This Country Is Bigger Than Any Political Party

This Country Is Bigger Than Any Political Party

Tuesday, June 23, 2015 11:04 am


By Akunna Ejim

Recent events in the political landscape point to the long-held belief that certain individuals prefer to hold the whole country hostage at the altar of their personal ambition. From their perspective, things have to conform to their expectations, even if the rest of the nation should suffer the consequences of their actions. This would be a good time to remind the gladiators in this political dispensation that Nigeria belongs to every citizen, even the babies making their debut into the world as you read this. For 16 years, PDP held sway as the supreme party, some might even argue the members became complacent after holding down the rulership of the country for the length of time they did.

Then came the alliance of strange bedfellows known as the APC, which was formed with the main purpose of routing the ruling PDP from their lofty position. This mission has been accomplished, and now, with that major unifying goal out of the way and the euphoria of the win but a fast-receding memory, APC has landed from the clouds to realize that it has to use its much-brandished broom to tidy its own backyard.

A lot of commotion has followed the elections of the principal officers of the National Assembly,due to the failure of the APC to install its preferred candidates. Accusations are flying here and there, with alliances being formed every which way as the political intrigue deepens, and the whole country is inadvertently dragged along in this mess. As the adage goes, it is the grass which suffers when two elephants engage themselves in combat, with the weary Nigerian citizens as the grass in this context.

A Senate President has emerged out of this saga, in addition to a House of Representatives Speaker. While they may not be the choice candidates of the ruling party, they have played the political game, for good or bad, and that is how it goes. Rather than this protracted trade of accusations and counter accusations, APC should concede that the party’s internal mechanism was flawed to allow such a thing to happen. This should serve as a much-needed shove in the right direction for them to put their house in order. APC is the ruling party, and this internal wrangling has the potential to negatively impact the rest of the country.

The kind of “change” Nigerians long for is the positive type, not the type of change which carries bad tidings. It was a weary country that opted to try the change promised by the APC, and it is a hopeful country which dares hope for the fulfillment of that promise. There is really no point in going over the things which could have been done better by the party to prevent the upset to the APC at the NASS elections ad infinitum. That is over and done with and the sooner the party embraces the spirit of moving forward, the sooner they can clean house and arrive at some sort of workable resolution.

Now, the president is taking his time to set up his cabinet, and has resisted the moves to be stampeded into handling this delicate task. I pray God grants him wisdom to make the right choices, even as I also pray for him to apply the wisdom of the ages in navigating the rocky political terrain. Even if the president has the best intentions, this will not be successfully translated if he is not able to reign in the excesses of the hawks around him.

Right now, most of the states have declared empty treasuries bequeathed them by their predecessors, with huge debt profiles looming over them. The salaries of teachers in some states have yet to be paid, while other public servants are also threatening to go on strike if they do not receive their entitlements. We understand that it is still early day, yet, but the country really cannot afford to wait while the ruling party engages in what is tantamount to petty politics. The ambition of any individual or group of individuals within the party cannot supersede the greater good of the nation. Sort it out and move on with the important tasks at hand.

Do we need to remind the combatants that the economy is in dire straits with so many Nigerians barely able to eke out any kind of living, let alone one that is above the poverty line? Maybe they need to be reminded that the healthcare sector needs a total overhaul so that people can have access to good medical care. Past administrations preferred to patronize hospitals in distant countries so as to get quality medical attention; will it be the same with this administration? The state of federal and state-run educational institutions is enough to make one weep, considering the crowded classrooms and hostels, not to mention the falling standards within those citadels of learning. Unless you can afford to pay the exorbitant fares charged by the quality private institutions, your wards will remain at the mercy of the erratic timetables of the federal/state universities, polytechnics and colleges of education.

As regards the state of security, or should I say the lack of, do we really have enough time in a month to go into all of that? As if it is not bad enough that all the bombings of innocent citizens are going on, it is now almost commonplace to be mugged in Lagos traffic in broad daylight, with hoodlums breaking windscreens at will. Shall we talk about the N8.64 billion “wardrobe allowance” members of the National Assembly will get? Isn’t this a slap in the face of struggling citizens who can barely afford three square meals each day? Which way Nigeria? APC, get your act together and realize that this is not about you but about the entity called Nigeria, which is way bigger than this one party.

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