Nigeria in APC's Hands

“ A chain is only as strong as its weakest link”- Thomas Reid [Essays on the Intellectual Powers of Man 1786]

A lot of brouhaha has been generated by our elections in 2015 even though we just wrapped up the first quarter of 2013, a good two years away. The only activity that has even the most remote semblance to seriousness in fronting a virile opposition to the incumbent ruling party is the recent merger of some political parties. At the end of that amalgamation, nine or so incumbent State governors became ‘brethren’ as the good Book will put it.

The birth of the All Progressive Congress marked a significant point in Nigeria’s odyssey to greatness. The ruling PDP is a force that if unchecked, would sweep the polls again in 2015 if the vibes from the seat of power in Abuja are anything to go by. First the return of the Godfather of Edo politics Chief Tony Anenih a.k.a ‘The Fixer’ and then the distasteful state pardon meted out to the President’s political benefactor, our own dear Chief DSP Alamieyesiegha. These are pointers to the fact that our ‘Oga at the top’ knows he won’t scale the 2015 hurdle with the ‘I had no shoes’ wailing. Oga knows he has not delivered on electoral promises and the ship of governance has drifted to sea with the captain as somnolent as never before in our history.

Many people still believe the ACN leadership swung the stakes in favor of the PDP two years ago following some clandestine meetings. Many believe that if the CPC and the ACN had merged before that presidential election, we would be singing a different tune today irrespective of our incumbent’s bare-footed childhood. The birth of the APC may not be the elixir to our seemingly terminal state but it’s a sign of hope, no matter how dim.

There are issues the APC must sort out immediately apart from having multiple alter egos-courtesy our devilishly ingenious friends with umbrellas (I no mention anybody name o!). The APC has sitting governors who gulp gargantuan amounts of Nigerian money as security votes for which till date we do not know how they are disbursed. The APC will have had legislators in the upper and lower chambers for many years with each one taking home our ‘jumbo’ pay without making any noise about its appropriateness or otherwise. We overlook the fact that our Senate and House of Representatives have always comprised of politicians from other political parties aside the PDP. Does this mean they do not find their morally reprehensible salaries unrealistic on the background of the unacceptably high number of impoverished people they represent? Already, APGA has ‘factions’ in APC and others against any mergers. Can a divided house stand?

The APC will be built around two ‘warriors’. This I find a rudimentary glitch in that system. We must learn to build institutions that will outlive human beings. Have you ever imagined how the ACN will fare years from now when Jagaban is no more or the CPC after the gap-toothed bespectacled Hausa General is no longer in the picture?

The PDP needs serious competition. The opposition parties must do some belt-tightening and square up to the seemingly arduous task.

Elections are won at poll stations and not on Twitter.