One-Party System or Acceptance Speech?
I think the destruction of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, started around 2022 to 2023 when Peter Obi left the party to join the Labour Party, LP, and PDP made the most fundamental mistake of its existence of fielding Atiku Abubakar when Nigerians, even PDP governors, and others had agreed power MUST shift to the South to fulfil the power rotation understanding. It was a mistake of the highest bidder and most connected.
If PDP had fielded a Southern candidate then, and Atiku had given him the necessary support up North rather than contesting when the national sentiment was not in the favour of a northern candidate, the APC perhaps would have been defeated because Buhari’s 8 years was catastrophic. Apart from lack of visible performance, he never was a real party man; he didnt enhance the fortunes of the party in anyway. Imagine few weeks to the presidential election where his party was participating, he came up with the deadly confiscation money policy that lead several individuals into poverty and penury and violence and death. And then there was fuel scarcity during the same period. Who does that and expect his party to win easily?
APC was at its lowest ebb prior to the election.
As of today PDP is still reeling in its self-inflicted crisis with no redemption in sight. While its governors are against any form of coalition, Atiku favours it, discounting unison of purpose. Again, Wike has been unforgiven and inconsolable because of the sad event during the presidential primaries and afterwards. His block would do everything humanly possible to see that Atiku and his faction in PDP are destroyed.
So the idea of coersion being deployed by some analysts that the ruling party or the present administration is using in courting members of the opposition is not sticking logically. It is part of our political culture, which is not a global phenomenon, for members of political parties in the opposition to decamp to the ruling party. It has always been part of our political behaviour, norm, habit and political art – there is nothing suddenly strange about it.
If power changes hands at the national level come 2027, the same sets people will decamp before the small hours of dawn. If a new coalition is created now, without being urged, like it was in 2022/2023 when several members in their millions moved to support the candidate of the LP, people will move to join because they have the notion new openings will be available to them unlike it is in their old parties. I have seen several members from the PDP and APC joining the Social Democratic Party, SDP, lately – would that be counted as an act of coersion too? I disagree.
So I think the opposition(s) must be able to play its role it is designated to play – oppose the ruling party with its failures and show Nigerians alternatives to good governance rather than rely on politics of defeatist emotions – sentiments dont win elections, not even self-pity.
There are no records yet that anyone from the opposition is being intimidated, no record that there is widespread or even small level coersion. Senator Mohammed Ndume is actively opposing this government, he hasnt been coersed. Senator Seriake Dickson has been outspoken, I am not sure he has registered any form of intimidation.
The LP had a very fruitful meeting recently with Peter Obi, Datti and Otti all in attendant, the conference hall was not incinerated by the ruling party.
The ruling power wants to consolidate power while the role of the opposition is to stay firm against it through creative and constructive criticism. The ruling power will never ever do this job for the opposition – it has never been heard of. The Democrats in the US has been using the numerous failures, including his excruciating tariff wars, of Trump to campaign against his party because of next election.
If the ruling party attempts to destabilize the opposition legally, as claimed, whether it is true or not, it is their duty to stand against it legally to avoid collapse. Yes, the ruling party will employ all necessary tactics, as we saw in 2014/2015, to keep itself in power, the opposition must ensure it has millions of excorcist mechanisms to dismantle the staying powers of the ruling party. Who says black power is not effective?
It is therefore unhealthy to accept defeat two years to the presidential election when the coalition is meeting regularly, SDP is getting new converts, the LP has been able to get a favourable ruling against its power drunk national chairman at the Supreme Court.
It is self-defeating to choose unconnected words like ‘one-party system’ when the idea should be to start building viable oppositions and power blocks all around the political space. There are millions of people who will never join APC if its the only party available, so where is the one-party system coming from? Are these people politically inconsequential?
The opposition should play its role – persuasion is a democratic tool. Giving up is also democratic, it is a choice that cannot be discounted.
Elempe Dele
