By Soneye Las
The Nigerian political culture is one that is deeply rooted in conservative ideas and approach. Politicians are known to be willing to “play the games” in order to win elections in Nigeria. One of such common conservative opinion is the idea of ‘if you can’t beat them, you join them’ which is very popular today in the country. This notion is common at all levels of our society. Omoyele Sowore, the presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), is not spared of this ‘advice’. On several platforms, I have read and watched people advised Sowore to form an alliance with ‘strong politicians’ in order to win elections in Nigeria because if he cannot win election with his party alone after two contests. Therefore, he should join them.
Some days ago, Sowore reiterated his stance of not forming an alliance with these conservative politicians. He went ahead to say a clear ‘NO’ on the question of whether he would oblige if he would be offered ‘an opportunity’ to bring his ideas to the government in power to make Nigeria move forward. These postures of Sowore had brought about criticisms against his personal ideas and some have put to question his patriotism to Nigeria or loyalty to his personal ambition. The reasons being that Sowore is refusing to join them when he has ‘failed’ on two occasions to beat them. Also, he was asked to ‘go and get experience’ by starting politics from his ward as a Local Government Chairman or House of Assembly member. Two important opinions expressed here is the need for Sowore to gather experience by starting from the grassroots on one hand and, joining an alliance to be able to win election on the other hand. Otherwise, he should rest from politics. After all, activists are not supposed to be in politics or rather politics is not students’ unionism. This becomes the third notion.
However, these three popular opinions are side by side antithetical to the noble course a revolutionary party and political candidate should agreed to. In my assessment, I think there are three categories of people who hold these opinions and spread it. The first are the politicians who are aides to the ruling class. They spread these opinions intentionally to mislead the people away from what should be their rallying points. Second category are poor masses who have been psychologically dehumanized for so long that they now accept that politics is whatever APC/PDP/APGA/LP and the rest of the infamous political parties and their leaders are practicing. This group of people have also been made to ‘accept fate’ that indeed only the ruling class family can take political offices.
For the third group, they are the pseudo intellectuals we have around who are drawn into conservative knowledge and ideas that they can no longer critically intervene in political discourse. They often have Professor, PhD, Engineer and all sort of prefix before their names. Sometimes, they blackmail people into giving-in to their notion of politics by referencing their age, experience and qualification. They are the worst we have around. This third group are the biggest asset in the hands of the politicians in government. When government implement policies that would make life more difficult for the masses, they are the first set of people that will go on social media to defend it. It is their type who explain how increase in minimum wage to #200,000 can bring about inflation but purchase of presidential jet and 60 billion naira for maintenance of one governor’s lifestyle cannot affect the economy.
Ironically, Nigerians don’t ask the bad ones similar questions. When El Rufai son came up to contest, nobody asked for his experience. If I would sound like the pseudo intellectuals, I would argue that he has probably learnt directly from his dad as a governor. If I would be a pessimist like the second group, I would argue that he has studied abroad and has connection with resources which made him qualified. Of course, there are no dullards abroad and the resources are not the same commonwealth of the nation which his family has stolen over the years.
When Buhari came up to contest, nobody asked him to go and learn how to be a civil leader. Buhari never had any proper governance or democratic leadership experience. So was Obasanjo. They were both military dictators who rose to power first through military coups and were top of worst military dictators of their era. When they came to contest for presidency under democracy, nobody asked them to go and start to learn democratic style from their wards. Some of them do not even have proper ‘civil education’. It is fair in the case of Obasanjo whose secondary school education is not in question. Nobody reminded them that they were bad military dictators that need to learn democratic governance from local government first.
Sadly, Nigerians are quick to ask experienced and progressive minded people to go and start from their wards when they stand up to contest. The same way Gani Fawehinmi was rejected in 2003 for Presidency. The Generation X and early Millennials today are wishing Fawehinmi is still alive. The same Sowore at the age of 22 in 1993 along with fellow student activists were the ones who stood and defended democracy during the June 12 struggle. They were the ones who went around the country between 1989-93 to educate and sensitize Nigerians against Structural Adjustment Programmes (SAP). They were the vanguard of intellectual ideas and radical actions.
When these activists stand up to fight nationally and on the global stage, they are not considered inexperienced or asked to start from their wards. But when they present themselves and their ideas for political positions, you begin to hear baseless advice like ‘go and start from your ward’ to gather experience. The fundamental question is that: what do these people mean by experience? Is it Obasanjo, Jonathan, Tinubu or even Peter Obi kind of experience? At least we have seen them applied their experiences in the state and country when they rule. Experience of economic mismanagement, corruption, embezzlement, privatization education backwardness, etc. Is that the kind of experience they want Sowore to go to his ward and learn?
The misconception about activists not making good political leaders is also a wrong generalization. Obafemi Awolowo was a trade union activist. Late Jakande of Lagos was an activist. Pa Imoudu the Labour leader number one was elected into House of Representatives. Late governor Ajasin was an activist. Governor Balarabe Musa the first, was a socialist-activist who developed modern Kaduna state. Late President Nelson Mandela was not a footballer. He was an activist. Governance is activism. Slavery was stopped with aluta. Nigeria’s independence was won by aluta. It is aluta that won Nigeria democracy after years of military dictatorship. It is only progressive aluta politics like that of Sowore and the African Action Congress that can save Nigeria from the backwardness it is driven into by past governments.
Late Professor Pius Adesanmi of blessed memory has correctly described this situation correctly in 2017 during the court case between Sowore and then Senate President Bukola Saraki in 2017 after some of us were brutally assaulted by Saraki’s police and thugs inside Ilorin High Court. He said Nigerians had the chance to choose between Sowore and Saraki but “they screamed: give us Barabbas” sadly. I want to end this long rant still with the opinion of late Professor Pius Adesanmi that I do not write or advocate for a better Nigeria because I think Nigerians would automatically pick Sowore over other Barabbas kind of politicians. I write so that several decades to come when archeologist investigate the political situation of Nigeria during my lifetime, they would find out that at least some of us were not complicit.
Soneye LAS
