Politeracy Nigeria

As far as most Nigerians are concerned, getting involved in politics and hoping to succeed in politics in Nigeria can only be realistic when you join one of the front-line political parties - some people refer to them as the ‘popular parties” others prefer the expression ‘notorious parties” (you can guess which I prefer…)   The question that we should ask is ‘popular for what” - for 21 years of broken promises, god-fatherism, impunity, in-fighting, cross-carpeting and the dwindling fortunes of Nigeria? What is the purpose of politics - to grab political power at all cost or to transform society through values reorientation, acts of service and sacrificial leadership?   Most politicians that belong to these so-called popular parties are only interested in the former, and I know this by their “fruits” - the continued decadence of our society while their personal and family fortunes continue to flourish.   Many who claim that they have come to do things differently join these “popular par

As we mark Democracy Day today in honour of the struggle for the botched 3 rd Republic, we remember the winners of the elections (the duo of MKO Abiola and Baba Gana Kingibe) - human beings with their own weaknesses and imperfections but together perhaps achieving something unprecedented in Nigeria’s history.   The annulment of the election was sad on many counts, but the worst was the fact that before June 12 and after, June 12, politics in Nigeria was always driven by ethnicity and religion. On June 12, Nigerians from across the country voted for what looked like the ethnically and religiously incorrect duo - Two Muslims in a country whose politics has always been about balancing Christianity and Islam. It is against this backdrop that I think we all need to do some soul-searching and deep #criticalsocialthinking - The Truth Be Told!...   One thing that is abundantly clear to all forward-thinking Nigerians today is that to create the Nigeria of our dreams we need to break away from

When Plato, the Ancient Greek Scholar remarked and I paraphrase: “Those who think they are too intelligent to get involved in politics will end up being led by people who are less intelligent than they are”, he must have been speaking about Nigeria.   I will like to start by taking everyone on a journey of Nigeria’s post-independence political history. Let’s start from 1960 – the Government of Prime Minister Tafawa Balewa President Azikiwe and  all the way to Ironsi, Gowon, Mohammed, Obasanjo (I), Shagari, Buhari (I), Babangida, Shonekan, Abacha, Abubakar, Obasanjo (II), Yar’Adua, Jonathan and Buhari (2). These administrations and regimes have been collectively responsible for the “mess” that Nigeria has become and each set of leaders, their cabinets, close aides and associates have contributed in their own ways towards the “Problem with Nigeria”, some much more than others, but all of them culpable and guilty. During each administration or regime, I imagine that there were less than 1