Nigeria, March 31 -- When the general elections begin to divide us in ways we have never seen before, it is because there's so much at stake for political actors and it was not surprising that the 2023 elections turned out to be most consequential in recent history, as predicted. But we do not have to burn down the country because we disagree with the outcomes - both at the state and national levels.

Since 1999, we have been experimenting with our "nascent" democracy, which has now survived for 24 years. The expectation is that we would improve with every election cycle, in spite of the antics of desperate politicians who are generally bad losers.

Has our democracy matured? I don't think so. Moreover, the presidential system of governme...