The UK: Why Kemi Badenoch is not the poster child

The lady runs to lead

Kemi Badenoch’s elimination from the contest to lead the Tory Party and hence become the Prime Minister must have been a great disappointment for her, though it would have been well received in some quarters.

Kemi Badenoch, née Adegoke, is someone I have encountered since the mid-2000s when she appeared to camp in the comment sections of a blog run by Jeremy Weate and controversial does not begin to describe the views and opinions she shared.

Now, if Kemi Badenoch had been successful in her quest to lead the Tory Party, it would have presented the first time that an ethnic minority led the United Kingdom if we are to discount Benjamin Disraeli’s Jewish heritage when he was Prime Minister in the 19^th Century.

Everything but representing

In her case, besides the issue of her identity, race and heritage, there is little about her that is common to the apparent identity constituency people might think she represents. We are consequently products of influences, circumstances and situations more than of the ethnic minorities we are, and it is essential that we begin to disabuse the view that ethnic minorities represent a monolithic or homogenous political leaning.

Beyond Kemi Badenoch, the issue is simple. Much as having an ethnic minority ahead might present inspiration and possibility to the youth aspiring to be significant members of communities and society, we need to ensure we are choosing the right examples demonstrative of embracing common humanity with all its diversity.

That is not essentially codified in having similar backgrounds as I would be the first to say that from a reflective and policy standpoint, Kemi Badenoch and I are so radically different and divergent as it might be as the east is far away from the west.

Equipping us to become roles

Yet, we have work to do. Our parents before us and similarly, many of us have been pioneers or first movers in various areas of endeavour. We did not see people like us in our roles or ahead, rather, we, from what was imbued in us through education, opportunity, possibly privilege and influence, forged ahead to become recognised and respected in the things that we do.

In some way, we had role models that did not look like us or come from our kind of background. Quite as we might want to have visible role models and high achievers that might give our children a sense of what is possible, those scenarios might well not be as packaged or presented for them to see as they grow up.

It is then incumbent on us to give our children the tools and the wherewithal to be able to walk into places where they might be the first and only, the confidence to be able to hold their own, the assertiveness to be able to speak with a strong voice and the mien not to be caught out in a victim syndrome when situations, opportunities, or encounters turn sour.

Choosing the right examples

Sadly, I have seen too many academically high achieving ethnic minority people unable to realise their full potential because they are lacking in confidence or have been emasculated by a system and institutionalised settings that suggest they do not belong, where, by merit, they are more than capable, if given the opportunity.

I doubt the likes of Kemi Badenoch making political progress of the sort she aspired to would open doors for anyone like her, even as it might be uncharitable to suggest that she having gained opportunity is kicking the ladder away for those like her. Even one might be inclined to feel she is trying too hard to endear herself to the radical rather than a broader embrace of inclusivity.

Indeed, we can do with exemplary and amazing achievement amongst ethnic minorities, if we cannot agree, my view is Kemi Badenoch is not that example, her controversial track record highlighted in The Independent would suggest we deserve better. [The Independent: 10 of Kemi Badenoch's biggest controversies as she is knocked out of Tory leadership contest]

Your member is a big figure in my parliament

A rising member

As he rises to speak, they observe the prominence he wields that puts all other members to shame. Maybe it was the oracles or it was foretold that he was born to represent his city, some say the circumstances of birth alone with the dexterity of the midwives ensured it. Between myth and reality, the truth stretches itself to fill the part.

His maiden speech filled the listeners with respect, it was awesome in its structure, full of colour that language lends to passion and significant for the purpose at hand. Legend has it that his constituents ribbed others saying, “Don’t you wish you had a member this good?”

Obviously, for this secret parliament, most hearings are done in-camera because the matters arising are quite volatile to forestall public anxiety. He is magnanimous and exudes the milk of human kindness for which he must be duly commended. His people love him and very few have begun to tell the story of his parliamentary acumen and generosity of spirit. When the time comes, you will indeed know of this member.

Nigeria: Our way about things

Reviewing old events

I found myself in a phone call yesterday evening that developed into a post-mortem of an event I attended the weekend before.

One had castigated the arrangements and organisation of the event but this was now a time to offer excuses for failings in the hope that the focus would be taken off those that were clearly responsible for the atrocious circumstances we found ourselves in.

Time and again, we find ourselves short-changed by our leadership, the people selected to represent us and the others they choose to surround themselves with.

Business as usual

Patronage, nepotism and familiarity offers a sense of comfort in lieu of efficiency and competence, the result of which the parties end up in a situation where they cannot challenge each other to do better and achieve any level of excellence.

