Art imitates life, and life, in its many servile ways, often represents itself as the fiction of genius writers. Chinua Achebe exemplifies this in his book, A Man of the People, and masterfully mirrors the complexities of political choices through the characters, Chief Nanga and Odili. Chief Nanga is depicted as a shrewd and mischievously calculative politician who exploits the poverty and ignorance of the people to further his political ambitions. On the other hand, Odili represents an equally flawed archetype who uses his inherently corrupt nature to pursue an amoral personal and political agenda.
The Achebean citizens, a reflection of the Nigerian electorates in the 1960s, find themselves caught up in a web of difficult decisions. In making a choice between Chief Nanga’s cunning manipulation and Odili’s moral compromises, the citizens are presented with the proverbial devil and the deep blue sea. Achebe’s narrative, though fictional, exposes the real life nature of political corruption and the struggles of citizens trapped in moral and ethical crises, making his work a timeless reflection of the political realities of an era which came alive in Chief Nanga, “a born politician who could get away with almost anything he said or did”; and in the people who are perpetually “swayed by their hearts and stomachs and not their heads”, as he profoundly announced in the opening.
When in real life corrupt politicians like Chief Nanga and Odili, and the people who consider elections as avenues for eating their futures, ruin the roost of democracy, elections become not only the undemocratic events in the undemocratic chain; but also the defining historical moments that determine the fates of citizens. In a country in which poverty, unemployment, and insecurity are rampant, the significance of elections becomes sharper. The choices that citizens make at the ballot box directly shape governance policies and their quality of life. Unfortunately, poor electoral choices have repeatedly plunged millions into continuing despair, thus perpetuating a vicious cycle of underdevelopment. In 1922, the National Bureau of Statistics reported in its Multidimensional Poverty Survey Index that 130 million citizens who are poor live in multidimensional poverty, lacking basic necessities such as food, healthcare, and education. These challenges are directly the results of governance failures which stem from poor leadership selection and election.
Doubtless, poor electoral choices result in leaders who prioritise personal gains over public good and promote corrupt practices that have become hallmarks of governance in our country. These failings which are at the core of the japa syndrome deepen poverty and accentuate the exodus of citizens fleeing from poverty at home. It is not in doubt that these failures are the direct consequences of the actions of citizens who eat a mess of porridge today and mortgage their futures, collect crumbs while placing their thumbs on ballot papers to elect politicians who lack the capacity to address the myriads of challenges that confront them. It not therefore surprising that in many subnational States and the national level where elections took place in 2023, politicians of Chief Nanga’s ilk have turned governance into a chaotic plenitude propelled only by personal ambition than by any vision for public good. Across many subnational States, governance has been reduced to a circus of empty rhetoric, arrogance and mediocrity. Agberos or louts have taken over governance, in pursuit of authoritarian politics that prioritises war over peace, and violence over reason. Hello Edo State. The absence of vision and foresight highlights poor leadership as it demonstrates the consequences of poor electoral choices of
citizens ruled by their stomachs – not their heads, as Achebe correctly puts it.
Again, let’s briefly return to Achebe for some clarity on citizens who exercise their agency by voting for corrupt politicians who they believe in their obsequious philosophy of “let them eat” represent what they imagine for themselves. Here’s how Achebe captured it: “What a fool! …where was he when Chief Nanga fought and drove the white men away? Why is he envious now that the warrior is eating the reward of his courage? If he was Chief Nanga, would he not do much worse!”. “Let them eat” is about corrupt politicians taking their turns in that malady of leadership anchored on “turn by turn“ for the very corrupt who offer themselves for elective public service, while hoping that their turns will come one day and they will have their shares of the national cake.
As our country hurtles down the path of one governance mishap to another, citizens must take responsibility for the state of affairs. Those who vote based on parochial interests, or who are financially induced to vote, or who rig elections for corrupt politicians, are today paying the price for their stupidity and charlantry, as the corrupt politicians they voted for are busy churning out one anti-people economic policy after the other, building or renovating grand palaces they call Government Houses and diverting public funds meant for development into their private pockets. One of such corrupt politicians is today standing trial for paying the school fees of his children in advance of the schools’ years they have not reached.
In a liberal democracy, elections provide citizens the opportunity of resetting the democratic trajectory by choosing leaders who prioritise their welfare. When citizens’ agency is denied by an obtrusive power, or, in the extreme case, by the Election Management Body that fudges elections’ results and declares wrong candidates as winners, the consequences are far-reaching and detrimental to democracy. Such actions, whether of the citizens or the Election Management Body, foster corruption and delegitimises governance. Corrupt politicians who steal elections don’t give a damn about the policies they execute, even if they are hurt citizens to their bones.
Our country stands at a crossroads. The poverty and inequality which stalk our country today can only be addressed by visionary leaders brought to power by citizens who take their electoral responsibilities seriously. Elections have consequences; and elections stolen by corrupt politicians aided by the Election Management Body have greater consequences. Beyond the fiction of Achebe and the conditions of our lives which the art of genius writers imitate, the poor choices citizens make at the polls and the electoral robberies that bad politicians and Election Management Body commit will continue to determine the fates of our citizens.
“God will favour my family”, prays someone.
I hear you, I say!