As the race to the 2023 general election gains momentum with many aspirants declaring to vie for the highest post, while some Nigerians, especially the youths, are busy purchasing forms for their idolized politicians, the common refrain in some quarters, especially among the political elites and theorists, is that power is not given. And in an atmosphere or a culture where power is not given, it will be assumed that it is taken and if possible taken by force or taken by any means possible because all is fair in war and politics. For the promoters of the unfounded and dubious myth that power is not given but taken, politics abhors morality or put in another way, morality is a stranger in politics, especially Nigerian brand of politics where the survival of the fittest is number one law.
Perhaps the promoters of this nebulous myth should understand that power sharing, zoning, power rotation and whatever formula that has been used in distributing power and positions in Nigeria since 1999 democratic dispensation contradict the famed notion that power is not given on a platter or served on a dinner table with champagne and other choice wines.In spite of the glaring deficiencies in the 1999 Nigerian constitution, it is not silent on power sharing and zoning of political offices. It clearly states in Section 14 (3) that “The composition of the Government of the Federation or any of its agencies and the conduct of its affairs shall be carried out in such a manner as to reflect the Federal character of Nigeria and the need to promote national unity, and also to command national loyalty, thereby ensuring that there shall be no predominance of persons from a few states or from a few ethnic or sectional groups in that Government or in any of its agencies.” It is this political inclusion that Ndigbo are asking for. Since the quest for a Nigerian president of Igbo extraction gained traction in the polity preparatory to the 2023 general election, some opponents of that patriotic project have gone to town with fabricated and twisted tales, fictitious prophecies in the pulpits revisionist historical accounts, and other irritable views, all tailored to smear the worthy campaign.
Those behind the project of an Igbo occupying the highest political position in the land come 2023, are aware of such subtle, calculated and even orchestrated plots in high and low places to deny Ndigbo their political rights in this country. No amount of calumny, laughable prophecies and mythical theories hatched by some people blinded by vaulting ambition, greed, hate, and avarice, will be allowed to derail the Igbo presidency project.
It is ironical that whenever an issue concerns Ndigbo, some other Nigerians, not all, will be so quick in offering advice on what Ndigbo should do to get it or to be accepted as Nigerians. They will recommend to Ndigbo the pills they would not touch with hands if they face a similar problem. Unfortunately, the standard they set for Ndigbo is never set for another ethnic group. An Igbo will score higher than other candidates before he will get admission into the so-called unity schools, university, army, police and whatever federal establishment. In the federal civil service, the Igbo quota is always filled up, courtesy of the five states given the South East region, while other zones have at least six states each. The North West has seven states. The same inequities trail the creation of the 774 local governments in which the South East has the least number. I can go on and on to illustrate the inequities in the Nigerian federation, mainly skewed against Ndigbo of South East since 1970. But the worst is in national politics where Ndigbo cannot be allowed to reach the top. The only time Ndigbo got closer to the presidency was in 1979 when Dr. Alex Ekwueme was elected the Vice President of Nigeria.
Many critics of Nigerian politics believe that the subsisting agitation for Biafra among Igbo youths can be traced to many years of injustice against the Igbo people of South East by subsequent federal governments, whether military or civilian. Such agitations are animated by failure of those in power, the powers that be, to address the marginalization of Ndigbo since after the Nigeria/Biafra war of 1967-1970. The ongoing bloodbath in the South East is due to mass poverty, unemployment and disillusionment of youths in the zone. The Nigerian establishment is still behaving as if the civil war is still on. The real war has ended but the psychological war is still on. That is also why Ndigbo are treated as a conquered people and their territory treated with utter disdain and neglect. That is why there is no federal presence in the zone in terms of infrastructure and industry. That is why any protest or resistance by some youths in the zone, whether armed or not, is met with brutal force and vengeance. But, the deployment of kinetic measures alone cannot guarantee security and peace in the zone without addressing the underlying causes of insecurity in the region.
The argument by some Nigerians against Igbo politics is that they are not united, they cannot speak with one voice, where are their candidates, do they have qualified candidates. Now that these concerns are being addressed by the quality of Igbo aspirants to the throne, they are shifting the goalposts with the notion that power is not given or served as a dinner on a decorated table. They want us to fight and take it by force. They want us to build bridges and dialogue with other ethnic groups. Some of these are doable. Interestingly, some of their recommendations are being implemented but nobody knows if they will be satisfied. Because Ndigbo are involved, they will continue to erect barriers to truncate the move. Ndigbo have done enough to be given the presidency in 2023 whether on a golden platter or on a dinner table with champagne or other wines. Ndigbo have reached out to other zones and prominent people in Nigeria to be politically accommodated and be treated and regarded as part of this entity called Nigeria. The consultation is still ongoing.
The Igbo quest to rule Nigeria is just and right. The prevailing notion, which many have taken as the norm without adequate scrutiny, is that power is not given or served on a dinner table. But, the truth is that the Nigerian establishment had given power to the South West well-garnished on a dinner table in 1999 via Chief Olusegun Obasanjo presidency. Two candidates, Olusegun Obasanjo of the PDP and Chief Olu Falae of the AD, were the sole candidates for the presidential poll that produced Obasanjo as the winner. All other presidential candidates were made to step down for the duo. The Igbos are not asking for too much or asking for what had not been done before or what is outlandish. They are asking for equity, justice and fairness in the nation’s power equation. Ndigbo are asking to be treated the same way their brothers in the South West were treated.
Those in the PDP who are still guessing on zoning should understand that they are major beneficiaries of federal character, quota system of admission in federal colleges, universities and other federal government’s policies skewed in their favour. If Nigeria has not been fair to any ethnic group, it is to the people of the South East, majorly in its politics and sharing of military and political positions since 1970. The concept of one Nigeria will remain a ruse and even hypocritical if Ndigbo are politically excluded from the topmost position in the country. Therefore, the 2023 election will really show if Ndigbo are really wanted in Nigeria or not. It is akin to a referendum of a sort, even though it is an election. The PDP should not joke with zoning. It is illusory for the party to think that it can simply get the central power by jettisoning zoning. That is why some of its top members have warned it against repeating the mistake of 2015. Denying Ndigbo the presidency in 2023 will have some consequences which will haunt the country. The concept of power is not given can only be derived from the mythologies of oppression and domination.