Editorial: Tenth of May 2011

Mona Lisa Philistines

There is a sense that fundamentalist religious practices today hark back to medieval times and worse in a century that we wishfully think accords equality of sexes after all the emancipation and progressive rights advocacy of the 20^th Century.

Israel is one country that is delusional with pretence suggesting their apparent Western democracy and liberal values have permeated every representation of people as portrayed by the excuse of a free media.

One picture that has had global viewing is the White House Situation Room photograph taken when Osama bin Laden was being exterminated in Pakistan.

The prominent view of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton with hand over mouth and a senior female staffer standing at the back seem to have disappeared from that picture when it was published by two orthodox Jewish newspapers.

It is was a teaching time for me in that it would have been safer not to include the picture at all in the story than to allow for parallels to be drawn with another scholarly and fundamentalism group known as the Taliban.

It is argued that maintaining the chastity of women requires they may not appear in publicly viable material just as it saves the men from the lure of the lurid and sexually questionable – you will just have to view the picture as it is published.

Service must be above party

There are some to whom the newly elected President of Nigeria will not find respect, adoration, praise or deference. That is their prerogative.

The ruling party has in terms captured a majority of elective offices and that means it would take a tsunami of evidence to overturn what we can safely assume will be the de facto government for the next 4 years.

The job of running the country is not going to be an easy one and even if there is to be an opposition to the government one would hope that they are constructive, assertive and most of all reasonable.

The real concern is getting competent personnel to fill in the positions necessary to help Nigeria achieve its potential regardless of party or political affiliation. Nigeria cannot afford politicking and party recalcitrance for another four years when there is much work to be done.

Party hierarchies can continue to oppose and object as they wish but those called to the service of our dear fatherland should be allowed the privilege and given every assistance and blessing to perform to the very best of their ability and for the good of all Nigerians.

Nigeria: Juvenile Party Shopping and Hopping

Party hop-scotch

It is almost a waste of time reading about political carpet-crossings [1] in Nigerian politics. It was hardly two days ago that I told a friend that Nigerian political party structures are weak and peopled by persons without principles, ideology, allegiance or common loyalty.

I have predicted that the next president of Nigeria would be the aspirant running on the platform of the ruling party and that is really where the contest for federal leadership is.

This is because the ruling party has a broader network within Nigeria than all the other parties which appear to be regional in where they exercise power.

When other parties contested the results of the 2007 elections, they put forward the weakest case possible; the ruling party had 70% of the votes and the gubernatorial elections gave them 26 out of 36 states – the prosecution based their case on evidence from 4 states which could in no way overturn or annul the election even if the courts found in their favour.

Expediency of incumbency

The issue of political immaturity is made with news that so close to elections there are mass movements by malcontents between parties, all to the end of emerging in control of the situation.

For instance, the erstwhile Minister of Information, as both the propaganda mouthpiece of the government and in some cases speaking in the name of the ruling party, has now decided to run for the Senate but the party in government in her home state is not the ruling party.

In effect, she has defected to the party that offers her the best chance of taking office rather than fight on the platform of the party that she was a political mouthpiece of for over 3 years.

It is opportunistic and the politics of expediency and that is how our politicians play the game.

The politics of egos

The politics we have are not those of persuasion, policy or ideas, they are vehicles for egomaniacal influence, if a personality does not get their way in their party they look for other parties ready to give them the opportunity to usurp positions that would naturally have gone to those who have loyally pledged their allegiances breeding a new set of disaffected people who seek other platforms to launch from. A kind of Last In - First Considered ploy.

In essence, a whole new set of dictums materialise; patience is a virtue as long as it is the other man; compromise is reached as long as it is my view; consensus is agreed upon if I can lead – failing all that, we’ll throw all our toys out the pram and wail till another party pacifies us with the dummy of being in charge.

Where our politics is lacking

This is where our democracy fails us woefully, there is no clear indication of political inclination as to whether parties are of the right, the left, social-democrat, conservative, liberal, socialist or anything. Even the so-called Labour Party only bears that in name, the workings are down to personalities, the power and influence they can wield and their prowess in one-upmanship or brinkmanship.

