In our polity, any rising
Obama-like greenhorn politician competing against a well known
political family will be asked to listen to the Garrison Commander of
his constituent and step out of the race. If the aspirant resists,
three likely things will play out: he may be killed by assassins
masquerading as armed robbers or he may be allowed to contest while
losing heavily after a rigging of the electioneering processes. He or
she may also be subjected to trump up charges bordering on corruption.
It is instructive to note that Barack Obama has been enjoying the
services of State Secret Service quite early in his ambition. Under
our circumstance, can any incumbent political party give protection to
a member of opposition with a rising profile? I still remember how Olu
Falae’s flight was prevented from landing at the Maiduguri Airport
during his campaign period prior to the 1999 Presidential election.
A POLITICAL ASSUMPTION: BARACK OBAMA AS A
NIGERIAN POLITICIAN by
Joseph Ifeanyi Chikunie
Barack Obama is about to
cause one of the greatest political upsets in the democratic world.
This first time junior Illinois Senator, who many pundits never gave a
chance against Hillary Clinton, the wife of a former USA President and
a Senator will soon be officially crowned as the nominee of the
Democratic Party.
The political contrast
between these two personalities is a clear testimony that we are
witnessing a political miracle of some sorts. Let us consider the
great political gulf that existed between these two democratic
candidates.
The Clinton machine in the
Democratic Party of America is a very formidable one. During his
tenure, Hillary’s husband, Bill Clinton provided his country with
qualitative economic gains. Looking back now, many Americans despair
at their present economic woe.
The Clinton family moulded
and shaped the political careers of many democrats who still owe them
allegiance. They appointed a great number of them to exalted political
offices, strengthened others politically while creating space for
others to grow into political mavericks.
After Bill Clinton left
the Oval office of the White House, it was easy for his wife to win a
Senatorial seat to become New York Senator. Soon after that, she
started preparing the ground for a Presidential career and
understandably so. As a benefactor to so many democrats; coupled with
Bill’s performance as President, it was widely assumed that it will be
a roller coaster for the Clintons. Who will dare stand in the way of
the great Clinton fast accelerating machine? The one opening for
anyone to challenge Hillary was her vote for the now discredited Iraq
War.
Enter one African
American, named Barack Obama, a totally political neophyte, without a
political name, deprived of important political loyalists and above
all without the much desired cash needed to enter the Presidential
fray. He had one thing though and still has it: A focused vision,
strengthened by hope, so eloquently explained to those who listen; an
oratory that makes butterfly fly in your stomach once you hear the
forty-six year old young man speak. His father descended from Kenya
only to meet Barack’s white mother when he sought academic prowess in
the United States of America. This makes Obama a political bat. White
Americans see him as African while the African Americans feel that he
is not truly one of their own. In fact, at the beginning, more African
Americans backed Hillary than Barack. It only took a political blunder
by Bill Clinton to alienate them in favour of Barack.
He had grown up with his
mother’s people in Hawaii thereby having the Whiteman’s orientation
and history. To further accentuate this fact, he attended two of the
best institutions in America: Columbia University and Harvard Law
School.
Religiously, whereas he
professes to being a Christian, many were and are still in doubt. His
middle name is Hussein and this pins an Islamic identity on him no
matter the arguments. The truth however is that for over twenty years,
Barack Obama believes in Christ Jesus and derives his faith from Him.
He has so many political baggages that should ordinarily weigh him
down and he is some kind of a political orphan.
Such was the political
setting: a sixty year old political war horse with an intimidating
family name and great political pedigree backed by her former
President of a husband, assisted by their daughter, Chelsea and the
great many influential democrats and money bags against an African
American, whose weapons are hope and eloquence. This was a fight
between a political Goliath and a black David. If the biblical David
was Jewish in the least, this skinny guy with a funny name is a mere
interracial hybrid with black colouration.
It was no surprise
therefore that no one dared bet on Barack Obama to beat Hillary
Clinton in the Democratic nomination battle many thought will be a
landslide for the latter. Hillary also believed so much in her arsenal
that she arrogantly carried herself with a body language of one who
will not just beat this inexperienced aspirer but perhaps totally
obliterate him politically. That she will win was a forgone
conclusion.
We now know who has
virtually won the nomination as we wait for a coronation of Barack
Obama as the Democrat who will do battle with Republican John McCain
for the White House come this November.
However, in our Nigeria of
today, this will sound a fairy tale to many of our politicians. The
probability of this scenario being replicated in any of our main
political parties is zero. This is most regrettable considering the
fact that Nigeria has many unheralded Barack Obamas who are suffocated
once they begin to show signs of challenging the status quo.
At a time, Nigerians need
the injection of fresh blood and faces into our national life; the
environment is not yet conducive for any Obama to miraculously upset
the apple cart in the political stage. Those political nobodies are
unusually giving any chance to prove their mettle.
In our polity, any rising
Obama-like greenhorn politician competing against a well known
political family will be asked to listen to the Garrison Commander of
his constituent and step out of the race. If the aspirant resists,
three likely things will play out: he may be killed by assassins
masquerading as armed robbers or he may be allowed to contest while
losing heavily after a rigging of the electioneering processes. He or
she may also be subjected to trump up charges bordering on corruption.
It is instructive to note that Barack Obama has been enjoying the
services of State Secret Service quite early in his ambition. Under
our circumstance, can any incumbent political party give protection to
a member of opposition with a rising profile? I still remember how Olu
Falae’s flight was prevented from landing at the Maiduguri Airport
during his campaign period prior to the 1999 Presidential election.
