THE LAGOS–IBADAN media branded Nigerian progressives, who had a stint in Nigeria’s social democracy, proudly projected their political identity as a badge of political honour. Certainly, the Action Group (AG), Northern Elements Progressive Union (NEPU), the Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN, the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), etc., were parties one would be proud to be associated with, because they espoused progressive ideologies, which left invaluable political legacies.
Besides the public funding of SDP and NRC, the massive injection of private funds into them by the new breed, facilitated their takeover of the parties. The SDP presidential primary was a macabre political event, which became a turning point in Nigerian politics, in which political moneybags floated tonnes of money around the convention ground, and hotels in Jos which cemented the victory of the Yar’Adua/Abiola group. And the delegates coasted home richer, which wet their appetite for subsequent conventions and primaries.
One would expect that the social democrats would carry on, with the political revolution began by their forebears (Awolowo, Aminu Kano, etc), which removed some of the political fetters planted under colonial rule. But alas, they were stuck, unable to move forward; who found the reversal of the revolution a better political option. It is debatable whether it was all of them, or some of them; the new breeds, or the old breeds, who prevailed against the revolution, and opted for a counter-revolution.
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A counter-revolution was staged at the SDP’s 1991 Jos presidential primaries, when the primaries were turned upside-down; the election was commodified, and reduced to a bourgeois cash bazaar, with a distinctive Nigerian flavour, which impliedly wiped away the earlier political gains that removed the political encumbrances of the colonial period, and levelled the political turf for all Nigerians.
The counter-revolution instituted a potent democracy-undermining encumbrance, which was as dangerous, if not deadlier, than the earlier ones that paved the way for the retrogression in Nigerian politics, which has since been blown to a full plutocracy.
In a capitalist society, there is hardly anything which can’t be commodified, including spirituality, honour, material culture and politics.
One would expect that the conservative politicians, with pedigree in the Northern Peoples Congress (NPC), and the National Party of Nigeria (NPN), would exclusively be instrumental in commodifying Nigeria’s politics; but ironically, it was the progressives, ostensibly left-of-centre politicians, who largely piloted Nigerian politics to its monetary cul-de-sac, from which it would be difficult to become free.
The Third Republic was the political context in which retired generals and public officers; business tycoons and high-profile professionals, ventured into politics to upstage the professional politicians, or dilute their impact in politics. The late Gen Shehu Yar’Adua, Atiku Abubakar, Babagana Kingibe, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, etc, prominent new breed politicians, had their political baptism in that context; whose financial clout compensated their political naivety, and political tutelage under the old breed, which enabled them to rub shoulders with the professional politicians on the basis of equality.
From the way Nyesome Wike, Nigeria’s FCT minister, who lost PDP’s presidential primaries, began to tinker with the party as he pleased through successive proxies, before and during the campaigns, through the elections, and after, when he picked a ministership in the APC government, and began a war of attrition with the PDP government in Rivers, dangerously experimenting with the destiny of the party, someone might conclude that Wike is the controlling shareholder in a corporatized PDP, probably with Atiku Abubakar, whilst the Lamidos, Sarakis and the Tambuwals could be minority shareholders.
Besides the public funding of SDP and NRC, the massive injection of private funds into them by the new breed, facilitated their takeover of the parties. The SDP presidential primary was a macabre political event, which became a turning point in Nigerian politics, in which political moneybags floated tonnes of money around the convention ground, and hotels in Jos which cemented the victory of the Yar’Adua/Abiola group. And the delegates coasted home richer, which wet their appetite for subsequent conventions and primaries.
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Prospective presidential aspirants, and party chairs began a massive build-up of funds to highjack future primaries, and conventions; which removed the veil from Nigeria’s democracy, and projected it without any pretensions: a plutocratic contraption of the rich, by the rich, and for the rich, oiled by political jobbers and brokers, who facilitate the sale of political conscience and services; with the dismal prospects of commodifying political parties, which could also be sold to political entrepreneurs.
