Recently, I received a WhatsApp message from a friend, giving a broader definition of politics in this part of the world.
We are all familiar with the cliché “Politics is a dirty game” but my friend sent me a message that vividly captures the goings-on within the Nigerian polity. Although Nigerian politicians are already familiar with the message, professionals within and outside the country eyeing one elective office or the other in the 2019 general elections, should take heed of this and get themselves acquainted for the battle ahead.
My friend, who was an aide to a former member of a state assembly in one of the South-South States, sent a message that read thus: “If you truly want to win an election in any part of Nigeria, three things you must have handy: money, thugs and popularity”.
He didn’t stop there, he went on, “The absence of one rubbishes all you have secured with the other. Politics is not a game for the meek and gentle, it is not for the lily-livered men, it is not for those who speak plenty of grammar, nor those who profess change with their data and Tecno phones alone. Politics is for the pragmatists, the realists, the street fighters, the ‘agberos’, the thugs. It is not for men who are afraid to die nor those who place excessive premium on their lives. A thorough Nigerian politician leaves his home for his voting center in the morning mindful of the possibility of not returning. Politics in this part of the world has an isolated definition. Take this to the bank as a cheque that can never be dishonored”.
The controversy surrounding the trial of the Chairman, Senate Committee on Federal Capital Territory, Dino Melaye, who was arraigned by the police on a stretcher, crises in the governing All Progressives Congress (APC) over the recently concluded ward and local government party congresses, lingering face-off between the Senate and the Executive are all part of the series of concentric cycles of conspiracies as it relates to Nigerian politics.
Like I noted on this platform at the beginning of this year, as we move towards the 2019 general elections, there will be alignment and realignment of political forces, the political atmosphere will be heated, best friends will become worst enemies and worst enemies, best friends. After all, there are no permanent friends or enemies in politics but permanent interest.
Last week’s revelation by Senate President Bukola Saraki, alleging plot by the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, to implicate him in a cultism case in Kwara State indicates clearly that the battle line has been drawn. More revelations are expected to surface in the coming weeks. The setting up of a 10-man committee asked to meet President Buhari on the allegations by Senate President Bukola Saraki against the IG is just a mere political ‘show’. Nothing will come out of it. The response they may get from the President is that the police is an independent institution and should be allowed to get to the root of the matter without interference.
For starters, Idris was shown in an embarrassing video struggling to read his speech, making multiple errors and unable to pronounce words at an event in Kano. Although the police dismissed the trending video as being ‘doctored’, it however, failed to provide the original tape. The video later showed an aide to the police boss, assisting him with the script. Was the aide also ‘inserted’ in the footage?
After six months delay, the National Assembly finally passed the long-awaited 2018 budget.
The upper legislative chamber took its secrecy to a ridiculous height when it concealed details of the proposal from the Order Paper, thus making the job of Senate Correspondents much more difficult.
It took extra effort to get the report of the Committee on Appropriations on the N9.120 trillion budget, to write the story. Notwithstanding, one could not sufficiently put together the jigsaw puzzle surrounding the budget, as the document was silent on sectoral allocations and details of the National Assembly budget.
This was a sharp contrast from what transpired at the House of Representatives, where the details were provided on the Order Paper.
The same thing applies to reports of committees, bills and other public documents. You may have to pay through your nose to get them. Covering the Senate, you could spend between N2,000 and N30,000 depending on the type of document you are looking for. There are countless times when a bill passes First Reading and I would approach the office of the sponsor to get the document but to no avail. You get the same treatment from the Rules and Business Committee, whose duty is to schedule bills and committee reports on the Order Paper.
This is a disservice to the Eighth Senate. And no matter the measures being put in place to launder its image, it will continue to have growing negative public perception, so long as it operates in secrecy like a secret cult.
