*Cool Revolution

By Bisi Lawrence
Indeed, “these are times that try men’s souls”. Perhaps we can relax a bit, now that we are assured that the political parties have “declared their intention” to nominate some specific representatives, or “flag-bearers”, for the forthcoming elections. The nominees continued to be shuffled like a pack of cards in the hands of a master gambler. And that seems to be precisely what those who are in the position to call the shots have been … gamblers with human lives.

The issue of “internal” democracy was finally laid to rest in the melee that has got everyone engaged, from the “speakers” of the various Houses of Assembly to those who now have very little to say but cannot keep silent. A wag along the street where I intend to remain a recluse for ever, spread a corrupted version of a Michael Jackson number over the mess, to embarrass a mouthy neighbour who is “professional” politician, and had begun to celebrate his adoption by his party some three weeks back. You probably know the song:

“He’s white, he’s black … “. Well, the uncharitable fellow’s song goes: “He’s in, he’s out, he’s really yet in between..”

And that was true. The aspirant was only hoping to be sent to the House of Assembly when the Fuhrer declared that only the House of Representatives would be suitable for a man of his sterling qualities. Joyously, the man stepped out with a fuji band rehearsing already for the occasion of the public announcement. The traditional mushroom of friends had sprouted up on all sides, addressing him as “honourable”. His life-style was speedily undergoing a sea-change. And then came thunder – you guessed it.

His name was reportedly withdrawn from the list of his party’s “intentions”. Some people said it was even never forwarded, whilst others who appear to know about these things, affirmed that the name was indeed submitted initially, but was later withdrawn. And when others who also hardly hide their savee about such matters wondered how he could have been made to withdraw his name, the knowing ones petulantly retorted: “That is politics. And, in any case, don’t you know that every aspirant under consideration for be
ing “elected” by the party must first of all submit his letter of  withdrawal?”

And so, there we had a half-composed fuji song almost ready to take the streets, but no one to sing it for. The poor man was fractured on every bone in his body. The new friends began aging even before they had been able to grow old. The Fuhrer had spoken. But not for the last time – no, no, not in the least. He kept the air alive for the next two weeks, sending hopes on vain errands after empty hopes, until at the final announcement, everyone was prostrated and prostrated, and no one really hardly cared when he released his “intention” or not. Why bother, anyway? It was still an open market and anyone could still involve himself in a little bit of horse-trading here and there. That is politics – or to what we have reduced it.

And yet, this was the one that they said would remove us from the ashes of our charred honour and lift us once again to the zenith of our past glory. These are the preparations for the palatable elections that will remove the sour taste of past rigging, and thuggery, and “do-or-die-ism” from our mouth for ever. This is the one we’ve been waiting for, the one that will be shaped on the anvil of law and order and constitutional reforms, and hammered into shape by the hand of integrity.

I cannot see a fair and free election emerging from this muddle. I say it out of genuine concern for this nation which has been subjected to the harrowing pains of misdirection from one decade to the other. Other people say so too, but not too loudly. Even formerly powerful men who held that fractions of a human being – “two-eighths of a citizen existed as a living creature (and should be reckoned as an entity in an electoral exercise) have their say these days. And that too may be because of their belated concern for the well-being of the nation, abi? Very well is it said that when people grow too old to set bad examples, they give good advice.

However, for how long can we shrug and carry on when we refuse to make things right?

***Our national stripe of long-suffering has inclined people to compare our ability to rise against undesirable aspects of governance unfavourably with countries like Tunisia and Egypt, which recently stunned the world by their adamant uprising against dictatorship. It is not as though we cannot react against acts of oppression too; after all, we rejected Obasanjo’s third time bid. Neither is it that we fear physical harm. We endured the injuries and bore the casualties of “June 12”, though our sufferings might not have achieved the reversal that we sought to establish justice.

But the situation in those North African countries is quite different in many ways, especially demographically, from Nigeria. The Capital city of Nigeria, Abuja, is very far from the rest of the nation and its impact cannot physically affect the rest of the country as Cairo would Egypt.

The former Capital, Lagos, was in the position that Cairo now is, both administratively and commercially. But even then, although Lagos could be described as a microcosm of Nigeria from the fact that citizens from all over the country make it their home base, the passions that rule the city are not fully shared by all its inhabitants. An unrest in the erstwhile Capital might not even be heard of for some time in several other urban centres, and would therefore have limited effect.

Egypt is also very different from Nigeria in the inter-relationship of the people.

Christians and Muslims live there together in harmony. They have been doing so for centuries in mutual respect and protection. In the recent demonstrations, for instance, it was recorded that male Christians were particularly protective of the Muslim women’s privacy during the mammoth rally. This is a lesson we can learn not only from the demonstrations, but also from Egypt’s social life.

We may also learn about the quality of representation “of the people by the people”, to take a splinter from the oft-quoted definition of democracy. Egypt emerged from a constitutional monarchy in 1952 when the military took over the government. It remained under a military dictatorship until 1971 when it became a republic under a Constitution approved by a referendum. The Constitution has now been amended three times.

Although it established a presidential form of government, the military connection with, and influence in government have remained clearly on the surface of politics. It is evinced by the fact that all the presidents that have so far been in office were from the military hierarchy – Abdel Nasser (Army), Anwar Sadat (Navy), and Hosni Mubarak (Air Force).

However, the people have been able to enjoy a comparably more liberal dispensation in the way of individual participation in government than in several other African nations. While only political parties that have no less than five percent of the legislature may present candidates for election, any individual may contest as a private candidate with the support of sixty-five legislators.

Finally, a revolution is fraught with the dangers of anarchy. Those who lead are usually accepted as mere arrowheads, and not permanent leaders. The invitation to opportunism and brigandage is wide open, and the people sense it. Some citizens join in, whilst others resist.

A period of unrest ensues and the outcome is unpredictable. Its “dividends” are often unprofitable in the end. Attractive as it looks and brave as it sounds, it is usually long on bravado, and short on benefits. Even in the straits of our frustration with INEC, the way of wholesome protests which leads to balanced reasoning still suits Nigeria best. So, impressive as the happenings in Cairo may be, that is simply not our speed. We need to develop our own way, a way unique to our size and diversity, to create a cool revolution that would still make our leadership sit up and listen.