Nigeria’s democracy in all ramifications is still an
evolving one, how the country intends to get it right and take it to a level
which would present Nigeria as a serious and responsive form of government to
its people remain abysmal. For eighteen years, Nigeria has experienced
tremendous progress as far as democracy is concerned in terms of gains and
dividend of democracy a lot of water has surely passed under the bridge. It has
however been a tale of merry-go-round as we are still struggling to get it right.
Our nascent democracy arguably, is nothing worthy to celebrate bearing in mind
events and happenings around us. Like in every other democracy around the
world, politicians come up with promises and mind boggling manifestos to
entice the populace and sometimes sweet talk the electorates to vote for them
and the party they represent. Voters were left in bewilderment as promises are broken, voices changed and excuses flow
from right to left after claiming victory in the elections in which they have
promised heaven on earth.
During the last presidential election in Nigeria and the
subsequent inauguration of the All Progressive Congress party APC, Nigerians
saw a future in the party, a deviation from the way things are done. Change was
beaming straight into everyone’s face. From all indications, Nigerians were
tired of the 16 years rule of the incumbent party- the People Democratic Party
PDP, a party formed in 1998 shortly after the demise of the ex military ruler
General Sani Abacha when there were clear indications the military were ready
to hand over to a civilian government having held on to power from 1983 when
General Muhammadu Buhari the then head of state seized power from the last
civilian president of Alhaji Shehu Shagari. PDP as a party was having it all
good and even claimed they would rule for 100 years without any interruption
from the opposition being the largest political party in Africa according to
them. As fate would have it, PDP was kicked out by the newly formed APC which
was little less than the merger of some major opposition parties to form a mega
party in 2014 with the main aim of wrestling power from PDP under the then
President Goodluck Jonathan, a former Vice President who became president after
the demise of his boss Alhaji Umar Musa Yar’adua.
The purpose of this write up is not how APC got to power or
the power plays that sprung up leading to the defeat of the PDP under Good luck
Jonathan in 2015. This is primarily focused on the activities of politicians in
which the electorate entrusted their future and that of their generations
unborn. Shortly after the inauguration of the Buhari’s administration in May
2015, Nigeria’s expectations began to whither as days run into weeks and weeks
into months with no immediate move by the president to form his government. The
hitherto body language effect the president enjoyed shortly after winning the
election in which things began to have a positive changes in power generation
and sudden revival of Port Harcourt refinery which was completely left to decay
for years started working. They were efforts put in by the GEJ administration
in its quest to transform the sectors and started yielding fruitful results
just after the election. The effect of not hitting the ground running will soon
take its toll on the economy and other sectors as things became to take
downward trends. Instead of pacifying and explaining what the government was
doing underground or behind the scene, they came all out putting blames on the
previous administration and often times compare the country to a defected
building that needs to be demolished and a new structure put in place. How
things will have to get very bad before they eventually becomes new. The armies
of their online supporters never ceased to illustrate how the past government
looted the treasury empty and how they made it seem nothing was left even the
oils wells were taken away by the past administration. Also, we were lectured on how the president
was waiting to pick the best of the best ministerial appointees as the reason
behind the delay in “the list” of the super ministers. In the middle of this whole trade blame was
Nigeria, her economy, and everything government suffering immeasurably. The
pictures of frozen refrigerators and complaints of people having “too much” of
electricity soon turned into general cry of total black out as total collapse
of electricity grid resulted in power outages and national power generation
failure rages on with no hope in sight for the common man.
Fast forward to several government that were inaugurated
after 2015. We have seen how advanced democracy in the United States of
America, Canada, United Kingdom and recently in France where it never took more
than a week or two before appointments were made and business of government
commenced almost immediately after inauguration. How do one compares these
countries handling of their democracy with that of Nigeria. Despite waiting for
as long as 6 months to pick the best of the best candidates for the ministerial
post what we were offered were the old brigades of politicians who have been in
one government or the other since the 80’s. We also had instances of where an
individual was made minister over three most sensitive and important ministries
of Power, Works and Housing. As if that isn’t enough those who have little to
nothing knowledge or experience to manage the economy were put in critical
position to run the economy. The result
of that is not far fetched as we found ourselves in a deep recession which we
are still battling to come out from.
