WITH UCHE NNADOZIE
As the 2019 election campaigns gathers momentum, there are indications of varied number of aspirants to the presidency. In Nigeria, the most visible political office is that of the president. Being a country that endured military rule for a long time, folks feel the president is meant to solve all of Nigeria’s problems. It appears that as soon as you venture into the office, you easily become the monarch who assumes the sovereignty of the country and all powers flow from the individual. People still think that the president can do and undo even where visible evidence shows otherwise. But it is not surprising why folks still hold this view that the presidency is the best place to start politics.
The consolation I hear is that those who are president today don’t have two heads. They also claim that their education stands them in good stead. They paint pictures of anguish to draw attention, which is normal in democracy. But it is not enough. The thinking that all it takes is to declare an interest to be seen as “bold” or “winner” is befuddling. We make mockery of the serious issue of campaign and organisation that may lead to a presidential win. Let no one deceive you, it is a tough call. It is a battle with bruises and lacerations. It is not cheap at any dimension. It costs money, it costs friendships, it costs time. It is not a stroll in the park.
However, people must aspire. Choice is the bedrock of democracy. That’s why when a system has a single political party it is never seen as a democracy. And in our case, it is a multiparty system. This is the best, but it comes with its own setbacks. One of those setbacks is the multiplicity of choice. Analysts feel that with many parties and many candidates, its makes it easy for two or three parties to dominate. This may not flatter smaller parties. Because in our case, we have 69 of them. More worrisome is the fact that some of the many briefcase parties are equally touting the credibility of their founders as 2019 presidential candidates. These parties hardly feature during state level or local government elections. They prime their sights towards Abuja!
Today Nigeria has about 120, 000 polling units. Some of the individuals I see today who want power cannot explain how they intend to put agents in these units. Now if you cant explain this, yet they want to be president, I’m sorry, all the supposed education and exposure that these folks have acquired are in vain. Like I have often argued, I do not respect people who claim to be intelligent and offer good ideas on the economy or politics yet fail woefully when it is time to organise for elective office. So I do not know what gives folks the impression that Nigerians will vote them to become president simply because they are relatively younger than the incumbent and makes use of projectors during workshops.
Again on the other hand, it is gratifying that younger people show interest. By throwing their hat in the ring, it means they believe in their country. That is a plus. This is so because the negativity is numbing. So to see younger persons talk patriotically on how to better the lot of Nigerians gives me joy. Whether for ill or good, it is good news to see people show interest in the highest office of the land. But I still advice that the number of aspirants be more serious. Although time has passed for real, viable opposition for an executive position at the highest level, there is no harm in trying. The experience this time, will help these wannabe presidential aspirants to do better next time. Don’t be deceived, none of the new breed politicians can defeat the incumbent in 2019. But, its a good learning curve.
Rather, what I think they should be doing is to learn to pull resources together. Ten to 15 parties should drop their certificates and become one. The ability to do this shows the readiness to reach consensus when things are tough. If you think your party is a puritan as such can’t associate with other Nigerians, then you are not ready for politics. I see some of these mushroom or breast pocket political parties as associations that came together to form the PDP and APP in 1998. I repeat, the ability by these new party leaders to come together, sharpen their ideologies in a bid to pull resources to confront vested interest will be a better proposition than going it alone and in the process dissipate rare goodwill. This is politics, the main parties will not show any mercy because in politics there are no free lunch. It’s a bitter fight till the end. Parties do not brook opposition even though they say nice things in public.
I am still looking forward to APC’s presidential primary. I hope somebody will find the courage to contest against the incumbent. Although it appears Nigeria politicians are quickly grasping the American system where party members hardly challenge an incumbent president. Whatever it may be, opposition parties must brace themselves. They have been short in constructive and effective criticism. All they do is express exasperation and remonstrate. They even lie- national security inclusive. This has not fetched them a lot of goodwill. Instead real politicians keep leaving PDP, especially, to join APC.
