Polpulist leaders are described as anti-establishment, anti-democratic elements, desperate, angry, frustrated, often using dishonest means of persuassion and influencers-PR to target voters with lies, fake news, propaganda, and misinformation to enable them make wrong choices. Populists claim that they alone represent the people and they alone are not corrupt. According to Professor Jan-Werner Muller; "their voters are also frustrated or suffer from resentment..., when running for office, populists portray their potential competitors as part of the immoral, corrupt elite, when ruling, they refuse to recognise any opposition as legitimate. The populist logic also implies that whoever does not support populist parties might not be a proper part of the people-always defined as righteous and morally pure".- Professor Jan-Werner Muller[ What is Populism?- Jan-Werner Muller, 2017, Penguin Books, London]. They are always dictators violently repressing civil liberties, cracking down on opposition and constitutional checks and balances. They destroy democracy. In the words of Professor Jan-Werner Muller; "They pay lobbyists and public relations experts enormous sums of money to ensure that they are recognised by international organisations and "western elites as genuine democracies". We have seen this play out in a recent US visit, where President Buhari was keen to down-play the activities of the Herdsmen killings in Nigeria. He was on mission to convince the US President that his government is genuine despite widespread flaws including gross-human rights abuse. We are aware of the Fake- Martin Luther awards, Naomi Campbell, the appointment of Festus Keyamo, etc. The personalities associated with populism include: those opposed to modernity, uneducated, those seeking personal gains, ''losers in the process of modernisation''.intellectuals with out-dated knowledge- ''village commune as a political model''. In the words of Seymour Martin Lipset; they are; " the socially isolated, psycologically homeless, personal failures, the economically unsecure, the uneducated, unsophisticated and authoritarian personalities"They are against the new way of doing things, often resorting to baseless smear to attack educated elites and political elites who are deemed corrupt. They oppose anything that is not in their favour. If you are not with them, you are against them- they alone are the true representatives of the people and they alone possess the idea to transform the society. They do not accept legitimate competition nor legitimate opposition- ''micropolitics as opposed to a forum for reasoned debate".They always act as victims often using blame games as excuse for failures while manipulating to 'colonise' the state by using bribe and violent repression. Anyone who critizes their government is labelled 'traitors'. Political appointments or favours for mass political support. Selective Justice-"Only some of the people should get to enjoy the full protection of the laws; those who do not belong to the people or who might be suspected of actively working against the government should be treated harshly"-Professor Jan-Werner Muller. Lastly he concluded that Populists do not just thrive on conflicts and encourage polarization ; they also treat their political opponents as enemies of the people and seek to exclude them altogether. Populism tends to pose a great danger to democracy. Democracy must be inclusive to deliver dividends-'life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness'. It requires "pluralism and the recognition that we need to find fair terms of living together as free, equal but also irreducibly diverse citizens"- Professor Jan-Werner Muller[ What is Populism?- Jan-Werner Muller, 2017, Penguin Books, London]. We will remain resolute in this uncommon commitment to help ordinary people discover how democracy is being attacked in Nigeria to enable them make better choices for the future. Today democracy in Nigeria is under serious attack do not be deceieved. Attack on democracy is development in reverse- no meaningful economic development. You cannot be attacking constitutional checks and balances and expect national budget to be passesd- the result is political deadlock, so voters beware. The bell tolls for all of us who believe in democracy, liberty and freedom. Dictatorship is evil that must be rejected- violent repression, loss of liberty, stagnation, instability, lack of development, massive corruption, poor resource management, no accountability, no transparency. You need to be properly informed.. In the words of President Donald J Trump: "No nation can succeed in the long-run by promoting rogue states, brutal tyrants and muderous dictators. We must decide if we will continue down this dark path or join with civilized nations as a force for stability and peace". Professor Jan-Werner Muller said Populist government exhibits three distinct features,- they are all evident in this government. They include:
a) Attempts to hijack the state apparatus
b) Corruption
c)Mass Clientelism-Political support by citizens who become the populists clients. How much more evidence do we need?- Instead of implementing Constitutional change-Restructuring which was a false election manifesto to win votes, they prefer a return of the society to the primitive state where life is 'nasty, brutish, short. We have seen citizens including Senators and opposition members brought to court on hospital stretchers even when not fit to attend the court whereas others are given state assistance to seek overseas treatment.The inescapable truth about demagoguery/populism is that the supporters are always the first casualties anytime they tend to disagree or hold contrary opinion. This is a tragedy.
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Uche Okeke is a Social Entrepreneur. He's the Founder of The LEAD Project Foundation.
Read More: http://www.theleadprojectfoundation.com/2018/02/today-nigeria-is-not-democratic-country_26.html
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