For the avoidance of doubt, the Buhari administration came
with goodwill and the feelers were Muhammadu Buhari as an upright and trusted
individual that can cure the endemic called corruption which has eaten deep
into the psyche and ways of Nigerians.
Having enmeshed in various corruption allegation levied against members
of the Jonathan’s administration the electorate had no reason to doubt that
only Buhari with integrity and moral uprightness had the capability and
capacity to fight corruption to a standstill. This however has not been met
with outright support from Nigerians as the people wake up each day to new
revelations of corruption allegation at the presidency and with the levity with
which the president handled the matter. It took the organized civil society
groups and well meaning Nigerians before Aso Rock take the bull by the horn too
investigate which eventually resulted in the suspension of the Secretary to the
Government of the Federation SGF Mr. David Babachir Lawal, and that of the
Director of the Nigeria Intelligence Agency NIA Mr. Ayo Oke whose wife’s
property were found foreign cash stashed running to billions of Naira.
Nothing better describe the nepotism that’s going on in
various government agencies and parastatals as many of them were involved in
shady, secret and illegal hiring of children of their top government officials
and associates into Central Bank of Nigeria CBN, Federal Inland Revenue Service
FIRS, The Department of State Securities Service DSS etc. With the entire
allegation against these agencies the government has never deemed it fit to investigate
the allegations of illegal recruitment into these government establishments
particularly as it negates the principle of federal character commission. Helpless and disadvantaged Nigerians wallow
in unemployment and job losses but the privileged and advantaged ones gets
juicy and lucrative jobs through back doors with no regard to their plight.
There are countries facing the same challenge as that of
Nigeria as far as democracy is concerned but their leaders find a better way to
speak to the minds of its citizenry. In Nigeria the reverse is the case, we
have presidential media aide telling Nigerians on National radio those
suffering in Nigeria are the opposition apologists those who didn’t vote for
the present government. A situation where such spokesperson saying Nigerians
should be grateful they could still afford to buy a bag of rice for N18,500 in
the midst of the recession brought upon us by the same government in power. One
minister was quoted as saying Nigerians eat too much of rice hence the reason
why price of the commodity went up as far as N25,000 at some point. These are wicked
and insensitive way of addressing issues especially when it concerns every
citizen of the country. Politicians should find a better way to express
themselves in times like this not divide the country along party, religion and
ethnic lines. It will not do the government any good as they are midway to
their tenure already. More is expected from our elected leaders and their appointees;
they should learn how to pacify aggrieved sides of the divides not heat up the
polity with their unguarded statements.
Sometimes last year, the president Buhari government came up with the slogan ‘Change Begins With Me” an ideology
to make us change the way things are done, the way we see things and our
general attitude to everything around us vis-a-vis what is expected of
Nigerians. One would thought there will be a change coming from our leaders
which in turn wash down to the followers, but in actual fact, emphasis were
laid upon citizens changing themselves more than those elected to propagate
change , those who preached change and are expected to practice change. The
idea as far as Nigerians are concerned is dead, in- fact, assumed dead on
arrival by Nigerians. Not only that nothing changed at the top, from the budget
passed which was characterized with budget padding and addition of multiple
items with different figures in some ministries and even at Aso Rock budget.,
but with same body language of waste and unnecessary spending going on at the
top. Today Change Begins with Me is not only dead but buried going by what is
obtainable today.
Our politicians need to start taking us seriously especially
knowing that the world is a global village. Other countries practice of
democracy can be easily studied and followed thanks to internet and online
news. We are no longer unaware of happenings around us, democracies around us
are evolving daily. Things should be done in accordance with the principle
guiding democratic order. Both the
national assembly and the executive need to know they are being watched and the
time will definitely come when they will be demanded of their stewardship to us
and the country. The government of the day stil have ample opportunity to make
things right as 2019 is drawing closer. The journey to another election has begun
and Nigerians are wiser than they were in 2015. Propaganda will no longer work.
People now know better. Democracy as defined by the great Abraham Lincoln is
the government of the people by the people and for the people. It is not a
government of the few for the few as we currently have. Every Nigerian deserves
better. Only time will tell, if things are done differently between now and
first quarter of 2019 when another round of election shall take place. Either we
decide to stick with this government that has done nothing but subject
Nigerians to abject poverty and sufferings all round or embrace a real change-
a deviation from the normal, from the old order to a new one for all.
