LESSONS FROM THE GERMAN ELECTIONS

Germany is a big economy but it’s size is dependent on the mindset of the people, not petrol or natural resources. Germany is a testament to the fact that Nigeria should not give excuses. Germany lost it all during the Second World War and they were colonized too; the Americans and other nationalities colonized them but for a while. Out of the ruins the Germans started their factory again with little resources, and they have grown to become a power house. Indeed, just about 70 years ago they had nothing. After the war the Germans called on various workers to continue to work without pay and once profit came they were going to share. That is why today Germany has a symbiotic relationship between workers and employers. They Germans also don’t believe in debt. The word for debt is also the word for sin in Germany. They have also built a solid political system which started in 1990 after the reunification and in their political system the people come first, not like Nigeria were the politicians don’t respect the people but their interests. The trust has grown so much that voter turnout rate in Germany is 80%. Out of a population of 83 million over 60 million voted in the last election. As you turn 18 in Germany you can vote. In fact, the over one million Syrian refugees that came in 2015 can vote now. In Nigeria politicians find every way to disenfranchise voters by stopping electronic voting and making it difficult to register voters, because for them as long as they can get 30 million votes out of a population of 200 million they can win elections. The human development index in Germany is high, per capital income is also high, over 30,000 dollars. It is a knowledge-driven economy.

The candidates for chancellor had over five debates prior to the elections and once the elections are finished they had a post-election debate where they discussed the future of Germany, and live on television.

They all agreed on how they were going to run Germany. Nigerian politicians don’t even attend pre-election debate and they never believe in the issues. Just ask a Nigerian governor how many jobs he or she is creating in his state, he will say you are rude. In all of these I think we must rethink politics. The people must matter in politics and their votes must count. I hope they learn.

Rufai Oseni, rufaioseni@gmail.com