Democracy and the denial of truth

President Tinubu’s election had sparked hope that his administration would solve the mounting economic problems faced by the nation. Alas, after 16-months, his policies of devaluing the naira and slashing petrol and electricity subsidies have sent inflation skyrocketing and triggered mass poverty and economic pains.

In truth, the administration has been high on propaganda and low on governance. Although many historians believe that Europe underdeveloped Africa, the truth is that Nigeria’s suffering is homemade. The nation is stuck in a cycle of betrayal, corruption and deliberate backwardness the architects of which are well rewarded. No one is holding Nigeria back except Nigerian political office holders. Regrettably, they have turned the nation into their own personal business empire and as a result are building a huge wave of underlying mass discontent.  

Increasing numbers of Nigerians are giving up on what they see as a very dysfunctional country in which corrosive corruption, insecurity, poverty, and unemployment are the norm. Most objective observers have concluded that Nigeria’s golden era was between 1960 and 1966 when parliamentary democracy and true federalism was practiced. The mistake made since then is to expect that elected political office holders who bought and paid for their electoral victories would be motivated to make and enforce good laws rather than prioritise retrieving their election costs and improving their personal welfare!

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Nigerian politics is stuck in a tradition which denies truth. Competence has been replaced by personal loyalty and greed as pre-requisite qualifications for political office. Ideally ideas must be tested, and men challenged because even the wisest person can be wrong, but when leaders cannot be questioned, falsehood reigns supreme.  

Alas, in Nigeria, correcting a leader is to invite curses at best or illegal arrest! These days, Nigerian political office holders have put truth in chains while lies roam freely. In situations where men become untouchable, their errors also become untouchable.

Tragically Nigerian democracy does not protect principles, it protects men! Political lies are accepted not because Nigerians lack intelligence, but rather because they lack the courage to challenge a tradition and culture of wrongdoing which frustrates future progress. The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) is currently in celebratory mood as more politicians defect and deplete the ranks of the opposition parties.

Be that as it may, the real battle is not between political parties or even between the North and South, it is between selfish political leaders and the rest of us. It is nonsense to assume that everything southern is good and everything northern is bad. Even with respect to the nation’s religious divides it has been aptly pointed out that while churches preach prosperity they are silent on rampant injustice, and while the mosques preach peace they are silent on rampant poverty! Religion is not the problem. Indeed as Bishop Oyedepo said “when a nation rewards thieves and punishes the righteous, it is under a curse”.  

Nigeria is suffering because political office holders are rewarded for choosing personal gain over public good. This is why in the midst of the most excruciating pain Nigerians have ever felt, there has been a flurry of endorsements for President Tinubu’s re-election in his yet to be declared second-term bid.  

Humanity has never been amongst the character traits required or even considered for election, re-election or even simple appointment into high political office! The common denominator amongst political office holders is disdain for the poor. They lack the capacity or empathy to address poverty. Their solution is simply to keep the poor out of sight while they enjoy the good life at public expense!  Their blaring sirens chase poor people off the road occasionally killing them, while others are kept for years in atrocious sub-standard camps for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).

It comes as no surprise that intellectuals are in unanimous agreement that the quality of current thinking, policy making and lawmaking are not the best Nigeria has to offer. Truthfully there are many policies and laws which have been so undeniably poorly thought out that they mean nothing and achieve nothing other than to illustrate unintelligent reasoning.

Lamentably, government no longer seems to care that their actions and public utterances of their spokespersons do not exude compassion or responsibility.

In a move that left most Nigerians stunned if not outraged, the federal government has initiated a criminal defamation case against Senator Natasha Akpoti. Unfathomably a former governor, publicly declared wanted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for allegedly laundering over N80 billion, is a key prosecution witness!

Quite ridiculously the same government that branded him a kleptomaniac and fugitive wants him to testify to convict a Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria! Credible witnesses are supposed to be honest, reliable and of unquestionable integrity which can hardly be said to be the case here! The EFCC has become an object of ridicule for Nigerians.

Indeed an outstanding case with them is almost becoming a necessary pre-qualification for high political office. Truly Nigerian democracy will only provide progress and patriotism when political leaders no longer lack of principles, deny the truth, deny human rights, and disregard constitutionalism.