Leadership (Abuja)
Ibrahim Modibbo
17 June 2008
opinion
Having come through a system that defied logic and negate the basic principles of internal democracy, the national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Vincent Ogbulafor must be economical with the truth or at best quoted out of context by the "busy body" Nigerian press when he said, the ruling party will govern Nigeria in the next 60 years.
After a deep reflection and having asserted my most profound reflexes on the political situation in Nigeria, I have no doubt in my mind that PDP, a self acclaimed winning party that parades itself as the largest on the African continent will rule Nigeria forever.
With the carefully planned and highly orchestrated endeavour to deliberately weaken by planting moles in the opposition parties, democracy is in danger as Nigeria is gradually drifting into a one party state. It is therefore no surprise that Ogbulafor did let the cat out of the bag by saying that the ruling party will govern Nigeria for the next 60 years.
The ruling party has finally captured Nigeria as the whole aspect of democracy has been compromised with monetization of the polity taking a front burner. And that is why the ruling party is in the process of hijacking all the major opposition parties as they find willing tools for their manipulative tendencies in the leadership of some of the parties throwing up little crumbs to fill their hungry and empty stomachs.
Never in the history of modern democracy have we seen such a brazen and highly reckless display of political arrogance as is found in the recent statement by Ogbulafor bearing in mind that as a ruling party, PDP has so far failed Nigeria as it equally failed to positively respond to our generational and democratic challenges. For it to say that it is on the drawing board, planning to rule Nigeria in the next 60 years is to say the least the height of contempt, arrogance and domineering posture for a party that disregards humility in the face of transparent electoral fraud.
Since 1999, Nigeria lost its freedom and the right of choice under a free and fair electoral process. With the former President Olusegun Obasanjo as the Hitler of the PDP, the capturing and total over-running of the electoral system at large and elections in particular became the focal point of the ruling party as Nigeria has now become a case study for other smaller African countries who find political inspiration on the "do or die" philosophical thinking of the PDP. Not even in Robert Mugabe's Zimbabwe did we see political "Tsunami" that swept across the length and breadth of a country as we find in Nigeria today.
Under Obasanjo, a celebrated dictator with a passion for electoral fraud, Nigeria occupied an Olympian height for dubious distinction in rigging, as the government in power in close collaboration with some out-laws like the late Lamidi Adedibu and Chris Uba brought in a handy surrogate Maurice Iwu, a professor of herbal medicine to do its bidding in Nigeria.
Unless they seek for forgiveness from God and Nigerians, history will never be kind to Obasanjo, and Iwu as they have institutionalised elections fraud and rigging which has been condemned by the international community and people of conscience.
In response to the fraud that characterised the 2007 election that saw the emergence of Umaru Musa Yar'Adua as successor to Obasanjo, Max Van den Berg chief observer and member of the European parliament who led the large contingent of the European Union observers stated "The 2007 state and federal elections have fallen far short of basic international and regional standards for democratic elections. They were marred by poor organisation, lack of essential transparency, widespread procedural irregularities, significant evidence of fraud, particularly during the result collation process, voter disenfranchisement at different stages of the process, and lack of equal opportunities for contestants. There were also numerous incidents of violence on the election days."
In the same vain, Madeleine Albright, chairman of the National Democratic Institute's Board of Directors and former US secretary of state observed that before the 2007 elections, "party primaries were often contentious and many Nigerians believe that the lack of transparency in the selecting of candidates impacted negatively on prospects for an inclusive and violent free electoral process."
Noting serious flaws during the electoral process which was capable of eroding the citizens' confidence in the country's democratic institution, Albright disclosed that though thousands of Nigerian voters were enthusiastic in exercising their fundamental civic rights, it however observed relatively low turn out of people in some areas due to violence during the elections.
So, with compromising operators of the electoral system, boundless display of resources, violence, ballot stuffing, deliberate theft of ballot boxes and of course the connivance of security agencies like the police and the army in assisting the PDP, who says that the largest party will not rule Nigeria till eternity?
Yar'Adua was honest enough to admit that the elections that saw him occupy the exalted seat of president of a giant country like Nigeria had fundamental flaws. In his maiden speech at the Eagle Square, Abuja on May 29, 2007, the president called for cooperation of all Nigerians with a promise to constitute a high powered body to review our electoral system with a view to correcting the glaring pitfalls of the 2007 elections.
So far, by his words and deeds and the constitution of the electoral reform committee headed by the former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Muhammad Uwais, many great thinkers, scholars and students of democracy and I among the number, have expressed great reservations on the president as we do not trust him in giving Nigeria an enviable latitude for free, fair and transparent elections.