Good money can be paid to get professionals to do a job but the scent of money amongst a cabal of sycophants in the sight of power leaves charlatans pretending to ability and after the debacle they are never in fear of being made accountable having pocketed a tidy sum for doing the barest minimum.

When mothers speak

But like every educated middle-class Nigerian mother might have once said to their kids, their approval of other company usually ranges from – “Too good for my liking.” to “Show me your friends and I’ll tell you who you are.”

In both cases, those statements were never ones of approval but they rarely get to the point where they proscribe the relationships but the point is clearly made.

It is with regret also that our official representative having excelled academically still has the village and marketplace atmosphere re-enacted with stomach-churning nostalgia in the northern European climes of The Netherlands.

Maintaining the poor impressions

There is no clamber to improve rather the selfsame narrative is reaffirmed leaving many disappointed but then in the mood of a party the subjective jollity might just distract from objective scrutiny.

Culpability of the dastardly organisation lies with those at the top and to think a religious leader was involved in the arrangements but made a complete hash of the event – you can only begin to imagine the chaos that accompanies the matins and the congregants in fervent supplication.

We deserve better

Did the conversation end with the put-down that should not be repeated? Something along the lines of by translation – A village girl who just happens to have a PhD – good breeding and the penchant for understanding the consequence of wrong delegation and assignment of duties does not come with the accumulation of letters.

When it comes to these people, “of whom little is expected much less is desired.” Nigeria deserves a lot better than this, she surely does.

Nigeria: Our politically immature systems

The real issue

It can be easy to read the headline PDP disqualifies aspirants with less than N500m [1] and miss the real import of this development altogether.

I would contend that it clearly shows the unsustainable cost of our fledgling democracy, poor political nomination action procedures and immature political party organisation especially from the ruling party, it is a poor example.

Obviously, any quest for political office does cost money but an aspirant that really carries the approval of a constituency for which representation is sought should by nature attract the necessary resources and support to ensure that the aspiration gains recognition and possible nomination.

Money for office

Having money in bank might well mean one has been successful in other walks of life but in a society where sources of wealth are rarely properly audited to ascertain untainted provenance it would be unfortunate if criminals can gain access to political privilege and office just because they have the cash.

Ploughing ones personal finances into the quest for political office without inexhaustible resources can create the situation where the aspirant who then gains political office can do everything to recoup all the “investments” that have gone into achieving the objective.

A few months ago, an aspirant resorted to drug smuggling [2] to recover the costs of his having once run for office and failed and with the aim of running for office again but he got caught.

Closing doors to betters

It is saddening the more qualified representation might not have opportunities by reason of outrageous party rules to put themselves forward for political office.

The situation where personal finances are not separated from financing for political office makes the idea of political fundraising can be prone to embezzlement and such accounts might not be transparent.

Besides, this opens the avenue of patronage and undue influence peddled by those who consider themselves godfathers and would like loan sharks require that their fillips towards attaining office are fully paid up with outlandish interest distracting the elected from the representation of the electorate that cast their votes for the person to represent their constituent interests.

Idle political parties

As for the maturity of political parties, where the stipulation of a threshold of financial resources is stated before eligibility, it is the basest level of assessment without objective consideration, the party organisation in some ways fails to encourage the best representation if it is not ready to work for the best selection and then support the nominees from a central perspective.

In this situation, making people ineligible because they have not come up from the political rank and file as political jobbers rather than people who have garnered additional experience from outside politics makes clones of representation who have no ideas and vision apart from just politicking.

The wrong assessment criteria

One hopes this is not the condition for political office eligibility across the board and it is rather unfortunate that the leaders offering these conditions were once respected advocates of democratic representation borne from real ability rather than having bags of money stashed away to buy influence, access and opportunity.

These grassroots initiatives do nothing to help our democracy where the emoluments are unbelievably generous [3] and well beyond prosperous middle-class aspirations that it creates aggressive competitive games that involve the elimination of rivals by every means possible.

We then end up with mean, nasty, indifferent, isolated and haughty representatives satisfying their own personal ends rather than that of their constituency.

I would hope that this stipulation is roundly contemned and condemned; Nigeria really cannot afford to have these rules if our democracy should mature into one that is truly representative, responsive and understanding of the purpose of its being.

Sources

[1] PDP disqualifies aspirants with less than N500m

[2] Nigeria: Why politician became a drug mule [akin.blog-city.com]

[3] Nigeria: Percentage Allowance Legislators [akin.blog-city.com]