Date: 2015-05-07

The fall of the most giant political party in the black world came to its members like a blow in the face. However, the reality of losing their firm grip on the polity is now staring the party’s faithfuls in the face like a bright lonely star in the sky at the thick of the night. The dream of the party ruling Nigeria for sixty years has suddenly been shattered; but not without giving the country sixteen years of nightmare and political solitude anyway. To paraphrase Tatalo Alamu, the principal casualties may have to be counted for many years to come. State orphans abound as the sixty year Reich has become the sixteen years of wreck.

The death of the PDP is like the fall of a super-power nation for the emergence of another. The expected reincarnation of the party however largely depends on how the supposedly political orphans are able to handle the political funeral of their benefactor; come together to form a strong opposition and stage a comeback in the next eight or sixteen years.

Personally, I will appreciate a situation where PDP is able to keep APC on its toes, wrestle power with it and shortchange each other intermittently as the situation in the states between the Democrats and the Republicans. This and only this can improve governance and sustain the country’s fledgling democracy. But with the ongoing exodus of PDP members defecting to APC, I am afraid we may be heading towards another one party de-facto system as experienced under PDP government in the last sixteen years.

Well, the elections have been won and lost and as expected, it has thrown up so many challenges for the party that emerged victorious—APC. Chief among which is the need to give the country a complete change of scene in the nation’s style of governance; from infrastructural revamping to eradication of decades of corruption in a decayed system.

This would be a herculean task for the new administration of Alh. Muhammadu Buhari without a National Assembly headed by experienced Law makers with track records of peace making. Nigerian democracy had witnessed enough violence in the past that it is presently in dire need of peaceful environment to make way for the hopes placed on the incoming government by millions of Nigerians. As Paul Collier noted in his book “wars, guns and votes”, political violence is both a curse in itself and an obstacle to accountable and legitimate government. It is a curse because the process of violent struggle is hugely destructive. It is an obstacle because where power rests on violence; it invites an arrogant assumption that government is there to rule rather than to serve.

However, the nation is presently awashed with political intrigues among the politicians of the six geo-political zones, maneuvering among themselves over who becomes the Senate President of the eighth National Assembly. Having succeeded in ousting a clueless government via the ballots, Nigerians are not ready to welcome a National Assembly headed by another set of clueless, inactive or violent leaders. Fortunately or unfortunately, the larger society has little or no role to play in the process of selecting leaders of the National Assembly. The election will be done within the chambers among the legislators.

However, there are many factors that are going to be considered in arriving at who becomes the Senate President and the Speaker of the House of Representatives in the eight National Assembly. The most important factor is the zoning arrangement within the ruling party—APC.

Nigeria being a plural nation and giving the act of balance of power among the differing ethnic groups along the six geo-political zones; where the President, the Vice-President, the Senate President, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, etc come from matters a lot. Now that the president-elect is from the North-West and the Vice-president from the South-West, the positions of the Senate President, Deputy Senate President, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Deputy Speaker, SGF, Chief of Staff to the president, NSA, etc are to be distributed and zoned among the remaining four geo-political zones of the federation.

North-Central seems to be the favourite of the APC’s movers and shakers, going by the resolutions from the outcome of the meeting held by the leaders of the party some days ago. The party is of course not out of tune as precedence had already been set in the past. For instance, the late president Umar Musa Yar’adua was from the North-West, his Vice, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan was from the South- Southern part of the country while the President of the Senate, David Mark came from the North-Central. The outgoing administration of Goodluck Jonathan equally comprises of the President from the South-South, Vice-President from the North- West and Senate President from the North-Central.

Now that the searchlight is focused on the North-Central to produce the next Senate President, there have emerged many contenders from the geo-political zone, but Senators Bukola Saraki from Kwara State and Senator George Akume form Benue State appear as the two strongest contenders for the post.

However, as soon as the duo indicated interest for the post, the political intrigues and permutations have thrown up lots of sentiments among the supporters and admires of the two distinguished ranked senators. One of the most pronounced sentiments raised against Senator Bukola Saraki is the issue of ethnicity. Those who are plotting the senator’s disqualification and their supporters erroneously argued that he is a Yoruba man and it would be inappropriate for both offices of the vice-presidency and senate presidency to be occupied by men from same tribe.

This argument has once again raises the question of imbalance federal structure and the problem of geographical identity in our national life. When has Kwara suddenly changed its status as a north-central state to a south-western? Haba! So there is nothing politics cannot paint any choiced colour in our dear country?

Besides, once the APC has decided to zone the office to a particular zone, the tribe or language of the benefactor does not matter any longer. Moreover, precedence was set when Hon. Aminu Tambuwal who hails from same geo-political zone and speaks same language as Nnamadi Sambo was allowed to emerge as Speaker of the House of Representatives even when Sen. David Mark is from north-central.

And if we say Tambuwal’s emergence was as a result of the political chicanery exhibited by the presidency to surreptitiously impose Hon. Mulikat Adeola on the Green Chamber as Speaker; you will agree with me that precedence is precedence.

Again, are there no Yorubas in Abijan, Lome, Yaunde, etc? As there are Hausa- Fulani in Chad, Mali, etc who are non-Nigerians? Does that change their status as citizens of their country?

Still on the balance of power and rotation spirit, while Benue state has produced three Senate Presidents in persons of Sen. Iyocha Ayu, Sen. Ame Ebute and Sen. David Mark, Kwara State has not been fortunate to be considered for any of the four highest offices in Nigeria under a democratic setting in Nigeria’s political history.

Instead of using the ethnic/language card, it would be more appropriate to focus on the attributes, intelligence and maturity or any other qualities of the two ranked senators that will help stabilize the eighth National Assembly as experienced under David Mark. Though Senator Mark is still very much interested in retaining the seat even after spending eight years on the throne, his party becoming a minority may not thrust this opportunity on his lap. As APC will fight tooth and nail to claim their rightful position.

While admitting the fact that Senator George Akume possesses good qualities that can be found in several others vying the post, it is important to choose the best out of all the contenders for the best interest of the nation rather than sentiment and politics of hatred.

Considering Sen. Saraki’s role in stabilizing the nation during his tenure as Chairman of Governors’ Forum under Yar’adua’s administration, he deserves to be tried for the position, so that he can use the same maturity applied then in managing the affairs of the body to take the higher chamber of Nigeria’s legislature to the next level.

Members of APC, including the party’s national leader, Sen. Bola Tinubu should equally consider Sen. Bukola’s role in the party during its trying moments under President Jonathan to compensate him for the post. He single handedly delivered five governors for the party to give it a national look and strengthened its capacity to win national elections.

His unquantifiable contributions to the seventh national assembly and exposure of the suckers of the nation’s oil proceeds should equally serve as added advantage to his emergence.

Lastly, APC became a strong party with national outlook after different political parties played down all their differences and merged as one. However, while Buhari emerged from the defunct CPC, Osinbajo from the defunct ACN and Hon. Gbajabiamila has been tipped or anointed as the preferred candidate for the position of Speakership in the lower house, what will be the benefit of the migrated PDP members to the APC?

In this modern world, a well exposed and obviously charismatic individual with wealth of experience like Dr. Bukola Saraki is needed to pilot our National Assembly to its glorious status. It is not blindness but refusal to see that ails our civilization. Quipped Novel Prize-winner, Jose Saramago, in his novel ‘Blindness”.

God bless Nigeria.

Ishowo Lateef writes from Ilorin