Many Nigerians thought that with his gentle disposition and political flexibility towards adherence to the rule of law, Yar'Adua will open up the political horizon for a refined electoral process, but with what is happening at the guber re-run and local government elections, my heart bleeds for Nigeria as Ogbulafor would be correct to propound the 60 year policy thrust of the PDP rule.
In a wrong step at the right direction, Yar'Adua's appointment of Uwais as chairman, which drew serious criticism among Nigerians should have been reversed but the president did not bother with public opinion as the end is programmed to justify the means. For now the committee is in comatose and a state of desperation and despondency as our electoral system graduates from bad to worse daily in Nigeria.
The carry go syndrome of the guber re-run elections in Kogi, Adamawa, Sokoto and Bayelsa has further confirmed our fears on the theory expressed by Ogbulafor that the PDP has not only conquered the Nigeria but on the verge of moving to the outer space to find its bearing on our collective aspirations and destiny as a people. What of the 100% winning formular of the PDP in the LG elections in almost all the states it controls in the country, some may say?
In its desperate plot to rule for eternity, the PDP has either sponsored or deliberately used its powers and influence to kill the opposition in Nigeria. It started this dangerous experiment under Obasanjo, a man that can kill even a fly if it is in the opposition with a sledge hammer, by dismantling the most powerful opposition party in the South-west, the Alliance for Democracy (AD). The AD which controlled the entire political base of that axis in1999 is reduce to a mere geographical expression as Obasanjo, infiltrated its ranks, destabilised its settings, and completely dismantled its structures from the history of the sub-region. It is sad that today virtually no one identifies himself/herself with AD any more in the Nigerian polity.
It is note worthy to remember that in Obasanjo's desperate attempt to reduce Nigeria to a one party state, he also moved his war-machine to the hitherto main opposition party, the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP). Using spineless political puppets like the former governor of Zamfara State, Senator Ahmed Sani Yarima Bakura, Obasanjo used intimidation through EFCC, raw power and financial muscles to select the party's leadership in the guise of elections. Knowing the depth of Yarima's political shallowness and unquantifiable phobia for the dreaded Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Obasanjo gave Yarima a matching order to treacherously betray ANPP's presidential candidate, General Muhammadu Buhari by bringing himself up first, as a presidential aspirant and secondly, drafting people with no political value except greed and insatiable appetite for food to occupy a centre stage of the party's leadership.
The selection of Edwin Ume Ezeoke and Senator Saidu Umar Kumo as chairman and secretary of ANPP respectively was in line with the Ogbulafor blue print for PDP to rule for ever. Since assumption of office Ume-Ezeoke and Kumo acting on a script have killed the opposition as no single politician from other parties came into the ANPP except its members in their thousands moving out of the party. They were never bothered about getting new members as the national working committee (NWC) meetings will never last if part of the agenda has no issue of money involved. That was why when Yar'Adua himself confirmed that his election were flawed, Ume-Ezeoke and Kumo advised the president to stop raising unnecessary alarm, as he was dully elected by Nigerians in a free and fair atmosphere. Always at the gates of Aso Rock begging for appointments and food, such leaders are always putting their conscience on the table to satisfy their greedy appetites. So, with all these characters how can PDP not rule for ever?
The only opposition now standing tall to be counted is the Action Congress (AC). Although it has lately become a newspaper tiger with its activities only limited to the pages of the newspapers through the highly principled and vociferous tongue of its national publicity secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, AC may not withstand the whirlwhind which has now become a hurricane that is set to consume the democratic space of the country.
Now, for the past one year of the Yar'Adua administration nothing noteworthy has come to Nigerians as dividend of democracy. Apart from trying to catch up with the record of his predecessor, Obasanjo for globe trotting, all in the name of trying to induce investors into Nigeria, Yar'Adua has not constructed one Nigerian road nor did he improve the wellbeing of Nigerians in the face of enviable economic boom. The health sector is sick and education is now laying postrate while agriculture, the country's mainstay is in a state of despair. With uncoordinated policy summersault in the power sector especially electricity, some may wonder how Ogbulafor would realise his dreams and aspirations of leading his party to rule Nigeria in the next 60 years. Fred Agbaje a constitutional lawyer while analysing the Yar'Adua administration said "I stand by my opinion. This present government does not have vision and is incapable of finding solutions to the socio-political malaise which PDP governments have foisted on the people of Nigeria since May 1999. It is difficult identifying the government thrust or agenda."
For a party that won almost all its elections through "Owambe dance" at campaign rallies with no programmes or agenda of turning round the fortunes of Nigerians, I must say that Prince Vincent Ogbulafor, the chairman of the largest party in Africa would lead the PDP to rule Nigeria not only for 60yrs but eternity. With Iwu and his rigging machines coupled with the monetization of the polity and the winner take all syndrome, who says that PDP will not even conquer the United States of Africa as proposed by Libyan strongman Muamar Gaddafi?
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