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| Billionaires' Cronyism and Tragedy of Inequality and Poverty in Africa: A Case of Nigeria |
Okoroafor, Sunday Adiele
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Abstract:
Poverty in Africa and of course, in Nigeria is a tragedy. The widening gap and inequality between the rich and the poor have reached an alarming stage. The paper discusses the crises of inequality and poverty due to the 'Billionaires' cronyism in Nigeria. This study uses the Nigerian experience as case study to explain how extreme poverty has ravaged Africa due to the capitalist activities of the few rich among the mass population. The paper is hinges on a tripartite theoretical framework namely: the Theory of Individualism, the Opportunity Theory, and the Functionalist Theory of Social Stratification. The design of the paper is historical and descriptive. The nature and sources of data collection are secondary. Data collection is based on content analysis, and data analysis is quantitative and qualitative. The central argument of the paper is that poverty in Nigeria has become an industry under which the few 'billionaires' who use their position in government to leverage on the power and instrument of the Nigerian state for private gains. It was found that poverty in Nigeria is three-dimensional: monetary poverty, capability poverty and social exclusion poverty. It is recommended among other things that poverty should be investigated.
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