PDP and The Burden of Salvation – To Be or Not To Be?

Mazi Ejimofor Opara

The general sentiment about the need for a change of guard in the 2019 election is more of an argument for persons than it is for political party affiliation. It is this wave of rebirth that is bringing about the mounting implosion within the APC, which for me is a better path to rediscovery. Interests standing against interests, as in the Saraki and Tinubu feud, Ganduje and Kwankwaso fiasco or the Rochas and Ararume conundrum. Plus, pockets of mismanaged National situations that have fuelled the ambers of ethno-religious tensions and reignited the threats of secessionist agitation. In all, there is a substantiated hypothesis that the Nigerian problem is significantly related to poorly bred individuals than it is to frail political collectives/associations.

The emergence of the APC has been described as the most ludicrous political marriage of convenience, wherein the major political blocs have continued to maintain their default independence with little effort towards shedding off certain degree of weight so as to fit into this new sewn cloth called the APC. Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the new tailor contracted by the President to right size and shapen this new clothe to fit its preconceived purpose, is sure cutting and stitching, mending and hemming the ragtags to the best of his political wit. What is not certain, is the way Nigerians will come to define this emerging design in the days leading up to 2019.

On the other end is PDP – a party that is touted by many to be the largest political hub of serving and retired foxes that have plundered the Nigeria vine. In this assembly of objectionable graft lords are persons who lay claim to penitential rebirth (i.e Ikedi Ohakim, Sule Lamido, Atiku Abubakar, Emeka Ihedioha, Hon Bede Eke etc.). Truth is, they are a huge part of the known past no sane Nigerian is willing to give a second shot – little wonder the Father of them all is advocating for a “third force”.

There is a burden of Salvation that rests on the shoulders of the PDP, that may not be realizable with this same old guards of phoney leaders whose proclivity for plundering State resources is nothing short of excellent. Placing this in perspective, we are gradually strolling into an era where leaders will be voted in office not on the strength of their political platforms, but on the quality of their individual capacity and verifiable track records. If this becomes the new trend, it then follows that many of the self-acclaimed avatars of good governance will vacate the political space for a place on the sidelines of irrelevance.

This is the much anticipated place of the 3rd force proponents and the emerging political nobility comprising of men and women of proven integrity – people who will beg for contingency, than swindle and defraud both as private individuals and public servants. The blurring lines of partisanship is creating a strong delineation between two classes of Nigerian politicians viz; conscientious criminals and the heartless plunderers. Everyone is naturally aligning according to the laws of natural selection. While, we want to point out every conceivable ill and ascribe same to the emergence of the APC, let me be quick to remind us of the Lagos example that is thriving on a clearly defined developmental blueprint and the discipline to groom leaders who follow it meticulously. This is why there is a steady improvement from 1999 till date, with every leader raising the bar beyond the level he met it.

If the new advocacy for a new crop of leaders is anything to go by and the change the change mantra of the PDP is to be taken seriously by any inch, then they must be ready to justify this burden of salvation by presenting credible and novel alternatives. Back home in Imo, a Prof Jude Njoku over and above an Emeka Ihedioha will look more like it; a Raymond Onyeugo or any other egghead over and above a Bede Eke will pacify the battered psychology of the Ngor Okpala / Aboh Mbaise constituents.

This is the time to take the gaze off the mirage of party affiliation to a more fundamental concern of individual credibility and creative ingenuity to steer the wheels of leadership towards the realization of a better Nigerian Society. If the PDP can spew this, I wouldn’t be surprised to have my thumb pushing them on the saddle again.