Is the messenger the message?, By Jideofor Adibe

Malam Nasir el Rufai, former Governor of Kaduna state, wants no introduction in Nigerian politics. Many individuals throughout the nation are strongly against him and his guts. Nevertheless, individuals who imagine in him, principally these we name ‘hardliners’, additionally accomplish that fervently. It is for that reason that many name him a rabidly polarising determine.

Talking as a visitor not too long ago at a Nationwide Convention in Abuja on ‘Strengthening Democracy in Nigeria,’ the previous governor articulated the basic downside of the nation as that of poor management, which he attributed to the system of management recruitment. For him, surfeits of delegates who elect candidates within the political events are illiterate. “You can’t afford to have illiterates, semi-illiterates, and crafty individuals as your leaders. This is the reason we find yourself with the poor management we have now at the moment.”  He claimed that the APC was initially established to fight corruption, rebuild the financial system, and improve safety, however that these targets had been deserted. “The issues that led to the creation of the APC stay unresolved, however I not imagine the APC is fascinated by addressing them,” he reportedly stated.  He additional acknowledged: “I not acknowledge the APC. No celebration organ has met in two years – no caucus, no NEC, nothing. You don’t even know if it’s a one-man present or it’s a zero-man present.” In what amounted to signalling a possible defection to a different celebration or a cue for the APC to achieve out to him and negotiate, he additional claimed that he remained a member of the APC however that the hole between him and the celebration was widening.

Former Governor El Rufai’s monitor report as a politician, together with as Governor of Kaduna State, isn’t altogether noble, which is why his try and preach from an ethical excessive floor has been eliciting sneers and shaking of heads in a number of quarters. Whereas many, together with his critics, concede he’s sensible and audacious, he has additionally been a variously known as an autocratic, boastful and vindictive politician, who had no qualms demolishing the properties of political opponents on a whim or selling a Muslim-Muslim ticket in a state with substantial Christian inhabitants. He has additionally been known as a self-serving politician who is barely loyal to himself, and adept in turning in opposition to his political mentors. Cases normally given embody allegedly abandoning former Vice President Atiku Abubakar who was stated to be instrumental to his being appointed the inaugural DG of the Bureau of Public Enterprises in in 1999. Equally, after labelling candidate Buhari “serially unelectable” he was additionally paradoxically additionally credited with enjoying a number one position in convincing him to run for the presidency a fourth time in 2015, which he gained. Although el-Rufai rode on his coattail to change into Governor of Kaduna State he additionally turned in opposition to him in direction of the tip of his second time period and teamed up with Tinubu despite the fact that he had by no means been on Tinubu’s political nook earlier than that that second.  

Given the foregoing, some have raised the query of whether or not El Rufai’s sanctimonious postulations on the challenges of  management recruitment within the nation needs to be disregarded following the dictum that “typically, the messenger is the message”. Nevertheless given additionally his shrewdness in politically positioning and re-positioning himself at auspicious moments, and the truth that he nonetheless has his personal constituency of help, I really feel it’s first essential to interrogate his assumptions and conclusions:

First, El Rufai claimed that the APC was initially established to fight corruption, rebuild the financial system, and improve safety, however the targets had been deserted. “The issues that led to the creation of the APC stay unresolved, however I not imagine the APC is fascinated by addressing them,” he was quoted as saying.  Many individuals will disagree with this assertion. Was the APC actually based on such a noble floor or was it to seize energy from President Jonathan following the alleged emotions within the North that Jonathan contesting the 2015 election amounted to short-changing the North? The sensation was that Buhari who had been contesting for the Presidency since 2003 with out with the ability to get the requisite 25% in any state exterior the North, wanted Tinubu’s Motion-Congress of Nigeria, which had a decent grip within the South-West,  and different regional events just like the ANPP and a faction of APGA, to offer the wanted geographical unfold. For Tinubu, it was additionally a possibility to plot his personal political ascent, therefore he boldly declared throughout 2023 presidential marketing campaign that “it’s my flip” (emilokan). Actually it may be argued that every one the political events within the nation are mere particular objective autos (SPVs) for capturing political energy.

