Democratic Alternative is a

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jour ...

opposition political party. On June 3 and 4, 1994, about 200 Nigerians critical of the military politicians and collaborators met in

Benin City Benin City is the capital and largest city of Edo State, Edo State, Nigeria. It is the fourth-largest city in Nigeria according to the 2006 census, after Lagos, Kano (city), Kano, and Ibadan, with a population estimate of about 3,500,000 as of ...

to examine the political impasse and decide on a political plan for the country and the peoples. The conference concluded with the adoption of the

Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When ...

and

Manifesto A manifesto is a published declaration of the intentions, motives, or views of the issuer, be it an individual, group, political party or government. A manifesto usually accepts a previously published opinion or public consensus or promotes a ...

, The Liberation Charter to inaugurate the Democratic Alternative (DA). The organisation thereby emerged as a political party at the time

Sani Abacha Sani Abacha (20 September 1943 – 8 June 1998) was a Nigerian military officer and politician who ruled as the military head of state of Nigeria from 1993 until his death in 1998. He seized power on 17 November 1993 in the last successful c ...

was implementing a policy that made it illegal for Nigerians to associate in political parties. The participants in the conference defied the

dictatorship A dictatorship is a form of government which is characterized by a leader, or a group of leaders, which holds governmental powers with few to no limitations on them. The leader of a dictatorship is called a dictator. Politics in a dictatorship are ...

and launched what has become the oldest existing political party in Nigeria. A National Executive Council with

Alao Aka-Bashorun Alao is a village on the narrow east coast of Tutuila Island, American Samoa. It is located close to the island's easternmost point, just to the north of Aunu'u Island. Alao is home to white sand beaches, and is one of the oldest settlements in ...

and Chima Ubani as President and

Secretary-General Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived ...

, respectively, were elected to run the affairs of the party. As demanded by the political situation, the activities of the party from its inception until the demise of direct military dictatorship in the country were focussed on building the party at the national, state and local government levels; engaging in anti-dictatorship protest activities either alone or in association with other anti-dictatorship organisations to enforce the end of anti-democratic and military rule in Nigeria; and operating political education programmes for workers and the peasants in towns, villages and cities across the country. The party school, Nigerian Peoples’ Institute for Democracy (NIPID) was established in 2003 to carry out formal programmes of political education among members and in the general population. The military dictatorship collapsed to constitutional rule on May 29, 1999. The party was denied free participation in the elections of 1999, but continued with its educational programmes, territorial expansion and popular activities against the right wing parties. At its Convention in

Ilorin Ilorin is the List of capitals of states of Nigeria, capital city of Kwara State in Western Nigeria.. Retrieved 18 February 2007 As of the 2006 census, it had a population of 777,667, making it the List of Nigerian cities by population, 7th ...

on January 11, 2003, the party decided to show its programme to the peoples of Nigeria by participating in the 2003 elections following legal victory along with other parties that led to the formal registration of the DA. By fielding

candidates A candidate, or nominee, is the prospective recipient of an award or honor, or a person seeking or being considered for some kind of position; for example: * to be election, elected to an official, office — in this case a Preselection, candida ...

at the presidential, some governorship and

legislative elections A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

, the party was successful in showcasing its

and programme in government to the Nigerian peoples. In May 2017 H.E. Prince Frank Ukonga became the new National Chairman of DA- Democratic Alternative and through his remarkable dexterity has transformed Democratic Alternative to be ranked among the top ten political parties in Nigeria and

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

. the New office of Democratic Alternative -DA is at plot 750 Aminu Kano Crescent, Wuse/Maitama District of Abuja, FCT. The policy thrust of DA is to contest the 2019 general elections in Nigeria with focus on raising the

GNP The gross national income (GNI), previously known as gross national product (GNP), is the total domestic and foreign output claimed by residents of a country, consisting of gross domestic product (GDP), plus factor incomes earned by foreign ...

of Nigeria to above 2,5 Trillion Dollars by 2024, generate 50,000 MW

Electricity Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described ...

, produce liquid steel to jump start the Nigerian industrial, Economic and Agricultural Revolution that would create more than 30 million direct jobs and over 50 million jobs in the downstream sectors. This would position the Nigerian state among the top economic giants of the world.

References

{{Reflist * Ferreira, Dr Abayomi (2006). ''Savagery in Politics: The Hindrance to National Development: Faulty Political Practice As the Primary Cause of Failed Economic Development in Nigeria'', Authorhouse.

External links

Official site
Political parties in Nigeria Political parties established in 1994 1994 establishments in Nigeria