Nigerians are at once fortunate and unfortunate to be going to the polls at a time such as this when the world and especially Africa is experiencing change on a major scale. In an age where people are enlightened and unafraid of change we have been called out to “a one man, one vote” election that is praised as being the one time when Nigeria will have elections that are not predetermined.
We
are thus fortunate to have this election going on in a time where revolutions
are fashionable in the world and in Africa and unfortunate in the sense that we
have an electorate whose sense of duty and responsibility has been dulled as
far as participating in this process is concerned.
Change
cannot be expected to take effect immediately; it is always resisted at the
initial stage and praised when it produces positive results. But here is an
opportunity to build from the foundation a stable political system, howbeit
challenging, by taking hold of this Johnathanistic invention of “One man, One
vote.” This process is not an invention of chance for as Voltaire, my
favourite French Writer said, "Chance is a word void of sense; nothing can
exist without a cause."
The
cause for this laudable process is the corruption that has long coloured this
course, one that we have decried for so long. To be then given a taste of
something of positive difference and yet to be afraid to embrace the change we
have long sought is foolishness to me. And yet again as Voltaire said, "It
is hard to free fools from the chains they revere."
It
is therefore pertinent that we do not act as fools but that we put aside our
impertinence and desist from looking for everything wrong with our political
system. We should act! We cannot hope for any meaningful development if we do
not insist on change. We have been given the process, our only politics, is
action! We must embrace this opportunity to speak and to be heard.
Democracy
indeed is the politics of the voter and America has proven this theory true in
the way that her politics is conducted, issues are resolved at the polls and it
is not the electing of a man, although his character is investigated and
judged, it is the electing of an idea, an ideal whether it is presented by a
party or by a man representing the party. It is not, as Obama proved to America
and the world, a politics of “I can do that” but that of “Yes we can”.
Having
been given this opportunity, what should our response be, should we hold on to
our prejudice and be “Nigerian” about it by insisting on that
nothing-works-in-Nigeria-except-through-corruption attitude? Should we sit back
and watch how this turns out and not be directly involved in how it turns out?
I
run the risk of sounding political but I like to think that my views are more
nationalistic than political, I am not advocating a party or a person, I am
advocating a process that could eventually lay the power of this democracy in
the hands of its true owners- the people.
The
present electoral process needs to be embraced and used effectively to its
maximum if we are truly going to experience the change that we all seek.
It
is easier, as I always say, to be complacent and watch from the sidelines, and
instead of encouraging, to criticize the process and discourage everyone
involved in making it work. In doing so, we not only take from ourselves the
right to exercise our authority as voters, but also the right to protest when
things do not work.
We
cannot afford to base our excuse on what is past. In light of where we are as a
nation that excuse fails to hold true and has no value whatsoever.
We
need to get off our cowardly stance of lookers – on and get involved in this
growth process and not wait to criticize a truly honest effort when and if
it fails. And should it fail, we will not lay the blame anywhere
else but at our doors because this is not about a party, a person or a clown,
this is about us, this is about Nigeria. Let us not be cowardly and act with
ostentatious swagger by insisting on judging our future by our past.
Our
only politics is action - Vote Wisely!
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