Contesting the Nigerian State Civil Society and the Contradictions of Self-Organization

"An amazing read! Beyond Mojubaolu Okome's signature brio in her editor's introduction, the volume assembles significant reflections by established thinkers from a broad range of disciplines. Society, development, citizenship, democracy, politics, gender, activism are all subjects treated brilliantly within the context of the contradictions of postcolonial statehood in Nigeria. This is a landmark contribution to African thought." - Pius Adesanmi, Winner of the Penguin Prize for African Writing

'This book provides a rich and bottom-up political sociology of the postcolonial Nigerian state. Using relevant empirically-grounded case studies, the book critically examines the emergence, evolution, and transformation of the institution and capacity of the Nigerian state with particular reference to how diverse civil society organizations and global political-economic processes and agents shape the dynamic mutually constitutive state-society relations from the colonial period to the twenty-first century. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in understanding the relationship between the state and national development in Nigeria's social history.' - Samuel Zalanga, Professor of Sociology, Bethel University, USA

'Timely yet of enduring value, this book is crafted to provide a lasting bridge between theory and practice in state-civil society relations in contemporary Nigeria. Edited by some of the finest and brightest of Nigeria's intellectuals at home and inthe diaspora, the book as a whole speaks eloquently and soberly to the troubled Nigerian experience with a survey of the past and an eye to the future that gleans hope on the horizon for a vibrant people long held back by despots and their fellow travelers in politics, economy, and society.' - Adigun Agbaje, Professor of Political Science, University of Ibadan, Nigeria