Whereas Barack Obama found
people who believed in his Hope leading to an investment of their
time, energy and money in his campaign, in Nigeria, this will be a
foolish action. Knowing that the elections will be skewed against any
hoping Obama, very few will contribute money to fund the campaign. The
result is that any such Obama will be a still born aspirant, unable to
make any progress politically despite a wonderful vision and
regardless of any Malcolm X-like oratory.
I have consistently argued
that the difference between African states and their Western
counterparts are the opportunities created for citizens in the latter
and the lack of it in the former.
We continue to grope in
darkness because successive governments in many African states do not
want to provide a level playing field for all citizens to live out
their passions, ambitions and visions. The environments are so
unfriendly that some African youth would rather die in the desert
while trying to migrate illegally to Europe than to remain in a
continent where rulers literally eat their young.
In nearly all spheres of
human life ranging from politics, economy to different professions,
the older generation has refused to open up the space needed for
anyone to actualize his or her ambitions. While many steal the
resources meant for the generality of the people, others are obsessed
with ensuring the financial security of their lineage including those
unborn.
There is no doubt
whatsoever that no Barack Obama can spring up in Nigeria’s politics.
We must begin to ask why this is so. We must begin to clean up the
messy electoral process such that anyone without the slimmest of
electoral chance can aspire to ruler ship, run a vigorous campaign
filled with articulation of issues and possibly clinch his or her
party’s nomination nay even the Presidency.
The worst thing that keep
happening to us as a people is that from independence up till now,
power has always been thrusted into the hands of people who never
prepared for the great task. Did Tafawa Balewa prepare to govern? What
about Aguiyi Ironsi? Olusegun Obasanjo (on both occasions)? Shehu
Shagari or the incumbent, Umaru Yar’Adua?
This situation is most
pathetic considering the fact that we have always had capable
Nigerians who took time to prepare for the presidency, who took time
to map out strategies on how to move us forward and whose dreams were
dashed not by the electorate but by a corrupt political system. The
list is endless: Nnamdi Azikiwe, Obafemi Awolowo, Olusola Saraki,
Moshood Abiola, Olu Falae, and Ahmed Makarfi, just to mention a few.
The circumstances surrounding the surrendering of their ambitions or
at other times the murder of the ambition is heart rendering.
The negative consequence
of giving power to unprepared overnight candidates is the formation of
government of strange bed fellows, with no clear focus or vision and
one, which rules by trial by error.
Many Nigerian commentators
have rightly begrudged the slow pace of development and governance
under President Umaru Yar’Adua. I always laugh at such complaints. How
on earth can we expect a leopard to give birth to a human baby? Our
quiet president did not really prepare to run the affairs of the
Nigerian state. He needs time to settle, study the intricacies of
ruling over 140 million people and the challenges of satisfying people
with contrasting and conflicting interests.
Whereas Obama and Clinton
have been campaigning now for over 15 months, debating issues over
twenty times, it took just a few weeks for Umaru Yar’Adua to prepare
for the great task of ruling over Nigerians. That he is slow in his
governance can only be expected. He who fails to plan, plan to fail.
How can we forget that
Olusegun Obasanjo’s first term of democratic office was more or less
wasted? We can not miss the point that the reason why he fared better
in his second term than the first has to do with the way he was also
hurriedly dusted up, out from prison, flown around the country;
executive style and finally planted in power despite what we wished.
He started settling down meaningfully after four years but never
purged his military ethos.
The current President was
rushed into power by different interests who seek self protection and
preservation even at the expense of generality of Nigerians. The way
and manner the present government came into being is a misnomer and
this is reflected on how government is run presently.
This logically brings us
to the efforts by the present government to reform our electoral
processes. The Justice Uwais Committee holds the destiny of Nigeria in
their hands. The greatest legacy the Yar Adua government can bequeath
us is the provision of a credible political system, which will allow
the kinds of Barack Obama to live out their dreams and vision.
True democracy is a
nation’s tap root, which gives rise to qualitative leadership, good
governance and economic gains for the people. We have never enjoyed
true democracy as the system is always skewed to produce the powerful
but unscrupulous. Taking advantage of a most dysfunctional system,
fraught with gaping holes; our citizens have been repeatedly subjected
to second hand ruler ship. The result shows everywhere: Deprivation in
Niger Delta leading to pipeline vandalization, killings and
insecurity, corruption, erratic power supply, widespread poverty
across our nation, inept government functionaries, brain drain, youth
unemployment and indeed the worst any people can get from bad ruler
ship.
We have not even started
laying the foundation for greater tomorrow as we are still being
bugged down by faulty multi-systems. Beginning with the constitution,
we observe clear manipulation by the military, which drafted it. We
cannot even freely elect our rulers as the last exercise showed when
many of us where disenfranchised.
There is lack of
continuity at the centre and in the states as successive governments
ineptly discontinue the few people oriented policies of their
predecessors. Corruption still reigns supreme even as no one
understands what is happening at EFCC presently.
Under this very corrupt
and dysfunctional system, it is easy to see why a Barack Obama cannot
have a foothold in our polity. Any would be Barack Obama will be
frustrated, handicapped in many ways and if not eliminated will simply
exist hopelessly no matter the eloquence or organizational skill. His
mantra, “Yes we can” will die naturally on his lip as he will realize
that he just cannot defeat faulty systems that have been
institutionalized.
Such would be Obamas today
languish in their little corners, their thought processes filled with
what would have been if the environment is conducive to live out their
dreams of making Nigeria a prosperous country, which ought to be a
pride to every Blackman and woman.
This is the story of our
lives, an unending story told by my grandfather, my father and perhaps
generation to come except we do something to change the faulty status
quo.
