If Nigeria was a growing child, albeit a 50 year old child, and politics was some sort of food with which she had to survive on amongst others, she'd probably have gotten fed up of being force fed.
Some of you find this introducing allusion pointless or puzzling right? Let me try and explain;
In 50 years of independence, Nigeria has known very little democracy and a lot of dictatorship / military rule... then again, you all know that. But in the little democracy we have managed to taste, there doesn't seem to exist one true form of ideology.
The existing political establishments have no moral or ethical backbone to build their party on, instead what exists is the flexing of political muscle and the counter measure which results in the hurried composition of what is supposed to be the opposition but is actually composed of disgruntled political foes or aspirants who were left out in the cold.
The political taste in the Country's mouth can't even be described as bland owing to the lack of focus or goal. One leader just simply show's up and presents a 7 -point agenda and that is simply what the party is to follow? What about sensitization; the re-orientation of the populace?
I repeat, a political party i believe should have an ideology, a mandate, a manifesto, an a given set of moral guidelines backed by the constitution of the Federation.
Alas these ingredients are amiss in majority of these parties. Most parties are set up for various reasons and the most common one being as i said, a hurried composition of disgruntled aspirants.
Hence the ease with which a politician can easily cross over from the PDP to ACN or APGA. its disgraceful, yet it isn't as bad as when the same politician crosses back to his initial party of choice after contesting against that same party.
It is no longer news that Politics is more than a means for a man to serve his people, but unfortunately it is also a means of livelihood. That being said, it seems to explain a lot about why a politician will have no qualms with crossing over to the opposing party.
I know several laws have been proposed and some even drafted into the electoral bill which is being amended, but the political parties themselves don't seem to be doing anything about the situation.
The Americans have the Republican and Democratic parties, the English have the Labor and Conservative as well as the Liberal Democrats, even the South Africans have the ANC and the Rainbow coalition. within these different countries where these political parties operate, they have their respective ideologies even if some of them can be seen as far left, far right or central.
Here in Nigeria I've come to believe we practice reactionary politics; the process where our politicians make foundational decisions based on actions and occurrences, this could be far fetched thinking but i have to say apart from the frustrated Pat Utomi, who else has presented a clear road map to lead Nigeria out of its currently hapless situation?
A little information for you guys; After BRIC; Brazil, Russia, India & China, Nigeria amongst other countries like Venezuela, Mexico, Iran, Malaysia & Bangladesh are touted as the next economies to explode due to increasing consumer demands. This is a positive forecast but there are fundamental problems that don't make this forecast favorable to our situation.
An untrained work force and populace who lack buying power... so where will the consumer driven economic boom come from?
The sad but managing factor is that Government are the highest employers of labor.
Now i arrive at a polarizing point; are you in favor of a big government labor force or are you against? are you for free health care or are you against?
Not all the political parties have the same idea about how to jump start the economy, instead what pervades is the criticism of the ruling party any time the government presents a new policy.
If the opposition are serious about being what they really are then they should actually form a shadow government and let the people hear what they would do if they were in power. This shows a level of seriousness and in my opinion, is a key & inexpensive form of campaign.
Maybe this will happen one day, maybe it never will, but the sooner these political parties find a solid foundation, the better. Even the PDP is beginning to show signs of weakness at the wrong hour.
Remember folks, register to vote and protect your vote. The only way you can ask your leader to give an account for his stewardship is if you actually voted. don't let your voice be muted.
