We Should All Be Politicians
When we ask that all the intelligent and smart young people who have a good heart should get into politics, it is to stop things like what is happening right now i.e the Nigerian government’s response to CoVID-19.
I was going to write this post 2 weeks ago but couldn’t find the time. Well now that life is what it is right now, look who has the time. Also, I need to find an outlet for this anger that’s bottled up in me. As a Nigerian, I go about daily with anger, sadness and fear all wrapped up inside me because of the state of the country. Thankfully, right now, my anger is bigger and stronger than the fear & sadness and that’s what is pushing me to do all the things I’m doing now.
I’m a politician, a card carrying and dues paying member of a political party with plans to run for office in the future. 2 weeks ago, I was at the ward meeting of my party. The meeting was to start for 4 but I was speaking at an event at that time so I already knew I’d be late. I wanted to get there before 5 no matter what though, so at 4.45pm, I excused myself from the panel I was speaking on and drove to the meeting. At 5pm, I was one of the 1st 5 people and we were all just entering the building.
That meeting ran on for over 2 hours and we accomplished nothing the entire time. The whole meeting was spent with us going round and round the same issue countless times without any actual objective conversation happening. Some of the members also used the meeting as an opportunity to air their private grievances publicly. A lot of those who spoke were just talking off point, some could not even speak well. I’m not asking you to speak perfect English but if you’re going to be leading people, the least you can do is communicate with them, right? I remember in particular 2 people who spoke for so long and I could hardly make sense of what they were saying. It took intense concentration, repeating their words to myself and simultaneous analysis of the context to understand them. How are these the people leading me and making decisions that affect me?
I was the newest person in the room on that day so I was doing more of listening, getting to know people and understanding the context. I was frustrated 30 minutes into the meeting but I had to wait it out. I started thinking of how much different that meeting would be if only there were 9 other people in that room who were on or close to my end of the spectrum. Even if I wanted to speak that day and try to change things, it would have made no difference. I’d have been the youngest and newest person who has no track record within the ward trying to change what my ‘elders’ have been doing for a long time. We were about 30 in that meeting, imagine if 10 of us were people thinking like me. I could speak and have the support of at least a third of the room (this is based on just math not context). But alas, I was the lone, different and silent voice.
These people are those who will be the delegates at the congresses that determine who the party leaders at various levels are. They’re the ones who decide the candidates the party fields for various offices. These are people who know next to nothing about governance, economics, development, leadership and who are just all about the influence, recognition, money and the petty Olympics. (This is just a generalisation, please understand that and don’t come for my head). How can we expect them to make the decisions that will move the country forward?
If we had a critical mass of more young people like me in parties, we’d have more influence on who gets which tickets. We’d have more of us in offices where we can at the very least make governors and presidents do the right thing. Buhari has refused to speak to the nation in the face of this outbreak. My mind cannot wrap itself around that. Sierra Leone with no current cases has stopped all flights from entering the country. Mauritius with 3 cases banned entry into the country effective March 19. Chad had shut down their airports before they got their first case. Nigeria with 22 cases is still allowing flights, the ban comes into effect on Monday, March 23. Who makes these decisions????? We have been making wrong choices for a while now and these choices have been giving us the worst of leaders. It’s time to change things.
Dear young people, we should all be politicians. I’m not asking you to run for office, I’m asking you to do the minimum which is to join a party and be part of those who make the decisions there. Be part of those who influence and form party ideals. Be part of those who support those of us who will choose to run. Let us get that critical mass of changemakers that our country and continent so desperately need. Please!
We’ve been sitting on a ticking time bomb for a while now and the country has been running without ‘form and void’. Now, things literally are a matter of life and death. See, you are needed and you can make a change, starting from the units that form the fabric of our governance. It’s more than asking you to choose good governance, I’m asking you to choose life. For crying out loud, put yourself out there and help all of us put people who can and will do the right things in positions of authority, people who will listen to us.
At my organisation, we have a slogan “Visible Presence, Audible Voices”. That day at that meeting, I was present but I had no voice. But at least, I had gone halfway, most of us don’t aren’t even present. You have to be present first before you can use your voice. Fellow young Nigerians, we should all be politicians. Be present and be usefully present!
If anyone would like to join a political party, hit me up in the comments and I’ll be happy to share my journey so far with you. I’ll probably do a post about it soon, as soon as I get some things off the ground within the party.
