Few days ago i published a Facebook post where i remarked that people should be worried about the state of politics in Nigeria, i made mention of the loss of human sense. That was a reaction towards what Mattew d'Ancona described as ''the brutish embrace of authoritarianism''. I read his work a lot. People should be worried about the danger ahead, the signs are obvious and the problem just stare at us in the face, but many pretend not to see it. The truth is ignorance makes it very easy for people to get kidnapped, get captured by the populist/authoritarian leaders and then divert them to their own particular ends for socio-economic and political gains, so this is a big dilemma. Similarly in one of my previous blog posts i also emphasized this remarkable fact; demagougery exploits ignorant people to achieve its objective. What we're currently witnessing should be a constant reminder to re-think authoritarianism. In the words of Timothy Snyder; "We're now witnesses to a decline we did not foresee". Stagnation, persistence of poverty, insecurity and instability could be avoided. The world has changed beyound the imaginings of a ruthless few whose conspiracy theories have been exposed as fake- ''oppressive rather than liberating''. A brighter future is possible only if we change the way we think. This requires a good stock taking of events surrounding us. Where are we? How did we get into this mess? and where do we go from here? The truth is the devastating impact of authoritarian rule in ethnically diverse society has remained a constant fact of history and there is no sign that history will be re-written too soon. Dictators never change overnight- poor resource management, division, discrimination, political bias and favouritism, abuse of power and absence of human rights, lack of proper democracy, violent repression of civil liberties and stagnation. A dark and dangerous future awaits ignorant electorates who fantasize with authoritarianism. No new jobs are created, low investment due to insecurity, fear, terror, and prolonged uncertainties. Having rejected the restructuring of the dysfunctional political system which is the reason for persistence of poverty and stagnation so which future do you have? Today the people have a chance to say this is what we did right or wrong in the past, we've learnt our lessons and we can now apply the lessons to guide our choice in the future. Good governance has become very imperative not a choice. We will continue to do everything we can to carry on in this big vision and dream of a new society that is fair and just, where the system works for everyone instead of the few. We recognise that there are gaps in knowledge so we will just carry on providing vital information and sharing knowledge to inspire debate about the future and to guide ordinary people make the right choices. In ethnically diverse societies like Nigeria, Authoritarian rule is not the future, it does not result in good governance, proper democracy, economic development and growth, that's the whole point, so ordinary people need to be properly informed. We have a chance to elect quality leadership that will guarantee growth and prosperity by addressing the interconnectedness of trust, governance and growth which has become a national predicament. The shameful and barbaric events in the last 3.5 years in Nigeria is a constant reminder not to fall victims of vain promises by ruthless and dangerous politicians who abuse human rights and resist modernity. Stock Market: Foreign investors withdraw N94.43Billion in Q3-Punch Newspaper,06 November 2018, Consul General: $1.3 Billion American Business in Nigeria Under Threat due to uncertainties and insecurity- Sahara Reporters, 06 November 2018, Nigeria loses Top Foreign Direct Investment, FDI To Morocco, South Africa, Guardian 06 November, 2018, etc, these should be a huge cause for concern, how can we achieve economic growth and lift ordinary people out of poverty in Nigeria?
Lastly criticising and exposing failures of the government is the only defence against absolutism and abuse of power. Democracy, the rule of law and freedom of expression are essential ingridients of the new economy to encourage good governance and defeat corruption and abuse of power, people should be worried whenever dictators seek coercieve powers to violently repress their citizens in the name of hate speech, etc. Instead of demanding the restructuring of the monstrous political structure that excludes and exploits the majority, some people are continued to be deceived by ''false identities''. Restructuring the country is the revolution we want not dictator rule. The ''repressed proletariat" must rise up and demand overhaul of the system that excludes and exploits them, which restructuring offers not celebrating dictator rule. Freedom is not freely given by the oppressors/hijackers. Find out more soon.
Sixtus Uche Okeke is the Founder of The LEAD Project Foundation. He lives in London.
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