Nigeria: Not Too Young, but Too Poor to Run?

11 September 2018
opinion

Once again Nigerians are gearing up to "elect" democratic leaders in line with an imposed Constitution. That the Military Decree Governing Civilian Administration commonly referred to as the 1999 Constitution is fraudulent, poorly thought through, and basically incapable of leading the nation to prosperity and progress is no longer news. The main motivation behind it was to allow the failed Military to disengage, keep their ill-gotten loot and prevent any possibility of being called to account for their failures, illegalities, and unconstitutional actions. As a result, the distorted truth and current narrative is now that sixteen years of PDP rule are responsible for all the nation's woes rather than the thirty odd years of military imposition.

Retired military rulers with no democratic credentials are free to occupy elective positions and continue assaulting civil liberties and the rule of law. The only saving grace is that this group are ageing and nature will take its course. Until then the majority of aspirants claim they are a viable alternative to an old ailing President whose leadership style is characterized more by hesitancy than the urgency required in this time of crisis. The problem is that in this digital world, practically all aspirants are rehashed "analogue" individuals. In spite of the passage of the so called "Not too young to run" Bill, the high cost of expression of interest and nomination forms disqualifies all honest young people from contesting and makes it clear that young people have no place in our political system.

...

AllAfrica publishes around 400 reports a day from more than 100 news organizations and over 500 other institutions and individuals, representing a diversity of positions on every topic. We publish news and views ranging from vigorous opponents of governments to government publications and spokespersons. Publishers named above each report are responsible for their own content, which AllAfrica does not have the legal right to edit or correct.

Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica. To address comments or complaints, please Contact us.