2027: POLITICIANS TO LOOK OUT FOR

Joshua J. Omojuwa lists all manner of politicians wanting to grab power

Nigeria is always in election mode. People are either looking to retain power or to take power. God bless those in government who just want to get things done; however, there is a sizeable number who just want to win the next election. Then, there is a special kind of people who have not stopped campaigning even after the 2023 elections ended. Everything they have done has been with 2027 in mind. God bless their heart.

Who are the politicians to look out for? Let’s start with the newcomers. They have always loved the country. They love people too. They have spent the last few years gathering certificates from here and there, hardly ever a degree though. Here, it is more about the perception of being seen to be in school than any commitment to learning. A good bonus if the school is popular in Nigeria. They not only believe they have all the solutions to Nigeria’s challenges, they also have a clear plan on how to clinch a party’s ticket and are never optimistic about their chances of winning at the polls. They are hardly given to pragmatism. In their world, to not be idealistic is to have sold out to the prevailing order. They always learn, but later.

Then there is the group who have already been trusted with a mandate. They won their election the last time and are looking to win another term. Of this group, there are those who are so serious about getting re-elected, they have committed themselves towards delivering the objectives of their office. They work, night and day, to ensure those who trusted them with their votes — and those who didn’t — get the leader they deserve. Then there are those who are seriously not about anything other than playing all the political games that’d return them to power. Governance, to this group, is an afterthought.

Of the lot scheming and plotting to win in 2027 are those who found themselves out of government; on account of not running the last time due to term limits, not being reappointed or appointed to a role or even being played out by the politics of the times. Of this lot, the most desperate are the ones who see being in power as some divine right. To this group, when they are in power, everything must revolve around them, when they are out of it, same. They are the ones to speak to loyalty and who isn’t loyal to them, when a cursory look will show that the only thing they are loyal to is their own naked desire for power. They will do, say and sacrifice anything to take power, because in their head, to be out of power is to be missing out on some divine purpose.

There are others, but they are all one, seeking power for its sake, to protect themselves, to deploy its tools and appurtenances against their perceived enemies and at other times, to deliver on the promise of good governance.

Coalitions will form. They are legal. There will be noise aplenty. New books will be ghost-written and launched with pomp and pageantry. Accusations will be thrown around like confetti. There will be empty and genuine confessions of love for country. Many, as usual, will be moved. Many will be tempted. There is a group, they are like the sheep in Animal Farm. In their head, “out of power good, in power bad”, so they repeat that to themselves to judge intention. They have no memories. So, it does not matter if “out of power good” was months ago “in power bad”. They just bleat and move along with whatever mob has their head on call.

I must spare a thought for the brilliant, well-meaning, yet naive minds. They will be led to believe that some of these people mean well. That they are the fabled good guys. They will buy into their ideas before any ideologies are sold. They will be moved, more by charm and charisma, than by any proven good intentions. Like those before them, they will be used as tools to advance the chosen. Then dumped without notice.

Long after they have been used and dumped, they’d still be there thinking themselves allied to the same group that regards them as nothing better than a stepping stone, one of many, to have, never to keep, to be used, and then left behind until there is another need for stepping stones and tools. The ones who are used again go from brilliant, well-meaning, yet naive minds to brilliant, well-meaning, yet never mind. Lost causes.

Nigeria is desperate for leadership. It will be for the next half-century because it is playing catch-up on all the major indexes for development. Those who mean well must always look to call everyone’s attention back to what really matters: governance. This is more so for those who have a mandate to deliver good governance to the Nigerian people. That mandate extends to the appointed, because you serve on account of the trust that was handed to whoever appointed you. When the push and pull of politics come knocking, the best answer will always be the proven results of what you have done and are currently doing for the progress and development of our country and the interest of our people.

The title of this piece suggests that there are names to be listed, as the main actors to look out for the next election. However, sometimes, you end up listing more names when you hand down a profile that many people can fit into. These indeed are the politicians to look out for. There are others with different profiles and there are those that intersect frameworks. Who you will not find is someone who only cares about the development of Nigeria. Not their ego, not their personal ambition, not a quest to have power to protect themselves or have a go at their enemies. There are no such angels. Everyone’s got an ego, some just have wisdom alongside it.

 Omojuwa is chief strategist, Alpha Reach/BGX Publishing