Nigeria- Character Assessment of Politicians: Can the Electorate Decide?
March 29th, 2007 | Published in Governance, Nigeria, elections | 4 Comments
Towards the Nigerian general elections in April 2007. One of the readers reacted to this post “Character and Social Commitment - the Key to Good Governance“, and fired back with this question:
“How will the electorates appraise the character of a man vying for political office…I’m a little bit confuse here…is it through the pages of newspapers, or what he says during political rallies…?”
A very appropriate question given the nature of politics in Nigeria.
I my opinion, information is the key here; its takes an informed electorate, an efficient Press, and little or no interference from the powers of the land for the electorates to “appraise the character of a man vying for political office”.
However, Nigeria is a nation - just like any other on the African continent by the way - where the power of incumbency is often and unfairly over-powering, and where the Press easily becomes confused of and deviates from its role as the “voices and eyes” of the people and an unbiased umpire in the political game.
What do you think? Have your say.
March 30th, 2007 at 7:30 am (#)
Information is power. Ability (and willingness to act )on that information confers even more power.
The Nigerian elite and middle class have a lot of information about the characters of a lot of the jokers who are standing in the elections in 3 weeks, but lack the will to make use of that power. That is the tragedy.
April 3rd, 2007 at 7:27 am (#)
Another is the ability of information to travel. The only thing that works and spreads fast is rumour. There’s simply no infrastructure to check out these rumours.
Incumbency or not, if we all have proofs (I mean subpoenable ones) of an aspirant having different birthdates on several documents, then we can all vote for other people. The knowledge of how the voting/counting process takes place will also help extinguish the notion that elections can be rigged even if they are electronic.
And not eve INEC is ready to be open about its processes.
April 4th, 2007 at 1:14 pm (#)
I believe the eventual perfomance of an office holder really has nothing to do with all the high sounding promises they unleash during election campaigns. I think the people of nigeria and indeed africa should now establish a system of setting specific targets for aspiring leaders.
These targets should be :
1. Based on agreed indeces for national growth and development. e.g how many new roads, new universities, new stadia, new homes to be built every year?
2. FullY defined qualitatively and quatitatively and devoid of jargons and rhetorics thus making performances easily measurable. e.g. rather than say “we want to improve the macro-economy by 10% in one year” We can simply say “We will build 2 million units of family homes in one year” Obviously this will create thousands of job, Hundreds of enterprises, improve peoples purchasing power, and reduce inflation. I guess this is what “improving the macro-economy is all about”
3. Constitutionally and legally biding on whoever gets to the specified office. This system of setting growth targets must be entrenched in our constitution and every set target passed into law.
For example, assuming we have a legally binding target for the president to deliver 25,000 megawatts of electricity in 8 years, it will be unneccessary for an office seeker to come on the podium and promise 50,000mw. Campaigns will them be based on objective and practical methods of achieving our common goal rather than empty promises.
4. At the end of every term, office holders must be assessed by the level of performance against our collective goals. If goals are reasonably met, such office holders could be rewarded e.g by being allowed to serve again.
5. Leaders found wanting should be punished e.g by impreasonment.
I know this sounds like an illussion but it’s certain Nigeria’s and Africa’s develpoment will be as much illusions in this generation and many to come if a system like this is put in place NOW!.
April 4th, 2007 at 6:06 pm (#)
Until a time when politicians have a well prepared manifesto; parties have a well defined ideology; and we have a conscious, educated (not necessarily institutional education) and well informed electorate, the Nigerian political terrain will be dominated by bandits of politicians whose primary aims are self-enrichment and be regional lords and kingpins - which in very sense indistinguishable from the mafia modus operandi.
Kunle: Thanks for visiting the Grandiose Parlor and the ‘deep’ comment.
Anthony: Isn’t there enough information about the polling/balloting system already? I feel it’s the job of the political parties to fill the information void that exist, if there is any.
Chxta:I don’t think Nigeria has any viable and significant middle class any longer. The elites you referred to care less about Nigeria really. They and their families have access to Europe and America; they have become absentee citizens of Nigeria.