APC and the stench of death  

One of the signs of a weak democratic state is the absence of real political parties and this is so true of Nigeria’s experience from 1999 till date. We have only had pseudo political parties clobbered together by politicians solely to capture power. Sadly, the situation has not changed for the better. The All Progressives Congress (APC) has shown us how not to be in power because from all intent and purposes it does not know what to do with power or how to exercise it via a political party.

No doubt, APC was a special purpose vehicle established with the sole intent of chasing former President Goodluck Jonathan away from office. Having done this, it is somehow clueless – that adjective again, on what to do with political power. Whether the party never thought it would win or does not believe its own manifesto or claims to Nigerians while canvassing for our votes, it has, however, demonstrated so far that it is better as an opposition party than holding the reins of power. Let’s forget about its twin, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), lousy in power, and even worse off outside power. Other parties are not better as we can see from the revelation coming out of the probe into the arms money under the last government.

Yakubu Dogara, the House of Representatives speaker, unwittingly in an interview two weeks ago perhaps gave us a window into the thinking of the top apparatchik in APC. Dogara, a lawyer who clearly understands the importance of words, said “you cannot be in the same party for ever” adding that he can leave APC if the need arises. It shows the mindset of some APC members, the party is useful for just a purpose: acquiring political power by all means necessary. The show of shame we saw last week in the senate without an official reaction so far from the party’s hierarchy shows how disciplined the party is. Just imagine this happening in the days of Jonathan Odebiyi as UPN leader in the senate or Olusola Saraki as the senate leader. The better we don’t remind ourselves of how political parties like Action Group, Northern People’s Congress or Northern Elements Progressive Union (NEPU) conducted their affairs with respect to party discipline the better for our blood pressure.

President Muhamamdu Buhari himself at a level is guilty of contempt for the party that brought him to power. Sure APC is an amalgam of several parties – Action Congress of Nigeria, Congress for Progressive Change, All Nigeria Peoples Party, and a faction of the All Progressives Grand Alliance formed the party on February 6, 2013, but the rainbow coalition is not as orderly as the natural rainbow with its beautiful seven colours. Sometimes, one gets the feeling that the president would have preferred he does not have to deal with the party as seen in the interview where he tactically disowned the party’s manifesto saying “my party may have promised that” in response to a question on the payment of N5000 to jobless or poor people. The accusations that most of his appointments have gone to CPC elements of APC is an internal one for the party to deal with, but when you want to jettison your party manifesto as a leader, citizens should be worried. Our president ran on a platform of integrity and so denying the words of the movement, which brought him to office, leaves a dent on his credibility.

Among some of the wonderful promises APC manifesto contains include: ban on all government officials from seeking medical care abroad, provision of allowances to the discharged but unemployed NYSC members for 12 months, creation of 720, 000 jobs per annum, revival of Ajaokuta steel company, and a real GDP growth of 10% annually. It is up to Nigerians to determine how far the party has gone in the 14 months on these promises and others not listed here. APC’s inability to turn its majority in the national assembly to an advantage confirms that the merger was anything but seamless while the continual battle between the executive and legislative arms is proof that some of its members are doing a good job than the opposition parties. The needless invitations to ministers and presidential aides are slowing down the machinery of government and much cannot be done that way.

Our country needs political parties in the truest sense of building blocks for democracy. What we have now cannot pass muster or help our democratic journey. APC is of greater interest because it is the party in power and it is doubtful if it will survive in the present form till the next election. Putrefaction has set in on already with the stench getting worse.