counterparts. Normally, this is done through a coup d’tat.
In recent years, coup d’tats have not been popular but the
risk of military adventurists still truncating the democratic fortunes of West
Africa in particular and Africa in general is not to be under estimated.
There are several factors that can be used to prevent the
military from usurping power from the civilians.
WAYS OF PREVENTING THE
MILITARY FROM POLITICS
Education of soldiers
The military men must be educated to know the role they are
expected to play in the democratic dispensation they find themselves in. The
soldiers must be told that their role is to protect the country in times of any
external aggression and not to interfere in the governance of the state. This
can confine them to their barracks.
Legislations
The constitution of the land must make any involvement in a
military coup a punishable offense with very severe terms of imprisonment. Any
military officer who is therefore caught attempting to overthrow the government
of the day must be made to face the full rigours of the law.
Willingness to relinquish power
The political leaders of the various countries, especially,
African countries must be willing to take a bow after they have exhausted their
terms of office. They should not try to cling to power at all cost when it is
time to go. It is the unwillingness of the civilian political leaders to leave
office that creates room for military adventurists to try to usurp power.
Periodic elections
The government of the day must allow for free, fair and
credible elections periodically. This would imprint in the minds of the people
that no matter their conditions, there would come a time for them to attempt to
change government through the ballot box. It is the absence of such
opportunities that attracts people to venture into taking power by the barrel
of the gun.
Fight against corruption
One of the ways of preventing the military from coming to
power is to fight corruption and to eschew corruption. Many times when the
military come to power, they accuse their civilian counterparts of corrupt
practices. Therefore, once the civilians are able to fight corruption, the
soldiers would not have any grounds to come into office by the use of force.
Condition of service for soldiers
The civilian governments must ensure that the military
operate under a very good condition of service. The military must not be made
to lack any of the accoutrements they need to properly function in their
office. Also, their remuneration must be attractive so that it can keep them in
their barracks.
Adequate security
The government of the day must ensure that there is adequate
security for the protection of the government of the day. Any loopholes in the
national security must be plugged so that it is not exploited by the soldiers
to overthrow civilian governments.
Conclusion
When the above measures are put in place, it would prevent
the soldiers from taking over the political affairs of the state by the force
of arms.
SAMPLE QUESTIONS
1. a. What is a military coup? (2 marks)
b. Outline five
ways in which military interventions can be curtailed.
2. Highlight six factors that can stop soldiers from usurping
political power in a state.
