2023 and battle for the soul of Nigeria

Tayo Oke

Tayo Oke

[email protected]

So, the 2019 presidential election has come and gone. The people, it is said, have spoken or, have they not? Yes, the people may indeed have spoken, but, exactly what they said is now to be determined by the courts. As predicted, the people were given a straight choice between the devil and the deep blue sea in terms of the two main parties; the Peoples Democratic Party and the All Progressives Congress. The putative ‘Third Force’ had long fizzled out, also as predicted. The real losers in the election, therefore, are the electorate deprived of an opportunity to embrace a fresh face, a fresh agenda, on a transformative fresh platform. Alas, they have to wait for another four years for another chance; it is the way the cookie crumbles, I am afraid. Democratic change takes time, effort, and infinite resources. Whereas chances for big, decisive changes in a democracy come once in a blue moon. When such an opportunity presents itself, it is to be grabbed with both hands. So, if 2019 was a missed opportunity for the emergence of the ‘Third Force’, 2023 becomes paramount, and a must-win, for the future of democratic politics in the country. Here then, is the way forward.

The first thing that needs to happen is to create an assembly of like-minded “progressive” democrats as a matter of urgency to put up a viable political structure; a political party-cum movement to mount a spirited attempt at wresting power from the two main political parties in the country. The party (Mandate Party?), must have a clear and unambiguous agenda ab initio. It must have a recognisable (household) name as its leader. If it is a completely new name and a novice, then, the work of turning him or her into a household name must begin in earnest. It will be achieved through coming up with distinctive policies on national issues and being able to articulate them. Moving from obscurity to the limelight is not going to be easy for such a leader, but it is eminently achievable. A quick example is the current events taking place in the British Parliament as we speak. After trying to reform their parties, to make them “mainstream” and “moderate” for several years, a group of eight Labour Members of Parliament (MPs) and three Conservative MPs a couple of days ago, decided to resign from their parties to become an “Independent Group” in Parliament. More of such resignations may follow, but the important thing is that the MPs had the guts to take such a career-ending plunge into the unknown. They could end up being swallowed up and completely annihilated by their parties (Conservatives and Labour) in the UK at the next election. For now, at least, they have shown the courage of their conviction; a rare virtue from politicians anywhere these days.

Of particular interest to us in this country is the fact that one of the leading members of the breakaway MPs in the British House of Commons is a Nigerian, Chuka Umunna. He is one of the six Members of the current Parliament over there with Nigerian ancestry. He has hitherto been a “rising star” in the opposition Labour Party, and the 40-year-old MP had been tipped to rise to the very top of British politics sooner rather than later. Jumping off the big ship that could have propelled him to the summit of British politics seems rather foolhardy, you might think. Well, maybe, only time will tell. He has chosen to put his head above the parapet rather than simply snake his way to the top by abandoning his principles. When the current leader of the Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn, was elected almost four years ago, Umunna was courted for inclusion into Corbyn’s “Shadow Cabinet”, which would have given him a major platform to advance his political ambition for the leadership of the party later on. Nonetheless, he turned away from that prospect and chose to remain on the back benches instead. This was because the newly elected Labour leader is a lifelong opponent of the UK’s membership of the European Union, and Umunna, like several other MPs, is a committed ‘European’. He is an avowed believer in the ‘European Project’ that is, the idea of an “ever closer union” of members of the EU, with the UK having a prominent role in it. On that basis, he is implacably opposed to the UK leaving the EU and is desirous of a second referendum of the people to reverse the outcome of the first one authorising the UK Government to negotiate Britain’s exit (Brexit) from the EU. His party leader, and a chunk of Labour voters, on the other hand, want to leave the EU also as a matter of principle. A similar scenario is more or less playing out within the Conservative Party as well. When a party no longer represents your values, you resign honourably. That is precisely what Umunna and his colleagues in the House of Commons have done.

As it happens, Umunna and his “Independent Group” of MPs will need the vehicle of a party machine to advance their cause, which they will form soon enough, I am sure. The cynic in us here, in this part of the world, would immediately be thinking well, that is what happens only in advanced countries; we are the “Third World”. We do not operate politics on principles here; we announce our defection to the opposition party with fanfare, and dance troupes.  Thereafter, we look for relevance and political slots in the new party, and when that fails to materialise to our satisfaction, perhaps after one or two years, we re-join or “go back home” to the party we had first abandoned. The party too, will herald our “defection” back to them with a huge press conference, which would have errant journalists scampering around to catch and convey the “news” to their various audiences. Thankfully, not everyone in the political arena in this country subscribes to this lowest form of cynicism. There is a yawning gap in the democratic space, beaconing the ‘Third Force’, and a strong opposition to the current two main political forces; the PDP and the APC, to propel the much vaunted shifting sand in Nigerian politics.

Yes, there is a need to amend the country’s electoral law to accommodate independent candidacy, to trim the onerous requirements to establish presence in 36 states of the federation, etc. The ‘Third Force’ cannot wait for a bed of roses from which to pick and choose. Above all, it cannot afford the luxury of armchair opposition while the house burns. The time to start is now.

Copyright PUNCH.               

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