It is a shame that despite that seeming maturity in age of the contenders their affectations are juvenile and worthy of serious derisive condemnation; one can only wonder if the constant flux of allegiances would eventually yield reliable, responsible and accountable government but people who have left one party for another should not automatically assume commensurate authority and supposed leadership in their new parties.

If they have not been able to persuade their old parties of their views, ideas, purposes and concerns surely they cannot suddenly become the best faces for the new parties they have joined, if anything, giving them power simply creates a disruptive influence in the new party helping the party they have left coalesce with the personalities they left behind.

Sources

[1] » Exodus as Saraki, Shagaya, Ladoja, Akume, Bwari leave PDP - Vanguard (Nigeria)

Nigeria: Jonathan is the surprise for 2011

All done everywhere but here

It is a common saying that a week a long time in politics, strangely, we have had elections called in the Netherlands since February, during that time the UK has called elections, voted, cobbled together a coalition and gotten on with the business of government.

In Nigeria, our unseen President departed to the great beyond and the Acting President became substantive President during which time he has chosen a new cabinet, relieved the electoral commission chairman of his position before his tenure ended and has tapped an unknown governor as his deputy.

Meanwhile, the Dutch campaign continues without a squeak to have the vote in June – my other two countries of affiliation have moved on swiftly out of uncertainty into a sense of determined resolve.

Lined up for 2011

I am taking the liberty to speculate, if not prognosticate observing the situation that Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, the President of Nigeria is playing one of the smartest games I have ever seen in the black mamba infested pit of Nigerian politics.

An aide of the President suggested and then recanted that Jonathan would run for president in 2011, I think that is a great possibility as he wades through the flux of Nigerian politics literally unscathed.

I would suggest that though Jonathan as vice-president seemed to be sidelined and ignored, he appears to have been a very good understudy for the position he reckoned would soon be his, those who failed to cultivate a respectable and healthy relationship with him have now found themselves on the outside without influence or input.

The ruling party in disarray

The ruling party has been in disarray for quite a while and the President has deftly decided he would not allow that rowdy mob to dictate the agenda, the council of governors who have consistently been derelict in performing their duties but interfering in federal matters have found that they are a gaggle of cacophonic busy-bodies who are continually finding their clamour falling on deaf ears.

The chairman of the ruling party has been fighting battles to save his reputation having been arraigned on charges of corruption; in an unprecedented Nigerian development he has tendered his resignation and the squabbles for influence would move to filling in that post, the person holding the best cards now being the President.

A learner needs time for 2015

Having chosen an unknown governor, Namadi Sambo, from the Northern state of Kaduna who is an architect but was never in the list of people being promoted by those who think they still have influence in the party, which are the governors, the ex-president and some ex-generals; they have all been outmanoeuvred with a resolution that defines Dr. Jonathan as a very capable and dab hand at politics.

I would contend that this vice-president does not have the experience, clout or ability to run for office in 2011, it would however be difficult to ditch him for someone else to run for president such that the only choice would be to keep Jonathan in post for the 2011 elections and then consider the vice-president for that post in 2015.

This man is good

This tears up that outrageous zoning system that ruling party adopted and hopefully they would defer to having the best person run for president rather than engineer some rotten agreement to foist another sick man or sick head on the people.

There is a possibility that Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan would end up being the best civilian president we ever had and everything seems to be falling in place for his good luck to extrapolate to the whole fabric of the Nigerian entity – he needs the time to make things work and for that reason, though the machinery of the ruling party is a nasty vehicle, it is the most affordable transport we have for ensuring we retain a good man at the reins of power.

I think with reference to all other blogs I have written on Jonathan's tactics, this is just a matter of course in the light of things we can see, one should expect no great surprises, the President is the surprise.

Sources

allAfrica.com: Nigeria: Obasanjo, Danjuma Clash over Jonathan's VP

allAfrica.com: Nigeria: 2011 - Should Jonathan Run Or Not?

allAfrica.com: Nigeria: Ogbulafor Resigns

234Next.com | ANALYSIS: PDP not involved in the appointment of Vice President

Nigeria: Can Jonathan have your support now? [akin.blog-city.com]