HOW APC IS HELPING TO RE-ELECT PRESIDENT JONATHAN

There is popular adage in Yorubaland that says you can predict what a person will become in adulthood through their behaviour and habits while still young. This wisdom is apt when considering the demise of effective opposition in our country. It is simply not good enough for the opposition to expect us to vote for them on the basis of a dislike for President Jonathan as a leader. The lack of effective articulation of what they stand for in many areas is a big elephant in the political room that could give President Jonathan a landslide victory in 2015 elections.

I am not a supporter of any political party in Nigeria as things stands because I believe they are all the same and fighting only for themselves and not the masses of Nigeria. As things stands today; there is no opposition party in Nigeria. What we have is two PDP parties under different names.

Immediately after the last presidential election; I had a face to face discussion with a key opposition player in which I explained how they can create an effective political structure that will become a government-in-waiting that will appeal to many Nigerians. I also explained that they need to do away with this policy of opposition for opposition sake, which lacks credibility and ambition. Even the greatest hater of President Jonathan cannot in true conscience say Mr President is wrong all the time.

I explained that the opposition needed to create a Shadow Government that will replicate the structure of the government in power. They need to have Shadow Ministers for every federal ministry that will become the point person and knowledge centre in each area of governance. I suggested that these Shadow Ministers should then produce a state of the nation policy document every six months that will review and tract the activities of the substantive government ministry they shadow. This document should contain praises for the things the government have done right and steep and deserved criticism for the things they have failed to do, with new policy recommendations. At the least; this approach will create several knowledge centres within the opposition team that will enable them to hit the ground running should they win the next election.

This approach will also convince Nigerians that they are indeed ready to govern if voted in and will portray the opposition as credible and full of ideas on moving the nation forward. But my counsel was not implemented. So what do we have now? An opposition that is void of any leadership or strategic direction. An opposition with no clear policy ideas in any area of governance that we can see or is memorable. An opposition that has a spokesperson who have become jack of all trade and master of none by speaking on everything from finance to agriculture to defence and security. How can one person effectively represent the opposition programme in ALL areas of government? As for Malam El-Rufai; he has tried in my opinion but he cannot alone carry the burden of policy evangelism for an opposition that is not policy driven.  For a February 2015 election; there is still no effective articulation of any policy by the opposition nor do we know who their candidates’ pool (or shortlist) are. All I seem to recall or remember about the opposition at the moment are their constant criticism of President Jonathan and not any policy they plan to implement if elected.

We are indeed in trouble as a people if the best we can do is this current bunch of opposition politician. That President Jonathan is lacking in many areas is no more news to Nigerians. What we equally do not know is what the opposition will do if they are in government. Producing a manifesto few weeks to election is not credible if it is not a product of active knowledge centres within the political party, which have developed during the years in opposition. Otherwise it will all be theories that will be quickly jettisoned for more expedient and lucrative options if they win the next election.

It is sad that our opposition parties (just like the government) are so focused on power grab that they have forgotten the most important element of our democracy; the needs and priorities of the people. I have therefore concluded that there seem to be a conspiracy against Nigerians by the political elite. They seem to have given us a semblance of opposition; but with the same players and puppet masters but different branding. And in any situation where the alternative is not clearly and convincingly articulated; people tend to stick with the “devil they know”. After all we all thought we will get better after President Yaradua, but see what we have now.

Making two blind changes in a row looks like a bad idea under any circumstance. So the greatest asset for the re-election of President Jonathan in 2015; seem to be the current opposition posture and composition. Mr President seem to be getting more effective opposition from within his own PDP than from the APC.

So if the opposition remains fractured, docile and just opposing as they are now; they will help re-elected President Jonathan easily next year. It is almost too late for a major change to filter through and change people’s impression of a failing opposition movement. But a late change of course is better than none at all in my view. The opposition need to show they have a broad based pool of talents and experts in all fields and sectors that will convince the voters that they are worth voting for. The status quo will wipe out the opposition vote next year and give us more of the same.

We need to begin to see clarity of direction from the opposition. Clarity of leadership. Clarity of policies and more importantly clarity of ambition to work for the people if voted in and change our collective fortune for the sake of posterity.