As the 2015 election season draws near, political bargains, horse trading and intrigues are playing out vigorously, heralding the basic tenets of democratic indices and practices and in some instances negating them in a most distasteful manner. As a result of that Nigerians are currently witnessing an unprecedented orgy of frenzied endorsement of candidates already serving as either legislator or chief executives of various governments. That was coming even as there was widespread disillusionment and general discontentment with most of the political office holders and major political activists.
Various state chapters of the ruling PDP have met separately to pass a vote of confidence on their governors, urging them to re-contest their positions and were assured boundless and illimitable support. While that epidemic of outright backing for the incumbent first-term governors was progressing unabated, the PDP Governors Forum announced its unequivocal endorsement of President Goodluck Jonathan as sole candidate for the party’s National Convention in October during which that decision would be wholeheartedly approved by delegates at the sham presidential primaries. Similarly, in a swift, surprising move, the PDP Board of Trustees, the National Working Committee and the influential National Executive Committee had, in a quick succession, toed the line of the dominant and influential governors.
President Jonathan, who is yet to make public his intention to re-contest, was extremely excited and exhilarated by that development and thanked the broad spectrum of his party’s leadership for giving him the right of first refusal in terms of presidential ticket for the party. As it is, President Jonathan has been given an automatic ticket to contest on the platter of gold as had earlier been promised by Mr. Fix It, the unassailable Chairman of the PDP Board of Trustees, Chief Tony Anenih.
Now, whether or not President Jonathan is entitled to that privilege remains to be seen, for it could be a subject of litigation whenever he expresses his intention to run. The issue of automatic ticket is now putting the party’s serving senators and the incumbent governors on a war path over the automatic ticket agreement reached between them and President Jonathan. In June this year Tony Anenih urged the party to adopt a principle of automatic tickets to all deserving political office holders of the party so as to avoid the rancorous primaries that always threaten to tear the party apart. Nevertheless, Chief Olisa Mentuh has said that the automatic ticket accorded President Jonathan is not extended to the governors, senators, federal and state legislators and that may just bring about ill feelings in the already sour relationship between the governors and the senators.
It was revealed that the endorsement of President Jonathan as sole candidate for presidential primaries by the PDP Governors Forum was not unconditional. It was hinged on the anticipation that all first-term governors should be given automatic tickets in next year’s gubernatorial contests; all second-term governors should also determine who shall succeed them and be give automatic tickets also to run as senators in their respective constituencies while those who may not want to go to the Senate would be made ministers. However, the senatorial tickets expected for the second-term governors would seriously jeopardize the interest of senators who have been absolutely loyal to the party. For that reason, therefore, many state governors and serving senators are trapped in that intractable conflict, and that may eventually cause the implosion or violent explosion of the Africa’s political behemoth.
It is to be realized that the action of the PDP leadership in assenting Jonathan’s sole candidature did not go well in many quarters especially as it has been interpreted as a negation of the tenets of democracy which clearly indicated that the ruling party lacked internal democracy. Many Nigerians were clearly appalled by that impulsive decision to grant an automatic second-term ticket to a president whose uneventful and lackluster tenure inflicted hardship and misery on his people. By so doing the PDP has actually confirmed the widespread belief that there is no internal democracy in the way and manner Nigerian political parties are organised. Its action has also lent credence to the contention of some cynics that our democracy is being redefined, albeit disapprovingly.
That was why the proposed illegal deal between the PDP governors and the President for insulating them from probe by the EFCC, or for the adjustment and interchange of positions, is most disturbing. That is why Nigerians must resolve to fight corruption by rejecting byproducts of dishonest deals at the polls. The PDP leaders should realize that ultimately their candidates, anointed by their selfish and inconsiderate leaders, have to slug it out with the candidates of other parties who might be thrown up through appropriate processes and Nigerians would freely choose those who are better qualified among them with good track records and without blemishes whatsoever. The PDP may have its way in fielding President Jonathan as its sole presidential candidate but the masses must have a choice in electing a candidate freely in transparent election. As at now President Jonathan is unresponsive to that undemocratic gesture, would he eventually play ball?
