The dialogue, with the theme, “Beyond Elections: Can Political Parties and Judiciary Save African Democracy? ”, brought together political leaders, statesmen, scholars and democracy advocates from Nigeria and other African countries. Obasanjo also questioned the effectiveness of political parties in sustaining democracy, asking, “Can the political parties deliver, or are they delivering? He warned that concentrating enormous political powers in one individual could weaken democratic governance and public institutions. He also identified the protection of fundamental human rights as essential to democratic governance, including freedom of speech, religion, assembly and the press.