Second, if as El Rufai claimed, the issue of management recruitment is as a result of the delegates that elect the leaders are illiterate, we are going to then assume that the answer is a type of creation of delegates who’re philosopher-kings (i.e. a military of extremely educated of delegates). Right here El Rufai appears to purchase into the argument that the issue of Nigeria is that of management however blames it on illiterate delegates (apparently at Occasion Conventions). This type of argument nevertheless overlooks the truth that even in the course of the navy period when there have been no delegates to elect the navy dictators, the standard of management was not essentially higher. He additionally ignored the position of environmental variables – ethnicity, faith, poverty, entitlement mentality as influencers of the management recruitment course of. Apart from, even among the many very educated, elections wherever on the earth are usually pushed extra by feelings than logic, and that is particularly so in our clime, given our environmental peculiarities. For this, El-Rufai’s argument about illiteracy being the peril of the nation’s management recruitment course of fails to be convincing or at finest solely partially appropriate. His slim deal with “illiterate delegates” and inner celebration democracy and declaration that the gulf between him and his celebration was widening appears to recommend wrongly that he was a consummate democrat.

I agree that management recruitment is an issue however I see it from a special prism. For me, our present system of management recruitment – whether or not on the celebration primaries and even on the elections correct –  can solely throw up individuals with deep pockets and sure tough edges. Nigerian politics and the system of recruitment into its management cadre isn’t a recreation for the lily-livered, which is why many “women and gents” select to remain away.  The answer for me subsequently isn’t essentially in events having inner democracies – as fascinating as that is – however in getting a pacesetter who can emerge by the present corrupt system however will then flip in opposition to that system in what would quantity to a category, ethnic and spiritual suicide. It can for now be day-dream to hope {that a} chief can emerge exterior the present system of management recruitment. Sadly, since politicians promise heaven and earth when in search of energy, it’s troublesome to know beforehand a pacesetter who will change into radicalized by the workplace and switch in opposition to the system that introduced her or him to energy. We’re extra used to beforehand radical-sounding“progressives” being de-radicalised by the system.  

In a-three- half article I revealed to commemorate the nation’s independence final yr entitled ‘Nigeria@64: Celebrations within the Season of Ennui? ’, I argued as follows:

The dominant impression the ability wielders in any respect ranges of governance give, is that it’s their “flip”, and since most appear not even to imagine within the nation, shorn of all pretences, they’re telling their critics, or these proffering unsolicited recommendation, to “go hug a transformer”, or “go to court docket” if they don’t like their type of governance or their explanations for why issues are the best way they’re. Relying on whom you’re, their estimation of the followership you command and your ethnic, celebration or non secular affiliations, you is also accused of “unhealthy belle” since you or the candidate you supported misplaced the final election. You’ll certain be on the radar of the EFCC or different safety companies who will in the future invite you for questioning on suspicions of ‘terrorism financing’

The mixture of all these appear to have pushed most Nigerians right into a state of ennui – bored and uninterested in every little thing.  They seem uninterested in their leaders and distrustful of these angling to exchange them. They scoff at solutions for making issues proper and inform you that our downside isn’t the absence of fine legal guidelines, however implementing them. I think that lots of these becoming a member of the ‘japa’ syndrome, (together with people who find themselves doing moderately properly right here), accomplish that not essentially as a result of they really feel they are going to have a greater life the place they’re emigrating to, however as a result of they need to escape from all of it for the sake of their sanity and humanity. Nigeria is quick approximating the Hobbesian ‘state of nature’ during which life is brief, nasty and brutish. Hope – that important ingredient that offers which means to life- appears to be evaporating rapidly for many Nigerians.

Rotimi Amaechi, former Governor of Rivers State, and former Transport Minister, in the identical convention the place Malam Nasir el Rufai floated his thesis on the issue of management recruitment within the nation, argued that a part of the issue is the unwillingness of the citizens to defend their vote. Properly, if the ‘individuals’ seem unwilling to danger their lives to defend their vote it may partly be as a result of they don’t seem to be totally satisfied that even the particular person they’re to defend their vote for will make a distinction of their materials circumstances when she or he involves energy. And that’s, if the politician in query bothers to even keep in mind that she or he made guarantees to them in the course of the marketing campaign seasons.

Jideofor Adibe is a professor of Political Science and Worldwide Relations at Nasarawa State College and founding father of Adonis & Abbey Publishers (www.adonis-abbey.com). He might be reached at: 0705 807 8841 (WhatsApp and Textual content messages solely).