TIME TO SHIFT THE GOVERNANCE PARADIGM ACRIMONY as political campaign is being elevated to high art by our elected politicians across the political spectrum and this is becoming worrisome as we approach the 2015 general elections. The internal wrangling that led to a split of the PDP after its special convention in Abuja last week does not bode well for our democracy. Provision of basic amenities ought to be the subject of political discourse not the on-going skirmishes between presidential aspirants. Almost on a daily basis, the headlines are dominated by new attack lines and mudslinging between feuding politicians who are jostling for power while little is said about the dividends of democracy. It is unfortunate that electioneering has not ceased since 2011even with all the visible signs of our dysfunctional state staring us in the face. This is the first time we are experiencing this phenomenon in any of our democratic experiments; it amounts to a betrayal of our sacred mandate for our political leaders to subordinate governance to personal ambitions while the poverty circle expands, even as the accompanying ignorance, and disease pandemic, decimate the country. Politicians ought to be debating their political manifestoes and development strategies, not who gets what in 2015. For the average Nigerian, it does not matter whether Aso rock is occupied by an Igbo, Ijaw, Yoruba or Hausa-Fulani so long as the man at the helms is able to fix all the fault lines in our badly managed economy and pull 112 million Nigerians out of poverty. From experience, we know that where political power resides has no bearing on the development of that region. Most of our past military rulers were Northerners yet the north remains the poorest region in the country. Power shift between regions became an issue in the run up to the 1999 general elections to assuage certain political tendencies in the South-West that were hurting from the fall-out of the chaotic annulment of the 1993 presidential election. This informed the PDP policy of zoning at the time. Certainly, that policy, which the ruling party has even failed to implement faithfully, has already served its purpose, and should be discarded immediately because it is causing divisions in the polity. If power must shift now, it should be from the old to a new generation of leaders as is the practice in civilized democracies, including, not surprisingly, the communist countries of China, Russia, and the defunct Soviet bloc. Nigeria must take a cue from these countries and open its political space to new leaders who have the capacity, passion and the confidence to turn this country around. We cannot accept the emerging tendency where members of the ruling elite are systematically, but surreptitiously trying to position their wards to succeed them as they inch towards the twilight of their rule. Dynastic politics cannot work in our fiercely competitive polity with all its intrigues and underbelly of ethno-religious rivalries. What our elders should do to bequeath to the next generation a legacy of peace and progress is to create a system of orderly succession that is predicated on merit and a level playing field for a well groomed set of young, committed, competent and patriotic leaders whose sole desire for seeking political power is to appropriate it to develop the nation, not for corrupt self enrichment. But with the way pre-2015 politics is being played between the PDP and APC especially, this may yet be an unrealizable dream. We are still very far from that hallowed spot where we would say ‘enough of this charade,’ let’s embrace a new paradigm. Politics is still being played like in the days of the First Republic, when thuggery, political murders, ethnic hatred, rigging, physical and character assassinations were the order of the day. The onus is now on President Goodluck Jonathan as the current leader of the Fourth Republic to stop this “attack dog” politics and redefine the rules of engagement for 2015 to be an exciting project to look forward to, like the American presidential elections. In fact, he is at the epicenter of history being the man in power as we celebrate our first centenary as a united nation. This is the right time to revive his comatose “Rebrand Nigeria” project by first stemming the tide of bitterness he brought to our electioneering and then begin to promote politics of ideas and issues instead of overheating the system with needless controversies while his aides plot to unsettle political rivals. Do-or-die is a military concept; it is alien to democracy, which clearly is about selfless service to the people. Death cannot be an option in the competition for power in a democratic setting; the noble objective of a leader should be to provide selfless service to his people. The present hullabaloo about 2015 elections must stop and the political actors get down to the serious business of governance. Elected office holders, especially Governors, should stop roaming the streets in the name of consultation and stay home to focus on purposeful service delivery. The president himself should cut down on his frequent foreign trips and face the serious challenges at home. A president who is desperate to renew his mandate must be ready to run on his record; not ethnic sentiments, as Mr. Jonathan’s cronies are presently doing. For the Presidents’ clansmen to threaten to burn down this country if he fails to get re-elected in 2015 is poppycock. The entire nation got him elected in 2011in the first place, not just Niger-Delta voters. No one should try to soil that sacred mandate on the altar of ethnic jingoism. As for the president’s wife, Dame Patience who betrays that name by her legendary short fuse; she should realize that she cannot share her husband’s mandate with him; that honour belongs to Vice President Namadi Sambo, a man who has impressed with his laid back style. His humble disposition and lamb-like mein mark him out from Aso Rock’s rancorous pack. But Dame Jonathan’s visibility and public posture are beginning to suggest that we have a co-president or a deputy in Aso Rock. A First Lady is nothing more than a president’s wife. She has launched a vitriolic campaign to mobilize women for her husband’s undeclared 2015 ambitions, which is not a bad idea, but the timing is awfully wrong. She has this knack for doing the right things the wrong way; always making provocative statements on sensitive national issues, with certain grandstanding that can be so nauseating. Mr. Jonathan will do well to rein in his Dame and spare us further embarrassment. We have had many first ladies before but none was this boisterous. That said, the newly registered political parties must begin to sell their agenda instead of trading wordy fusilades with political opponents. Nigerian politicians must learn to run on their records, not on primordial sentiments that add no value to political discourse. We must begin to shift the paradigm like I always say if we hope to change Nigeria. Our priority as leaders is to deal with issues that matter. Let me close with this wisdom nugget from Goethe: “Things which matter most must never be at the mercy of things which matter least.” What matters most? The people.
Posted on: Thu, 19 Sep 2013 12:10:18 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015