From time immemorial, politics has been the fuel powering the machinery of the state for the maintenance of law, the sustenance of sovereignty, and the pursuit of public welfare. And as Plato, an ageless philosopher cautioned, ‘one of the penalties of refusing to participate in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors’
Politics is not a dirty game as many people with political apathy, malice and prejudice often colour it to be. Such aspersions will only dissuade and discourage honourable people from actively participating in it. We will all agree that there are disreputable persons in every sector of our society who work despicably and dishonourably in their own line of duty. There are bad teachers, bad doctors, bad lawyers, bad clerics, and bad business people. Hence bad politicians who play the game of politics unethically should not make us throw away the bath water along with the baby. And as the Arabs will wisely say, ’the weeds in the garden are usually watered for the sake of the seeds’. They are willing to risk both their reputation and their resources against all forms public scrutiny and vilification, in order to serve in leadership position for the betterment of their country.
It is quite compelling that without unity, and integration a nation will eventually disintegrate and fall. The world is constantly changing. Democracy is also increasingly evolving. It is agreeably espoused to be the deep polarity among a people. Its emerging widespread fossilization and institutionalization across the globe should not be conceived as an insidious imperialistic drawback against our culture.Inevitably, it should be embraced,and husbanded as a humanistic leverage towards our sustainable attainment of liberty, security, and prosperity both as individuals, and as a people. Democracy aims at establishing a workable framework of governance by the avenue of a free, and fair electioneering platform; where all stakeholders come together to harmonize their differences, synchronize their ideas, and synergize to advance their mutual benefits, their common interest, and their shared aspirations.
Political parties are essentially the platforms on which democracy is cultivated and nurtured. The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) is indisputably the first political party in the history of Nigeria to have a pragmatic national agenda rather than provincial/regional propaganda. It is undeniably the largest and richest political party in Africa, and the foremost vanguard of democratic change, and development in Nigeria. And just like every other invention of man, this party is not perfect.
There are many ignoble politicians that are striving to assault its integrity and abort its cohesion. These misguided malcontents are recklessly desecrating the hallowed platform of this noble party.
Although most of our political leaders were overwhelming voted into power under the umbrella of the PDP, some had regrettably become corrupted by the intoxication of the power and the seduction of impunity. We the youths form the largest proportion of the electorate. We are inescapably the real king markers. PDP does not belong to the elites or glitterati. Power belongs to Nigerians. It is the democratic workshop of every politically patriotic Nigerian.
Let this be a reawakening clarion call to ginger our youths to salvage our great party, the PDP from the hostage grip of bad politicians. We must rise to claim the leadership of PDP. Political power will never be given to the youths, we must contest for it. Evil can only persist so long as good people fail to resist it. We can no longer afford to be sentimental or myopic. A more radical and holistic diagnosis of the malady impairing the Nigerian projects reveals that a nation overburdened by the germs of illiteracy, cupidity, mediocrity and hypocrisy will be overwhelmed by an epidemic of poverty, corruption, poor leadership and insecurity. The panacea to this maelstrom of menace regardless of our political leanings can be actualised via an ethical-overhaul and value-reorientation.
Imperatively, this must begin in our closets, our associations, our business organisations, our political parties, and our public institutions. Enough is enough. We must usher in the revolution we all dream and yearn for. The enlightened youths must lead this revolutionary struggle in a civil way by the use of the ballot box and other democratic arsenals. We must not yield to the savage blood-letting snare of the barrel of the gun. Anarchy and violence had not and cannot lead any lasting liberty and peace.
Lastly, it’s hypocritical to condemn what we can’t correct, and immature to criticize what we can’t change. We can no longer be silent and reticent. We must begin to walk our talk and be model of change we desire to see. PDP belongs to Nigerians. All hands should be brought on deck to transform our country. We can’t go down memory lane to rewrite our history, but we can begin where we are today to renew our hopes, recreate our reality, and secure a promising future for posterity. We are the new reality of democracy in Nigeria. The stakes are high, and we can’t accord to fail. And as the noble laureate Wole Soyinkasuccinctly puts it, ‘we must set forth at dawn’ before the twilight of age and ability sets against us.
Our struggle continues! Victory is certain!
Long live democracy! Long live PDP! Long live the federal republic of Nigeria!
This piece was written by Muhtari Moses Hassan.
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