One Party System is not a condition for growth in Nigeria

It was believed that having a centralised form of governance in Nigeria would hasten economic development, unfortunately this is not the case given the experience of nearly six-decades of independence. The current government has successfully exposed the numerous flaws of the unitary centralised system lending support to various accusations of exploitation and domination of one ethnic group over others and widespread agitations for restructuring of the country. Similarly, it has not hidden its actions to foster one-party rule in the country which is interpreted by many as a ploy to deepen ethnic domination and control, the very reason for restructuring. Experience has shown that one party system is an avenue to control, corruption and coercion. According to Margaret Moniyani; "Nation building cannot be achieved where the freedom of members of the legislature, interest groups, local authorities and other avenues of popular participation, the media and the bureaucrats is curtailed". Using Kenya as a case study provides a scenario where the single party system degenerated into authoritarianism and thus becoming a hindrance to economic development. The party became a bud of corruption. Disregard for merit and reward of loyalty manifested in all forms as those that pledged full loyalty to the party and the president ended up holding powerful positions in government. This became a recipe of separatist tendencies especially among the smaller tribes that sought to express themselves through welfare societies. This was in a bid to fill the gap of having no adequate representation in government. This degenerated into some sought of post-colonial struggle which was catalysed by the polarisation of the periphery and most importantly the link between economic rewards and political rewards. Surveillance and the use of watch dogs during the one-party system era in Kenya led to fear and thus no real political competition and debate even within the party itself is allowed"-Margaret Monyani; One Party State: Is it Good or Bad for Governance, May 25 2018. Basically this is what we are currently witnessing in Nigeria. Seeking one-party rule is simply trying to legitimise irrational, unsuitable and unsustainable programmes of this government through the backdoor not minding the future consequences on the society and economy. In the words of  Senator Umar Tsauri, National Secretary of the People's Democratic Party; "Unless Nigerians are under curse, there's no hope for APC in 2023...,the Buhari administration has been given the opportunity to prove itself to Nigerians that the APC is a better alternative to the PDP, but blew its chances of ruling beyond 2023 away, thanks to its dismal performance since coming to power in 2015. No right thinking person would vote for APC, not only in Katsina, but across the country. APC had openly demonstrated its incapability and compounded the woes of the people .Katsina people were disappointed with the grave failure of the ruling party in the state to tackle the prevailing security challenges orchestrated by bandits and infrastructural decay in the state". Luring opposition politicians to the ruling party despite the reality on the ground mocks democracy and citizens who are the victims of misrule: Gross corruption, failed economy, insecurity, land-grabbing, genocidal thrust, economic violence and distress, killings, repression, fear and terror, mass-unemployment, collapsed infrastructure and social services, gerrymandering, destruction of democratic institutions and rule of law, huge debts, devalued Naira, collapsed manufacturing and financial markets, diminished foreign direct investment, ethnic and religious domination, political bias and favouritism, persistence of poverty and stagnation. Of-course, no sane society will reward such a party with a glorified future amidst collosial devastations. The focus should be how to restructure the country to guarantee citizens security and prosperity rather than seeking a one-party state. In the words of Governor Samuel; "the political, economic and security challenges facing the country cannot be solved by people decamping from one political party to another. What is most important at this point is for Nigerians of all walks of life to join hands and surmount the challenges confronting the nation"

 The idea of one-party system is not a condition for performance neither does it offer a path out of misery and disorder that has befallen the country. This is the ideology of ''gutter politicians'' who build their success on hatred using economic and political discrimination as a strategy to remain powerful. A small group of very violent people who are on a mission to grab as much resources as they can by subjecting the rest of the population to unending servitude. Ordinary people need to be properly informed to be on the right side and resist the manipulation by the gods and monsters among us to maintain the status-quo which creates more harm than good. We know in most cases votes don't count however, information is one sure way to provide ordinary people the tool to make the right choices.  The whole idea is very funny. Instead of providing equality of opportunities, restructuring the country to drive equity, social justice and the plurality that comes with democratisation, one-party rules becomes a condition for provision of public goods and services. The people need good governance ,air- hubs, roads, sea ports, improved agriculture, electricity, internet/ broadband, good education and healthcare services,  jobs, security, International Investors, etc, they need social accountability , there is no evidence to suggest that one-party system is fit for the purpose. "there is need to allow some level of freedom and healthy political competition to ensure accountability, transparency, rule of law, equity and inclusiveness, empowerment and broad-based participation"-Nuberger(1974). That's the whole point. The truth is one-party rule deepens autocracy, creates more problems and hastens separatist tendencies. A national dialogue has become very imperative given abundant evidence of what we now know rather than a one-party system. The current political structure is not fit for purpose, the focus should how to change it. Freedom and autonomy agenda not allegiance. The current system is not working and needs changing. A new constitution is required to give Nigeria a "fresh start", this should be the focus.
Uche Okeke is the Founder of The LEAD Project Foundation. He lives in London.