Matters miscellaneous

This is one of those days when several issues are begging for attention. Thus, where does one really start? However, one compelling issue is the just concluded circus in Abuja. At last, all the ministerial nominees have been cleared. And to that extent, the business of governance in the collective sense can begin.

One curious dimension to the whole thing was that while the federal cabinet was in limbo, very much the same thing could be said for the states. In other words, despite the fact that we are a federation, most of the states, apparently imitating the centre, decided to suspend the appointment of commissioners. In view of this, we can always say that a lot of money must have been saved from the non-appointment of functionaries at both federal and state levels. This is, of course, merely theoretical. For as such matters go in this polity, nothing really gets saved. Even the cynical is likely to say that nothing really gets saved while almost everything gets stolen! This is an exaggeration, of course. But then, the counter is that exaggeration in itself is an extension of truth!

And talking of cynicism, what comes to mind is the rather heart-warming observation that two of our leaders are out there heading electoral observation teams in Ivory Coast and Tanzania. Actually, there are no prizes for guessing who these leaders are. They are Olusegun Obasanjo on one hand and Goodluck Jonathan on the other. Here, the discerning observer cannot but appreciate that these are reformed, or better still reconstructed, democrats.

Obasanio, as is well known, owns the copyright to that infamous phrase “do or die”. So to think that an apostle of that absolute dictum is now observing elections with a view to ensuring that the rules are obeyed says something about the fact that democracy, in reality, is indeed an all-comers’ affair.

Although Jonathan’s sins are not as grievous, yet in the run-up to the last elections he also had his own moral baggage – or is it immoral baggage? On this note, permit me to remind the reader that in the run-up to the 2015 elections, such was our man’s desperation, particularly in the South West, that the dollar became something of a confetti. Yet there were clear guidelines as regards spending limits. In a way, this was his own version of do or die.

The good thing about what is being said here is that through these noble assignments, we have been given a glimpse of what lies ahead if a leader retires well from office. Something tells me that the apostle of annulment in Minna is not likely to be invited for electoral observation. That, so to say, is life. What you sow, you reap. I am sure, therefore, that other African leaders are watching. Something also tells me they will like to end up more like Jonathan or Obasanjo, rather than the infamous annuller.

Still on elections, I could not but notice the contrast between electoral processes in Canada on one hand and Ivory Coast and Tanzania on the other. In Canada, the election was something of a non-event. The incumbent lost and the Liberal party is in. No fuss. Incidentally, another Trudeau is now the point-man of the Canadian state since his father occupied a similar position some years earlier. Such a feature must be familiar to us in this part of the world – i.e., Africa. But this is where the similarity ends. At least, he went through the rigour of an election. In other words, what you have in Canada through a Trudeau Jnr. is certainly a far cry from an Eyadema Jnr. Or, indeed, a Kabila!

Even then, what also struck me was that the electoral observation industry was absent from Canada. By contrast and as already seen, electoral observation is alive and well in places like Ivory Coast, Tanzania and, of course, Nigeria. Hopefully, we will get there one day such that elections in Africa will not need external observers.

Another difference was that in Canada, there was no role for those characters called lawyers, whereas in our own country every election must end up in the courtroom. And this is where some lawyers come into their own. I was even made to understand that when Jonathan threw in the towel, a number of lawyers were very disappointed. They must have thought to themselves, “There goes a viable source of livelihood!”

Let me make an exception to what is being said here. On one particular and memorable occasion, there was a stalemate in the US presidential election between George Bush and Al Gore. It was a keenly contested election which eventually ended up in the Supreme Court. Incidentally, I was living temporarily in DC at that point in time. All the trappings of that election were too familiar to me as a Nigerian. There were alleged cases of ballot stuffing, which newspapers humorously referred to as “thanksgiving stuffing”, since the election took place during one of those American festivals called Thanksgiving. Even the language was intemperate. For instance, the conservative columnist George Will referred to Jesse Jackson as the rented ranter of the Democratic party. Dear reader, you can be sure that this was not a Fani-Kayode or Lai Mohammed doing his stuff.

Meanwhile, in the heat of the situation, there was the telling observation by Kenneth Kaunda that the United States too could do with electoral observation. Of course, Kaunda was only joking. But I tell you, I really enjoyed that dig at the Washington power elite.

Kayode Soremekun