Playing The Made In Nigeria Democracy By: Abdulrasheed Ibrahim

According to Dr. Appadoral in his book ‘The Substance of Politics’ ,”democracy may be defined as a system of government under which the people exercise the governing power either directly or through representatives periodically elected by themselves”. In a layman language, Abraham Lincoln put it thus ‘ democracy is the government of the people, by the people and for the people’. Most times one continues to wonder whether this 9 letters’ word, the way it is being played here can be fixed into these definitions or one should adopt the notorious definition given by Fela Anikulapo as ‘demon crazy’. As the 2019 elections is getting closer, the politicians are now playing the game they are used to. The event that preceded 2015 elections is now repeating itself. The law seems to be settled that a member of the National Assembly or a State House of Assembly who cross-carpets from his political party to another party will automatically lose his seat especially when there is no division in his party. Nigerian politicians being always very smart know how to corner the constitution to create artificial division to achieve their aims and objectives. By the time they begin to add another alphabet as prefix to their parties’ names ,you will know exactly where they are going. By the time you have ‘nPDP’ or ‘rAPC’, can you as a lawyer argue in court that there are no divisions in those parties to warrant cross-carpeting? The truth of the matter is that we lack politicians that are principled with good ideology. Many Nigerian politicians are opportunists who are only concerned about where their bread will be well buttered. A typical Nigerian politician does not stay long in opposition.There was a former President of Senegal who was in opposition for 30 years before he won his country presidency.Can such thing happen in Nigeria? When politicians returned to the political party they earlier abandoned for lacking ideology, rather than forming another one with sound ideology, then one begins to ask question how serious and honest are our politicians? In the made in Nigeria democracy, lawlessness is not a new phenomenon. Putting the legislative and judicial arms of government under siege by the executive is not a new discovery. Under the OBJ regime many Heads of Legislative Assembly and Governors were sent packing through various kind of impeachments .His regime chose which court’s orders or judgments to obey and disobey.OBJ was in disobedience of the Supreme Court’s order asking him to release the fund belonging to the Lagos State till he left government. It was under this same Nigerian democracy in 2014 that the then IGP Sulaiman Abba’s men blocked Tambuwal ,the then speaker and new APC convert with his colleagues from entering the National Assembly after having allowed the PDP members in.The APC members had to jump through the fence to gain entrance. This happened under GEJ. I personally was not taken aback by the recent one under PMB where the DSS had a piece of action because it is part of the made in Nigeria democracy. That is how Nigerian politicians try to take pound of flesh from one another. The Acting President as a LAWYER did very well by sacking the DSS boss. Many Attorneys General do not seem to assist their Bosses in interpreting the court’s orders to them particularly those granting bails to those on trial and if they do ,why is the like of Dasuki or El- Zak Zak still in detention? The irony of democracy in Nigeria is that politicians are more concerned about themselves than the people they purport to represent. The democracy as it is being practised in this country allows brainless politicians who possess money access to power but unfortunately disallows the brilliant politicians with no money the same access. Except this narrative changes for better, democratically Nigeria will continue to be in the wood.God bless Nigeria!]]>