“Because as soon as people realise that it’s impossible for a
chicken to produce a duck egg even though they both belong to the same family
of fowl—so called fowl. A chicken just doesn’t have within its system to
produce a duck egg. It can’t do it. It can only produce according to what that
particular system was constructed to produce…it is impossible for this system,
this economic system, this political system, this social system, this system, period…and
if ever a chicken did produce a duck egg, I’m quite sure you’d say that it was
certainly a revolutionary chicken.”—Malcolm X at the Militant Labour Forum.
The shameful outing of members of the All Progressives Congress
(APC) across wards and in the governorship primary in Ekiti State which
witnessed brazen display of violence portrays the party as an abode of
desperate characters whose conception of leadership hovers around a rabid show
of swordsmanship. The difference here however is that having benefitted so much
from this rigged system, these individuals have mastered the art of proxy wars.
Scared of soiling their filthy hands, they sit in the comfort of their
mansions, engaging members of the wretched population to do their dirty work.
Political violence is not a new phenomenon in the country. Since
1999 when the nation returned to democratic ways, the political space has been
littered with torn torsos and sprained arteries. A sitting minister of justice
was clubbed to death while his police orderly went on a jolly recess. In Lagos,
a popular governorship aspirant had to be sent on a heavenly errand when
opponents saw the inevitability of his ascension to the throne. Rumour has it
that his home was reduced to an abattoir, with his body severed like those of
domesticated beasts!
The spate of violence that has become commonplace in our political
space reveals a major contradiction in the claims by politicians to wanting
political power for selfless reasons. Hardly will a politician speak about his/her
motivations for venturing into politics without the mention of a willingness to
‘serve my people.’ But with the ferociousness they bring into play, will it not
be fitting to query the veracity of such claims? Why should one court violence
to engage in an act of selfless service? Why is Nigerian politics rife with
assassinations, kidnappings and ballot snatching if the underlying motive for
actors’ venture into the political terrain was strictly on the basis of the
common good?
The answers to the above posers are obvious. Politicians covet
positions of power and influence for reasons that are everything but noble.
They hold the people in great contempt but realise the futility of their
ruinous ambitions should they reveal the contents within their breasts. This is
why they manifest the most brazen acts of desperation when matters concerning
leadership recruitment are up for discussion. With the heavy monetization of
politics, politicians have become more daring. In Ekiti, a public official was
reported to have asked his constituents to shut their mouths, querying their
rights to the dividends of democracy having received inducements before voting
her into office!
What we saw play out within the APC across states is an indictment
on Nigerian democracy. It is enough to pass a vote of no confidence on
self-acclaimed democrats and especially, the various organs of government
charged with the protection of political culture and advancement of its
practice. From the ruling party whom Nigerians saddled the responsibility of
providing above-board leadership with to the electoral umpire whose lack of
independence had stripped it of its soul, a new wave of scepticism on the
success of the 2019 elections blows hot within the minds of Nigerians who see
democracy as the most practical means of making lasting change in the
governance architecture of their country.
With the desperation of political actors exacerbating rather than
receding, one is left to ask how the country hopes to achieve an itch-free
election come 2019. The vivid lack of capacity of the Nigeria Police Force to
deliver on its mandate has practically led to the military usurping most of its
duties. Even with this, the nation still sit beneath the gloomy shadow of
despair and death. Will it then be out of place to surmise that with the police
seen clearly incapable of guiding the ballot across 36 states involving a few
thousand individuals within a single political party, countrymen should face
the stark reality that they will be on their own when a similar event is
replicated on a national scale?
Already, the nation rues on the mediocrity that has been allowed
into post-Jega’s INEC. With the former Bayero academic removing the electoral
body from antiquity into the future, one would have thought his successor would
step into the great shoes, consolidate the lofty innovations he defied all odds
to introduce and at the same time, work hard to correct a number of missteps he
might have taken. But as we’ve come to witness, the Yakubu-led INEC has found
it difficult staying afloat amidst the murky waters of political
desperadoes.
Watching the happenings across states, I wondered how the APC
convinces itself of advancing progressive politicking when its members are seen
courting violence in a way that mimics the ‘do or die’ conducts of the PDP as
exemplified in the actions of the volubly hypocritical ex-president, Olusegun
Obasanjo. The import of my message here is that Nigerians should not see this
shameful conduct of the APC as a one-time, isolated event. On the contrary,
they must realise that with the renewed interests of ordinary Nigerians in the
affairs of their country, the big men and thick madams who have made a career
of politics would intensify their efforts to scare sane elements away via the
use of every instruments of violence at their disposal.
Not a single institution is been spared in this campaign to keep
Nigeria in the ditch. The onus rests on nationals to see it as a duty to take
charge of the political affairs of their nation. They must come to terms with
the stark reality that with the over-centralization of security apparatuses,
not to mention the zero independence of law enforcement agents, their once
peaceful nation would continue to confront existential challenges bordering on
their wellbeing.
The tragedy in all of these lies in the fact that Nigerian
politicians continue to covet the devil even as the country keeps tottering on
the brink. With many of them raised in humble ways, all they see is the spectre
of poverty which has reduced them to local thieves and international
fraudsters. The more they pretend to tilt toward the suffering masses, the more
they appear in chameleonic garbs. We must resist the temptation to accord them
attention.
With the PDP still waxing strong as a party of soulless creatures,
what hope does Nigerians have that their voices would translate to genuine
change come 2019 having charged a party that has failed miserably to conduct
its internal electioneering with a much cumbersome task of guiding 200 million
people through a nationwide suffrage? What we’ve witnessed with INEC’s handling
of the under-aged voters in Kano, the indiscipline and lack of capacity of the
APC to advance democracy beyond prebendalism, and most unfortunately, the
continued hostility of our country’s leadership to professionalize and
decentralize key institutions are all indicative of a grand design to keep
nationals from taking their country back from the hands of the enemies within.
The omen is visible for all to see. It is time for the miracle hawkers
to prove their mettle or forever remain silent.
Modiu
can be reached on dprophetpride@gmail.com
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