In the Fourth Republic, politics nosedived beyond commodification of nominations, conventions, primaries, and secondary elections, etc, to a lower level where political parties became corporatized with majority and minority shareholders.
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A political corporation can be substantially owned by a substantial purchase of its shares. Unlike the shares of quoted firms, which are traded on the stock exchanges, the shares of political corporations are spineless human proxies planted in boards of trustees, national executive, and working committees, priced according to the degree of devotion to a political master in dark alleys.
First, democracy has been supplanted by plutocracy, which has removed the political ladder from ordinary Nigerians, leaving established politicians and their proxies to recycle themselves from one post to another; because most new entrants would hardly have the wherewithal for robust political engagements. Secondly, in a plutocracy only the rich can vie for the highest political offices, but the rich might not be the best; and the best might be buried in the crowd, without the wherewithal for political participation, which denies Nigerians their best political leaders.
From the way Nyesome Wike, Nigeria’s FCT minister, who lost PDP’s presidential primaries, began to tinker with the party as he pleased through successive proxies, before and during the campaigns, through the elections, and after, when he picked a ministership in the APC government, and began a war of attrition with the PDP government in Rivers, dangerously experimenting with the destiny of the party, someone might conclude that Wike is the controlling shareholder in a corporatized PDP, probably with Atiku Abubakar, whilst the Lamidos, Sarakis and the Tambuwals could be minority shareholders.
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Only a controlling shareholder in a political corporation could do what Wike has done, and go scot-free without reprimand or sanction; all along protected by planted stooges in the party organs.
If it was revolutionary to sever traditional authorities from politics, as the NEPU, Action Group and the PRP insisted; and if it was also revolutionary for the political space to be unencumbered for anyone, then it should be counter-revolutionary to commodify politics, and reduce it to the purchase of votes and conscience, which engender the following impacts in the political environment.
First, democracy has been supplanted by plutocracy, which has removed the political ladder from ordinary Nigerians, leaving established politicians and their proxies to recycle themselves from one post to another; because most new entrants would hardly have the wherewithal for robust political engagements.
Sule Lamido, Atiku Abubakar, and Bola Ahmed Tinubu, former Social Democratic Party stalwarts could have helped to abort, or tame the counter-revolution at the Jos convention; but didn’t, and by a twist of political fate, each of them has suffered from its impact; as each of them was at one time or the other a presidential contender at primary or secondary level; which must have cost them substantial fortunes.
Secondly, in a plutocracy only the rich can vie for the highest political offices, but the rich might not be the best; and the best might be buried in the crowd, without the wherewithal for political participation, which denies Nigerians their best political leaders.
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Third, the amounts expended on the purchase of intangible political goods (conventions, primary and secondary elections, etc) are political investments, which must be recouped from the coffers of governments as early as possible, with substantial margins for the next elections; which render the fight against corruption a mirage and a waste of time.
Sule Lamido, Atiku Abubakar, and Bola Ahmed Tinubu, former Social Democratic Party stalwarts could have helped to abort, or tame the counter-revolution at the Jos convention; but didn’t, and by a twist of political fate, each of them has suffered from its impact; as each of them was at one time or the other a presidential contender at primary or secondary level; which must have cost them substantial fortunes. For them, and other social democratic counter-revolutionists, the chickens have come home to roost. Whether they are still proud of their social democratic pedigree depends on how remorseful they are or not on their individual and collective roles in the social democratic counter-revolution of 1991.
Conclusively, a dangerous counter-revolution, which engendered the commodification of politics and its reduction to economic transactions, was undertaken by Nigeria’s social democracy. This piloted Nigeria’s democracy beyond the purchase of political conscience to the circumstantial purchase of political parties. This in turn facilitated the following impacts: removing the political ladder from below so that new entrants would hardly vie for political offices; burying the best political materials in the crowd; facilitating a corrosive lootocracy, which impoverishes Nigerians and makes the war against corruption a mirage and a waste of time.
Jahun, a commentator on public affairs, is based in Dutse, Jigawa State. He can be reached via email @: aminuhabibu58@gmai.com
