In character, Nigerian politicians have one thing in common-an unflinching commitment to their selfish interests. For them, it is always about self first. Believe in their claims of acting in the public interest at your peril. All that matters is where and how their selfish interests coalesce around their shallow and mundane desires.
True to form, this selfish interest makes them find nothing wrong in defecting from one political party to another, even after demonising the party they defect to. Over 80 per cent of Nigerian politicians have defected from one political party to another at different times from the dawn of the current democratic dispensation in 1999. The snag is not in the act of defection itself; it lies in the fact that they defect to parties they previously demonised and labelled with unprintable names. It is little wonder, therefore, that Nigerian political parties are bereft of ideologies. The players have no ideological leanings.
I recall vividly how a politician, while comparing the crisis in his party to that of the ruling party, likened one to a headache and the other to cancer and noted that abandoning the former for the latter was akin to running away from a headache to cancer. As you read this, that politician is now fully aligned with the cancer he once detested in preference to headache.
A Realignment
As we inch closer to yet another election cycle— over two years away—we are already inundated with reports about alignment and realignment aimed at acquiring and retaining power, nothing more. Well, it is what it is.
Recently, the League of Northern Democrats (LND), a group led by a former Governor of Kano State, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, lampooned the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for failing Nigerians. LND’s convener, Umar Ardo, stated that the group would seek the support of like-minded Nigerians to transform into a political party.
The fact that APC and PDP have failed Nigerians is undeniable. The idea of LND becoming a formidable political party capable of wresting power from these two may appear plausible and gratifying to citizens. But who are those behind the LND? This group is led by Mallam Shekarau, a former member of the defunct All Nigerian Peoples Party (ANPP), APC, NNPP, and PDP at various times.
So, supposing that the intent is to save Nigeria from the vice grip of APC and PDP, as claimed, is Shekarau the right person to champion this, considering his contributions to the current rot in Nigeria through his memberships of these parties?
Additionally, Umar Ardo reminded Nigerians that the APC and PDP have consistently failed to address Nigeria’s fundamental challenges and have shown no sign of doing so. He emphasised that governance under these parties has been devoid of patriotism and the sacrifices needed to move the nation forward.
Ardo noted, and rightly so, that since their inception, these parties have entrenched self-service and dishonesty in leadership.
True as these claims may be, who is Ardo? He is a former member of the opposition PDP. Can a PDP member who contributed to the nation’s current state through actions and inactions now teach Nigerians lessons on good governance?
A week ago, Senate President Godswill Akpabio told his constituents in Ikot Ekpene, Akwa Ibom State, that Nigeria was on life support before Tinubu’s election in 2023. Akpabio claimed Tinubu inherited a dire situation but is determined to transform it, urging Nigerians to give him time. This statement conveniently ignores Akpabio’s complicity in the current mess. As a former governor under PDP and minority leader in the Senate before defecting to APC, Akpabio has long been part of the system he now criticises.
We have been led by the same people whose imprints are visible in all the political parties. These parties have distorted internal systems and find nothing wrong with rewarding loyalty over competence. They have elevated a governance system that prioritises patronage over public interest. These have resulted in poverty and insecurity, eroded public trust, and left Nigerians weighed down by hopelessness, suggesting clearly that the much-talked-about Renewed Hope was a ruse.
The Way Out
As the realignment for 2027 gathers momentum, Nigerians are being told that the League of Northern Democrats would serve as a viable alternative political platform, potentially offering a pathway to national rebirth. But should Nigerians- especially the North, which has suffered long years of bad leadership perpetrated by its elites—trust the LND?
It is evident that the major political parties have failed Nigerians. If the PDP was a colossal failure, the APC has been a failure promax. Fundamentally, they are the same people. There is no indication that the LND, likely to be composed of aggrieved politicians from the PDP, APC, NNPP, and even the Labour Party, will be any different. It’s six of one, half a dozen of the other —pure and simple!
The time is ripe for Nigerian youths to mobilise and wrest power from these thieving and dishonest politicians who have held the country to ransom for too long. The argument about having a structure is hogwash. Here is why. Democracy is about numbers, and the youth have the numbers. Power is never given; it is taken.
According to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), out of the 93,469,008 eligible voters in its register after the cleanup for the 2023 general election, 70,473,990 are youths. Specifically, INEC’s breakdown showed that 37,060,399 voters (39.65%) are aged 18 to 34, while 33,413,591 (35.75%) are middle-aged persons between 35 and 49.
With such numerical strength, why can’t this group, bearing the worst brunt of failed leadership, mobilise and take over power by all legal means? If democracy is about numbers, how can this group sit idly while we have a president who is 72, a vice president who is 58, a Senate president who is 62, and a speaker who is 61?
Unfortunately, many of these youths have settled for being attack dogs for their oppressors on social media platforms.
I don’t trust the LND because if there’s one lesson Nigerians have learnt from APC, it’s not to trust any group desperate for power. In 2014, the politicians who formed APC harped on ‘anybody but Jonathan’, demonised him, and promised to turn things around for Nigerians. Over a decade afterwards, the citizens, having borne the brunt of their failure, now know better. Do not be deceived. The LND and APC/PDP are the same thing. Six of one, half a dozen of the other!