NIGERIANS, LISTEN TO IBB!

The Evil Genius has spoken again! He recently called on Nigerians to consider adopting STAGGERED ELECTIONS as part of their democracy-entrenching efforts. Icheoku says that this is a wise call and Nigerians should listen to IBB on this point; because election is one area the Evil Genius had shown some expertise. "IBB, once upon a time conducted successful elections in Nigeria"! He did it once and quite successfully too, except that the grand-finale` was not well choreographed and a freely won election was annulled. However the ill-fated conclusion of an otherwise flawless election does not diminish the fact that Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida did a fine job with that election up until the annulment. So when he speaks concerning elections in Nigeria, every Nigeria should listen to this man from Minna, Niger State who is sometimes referred to by his admirers as the Prince of the Niger! IBB understands something about Nigerian elections and triumphed in conducting one, with his masterful OPTION A4!

Until his self-destructive annulment of June 12th, 1983 Ibrahim Badamosi Babngida had otherwise put Nigeria on a trajectory to free elections and by extension, true democracy in Nigeria. It was this IBB's home-grown grass-root Option A4 for example which stopped Yakubu Gowon cold in his tracks at his local constituency in Jos with his presidential ambition. It was a proven successful primaries which empowered Nigerians for the very first time to actually participate in electing who governs them. Nigerians for the first time successfully exercised their right to a vote which produced Moshood Kolwole Oluwole ABiola as president elect, before IBB's tragic annulment deprived Nigeria's the singular opportunity to ever elect who governs them as a president. This satanic annulment of June 12th and the parcel bomb assassination of Dele Giwa will forveer remain the albatross of Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida till his last day on this earth. Both were despicable acts and atypical of a devil's May-care scheme designed to disintegrate Nigeria. These infradignous acts of IBB tarnished forever, an otherwise lasting legacy which Option A4 electioneering road-map would have bequeathed on him. IBB would have, by allowing MKO Abiola's election as president of Nigeria to hold, ingrained his name on the good side of history and by extension democracy would have been implanted in Nigeria for the long haul, courtesy of IBB. But like every tragic character of the Greek mythology or ancient Rome, IBB fell upon his own sword and disemboweled; and can never win any election to rule Nigeria again; not as long as any son or daughter of Oduduwa still breathes!

However, Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida knows what he is talking about with this his recent call for staggered elections in Nigeria. This is a noble call and Icheoku fully and unequivocally supports the idea - an idea whose time has finally come, although belatedly. Nigeria does not have the necessary manpower to effectively police every election booth in Nigeria at the same time. Nigeria does not also have the logistics of conducting elections freely and throughout Nigeria at the same time, such as having to ferry election ballots and other materials to all the various remote and sometimes inaccessible areas in Nigeria timeously. The lack of needed infrastructure makes such as road network, haulage, airlifting etc makes a mockery of delivering election materials to needed areas simultaneously on a given election period. Because of the thuggery which mars elections in Nigeria, Nigeria cannot adequately man election booths to ward off these miscreants because of shortage of security officials who are over-task and over-stretched on a compacted election day. Also this will make it possible for a candidate of less means to be able to manage his campaigns as well as his elections without unnecessarily out-stretching himself to be in so many places at the same time on one election day. Additionally the pressure to win all and winner takes all will be reduced if not totally eliminated. Just like IBB suggested, it could be zoned geographical or like the present PDP six zonal arrangement or whatever other arrangement that is acceptable to the political parties. Whatever route they take, the relevant thing is the conclusion reached that staggered elections is it!

Icheoku will also like to add, that Nigeria's political parties including the ruling PDP should endeavor to avoid making Nigeria a one party state. The downsides are legion but suffice it to say that it breeds dictatorship, corruption and lack of accountability. Absolute power is anathema to development and corrupts absolutely! Can you imagine in the United States of America, if George Walker Bush was an absolute power-holder or his Republican Party an only state's party - what will the world say? Can you take four more years of GW's foreign policy or the recession-bound US economy? But today, Obamamania is spreading throughout the world and the world is waiting for America to get it right this time with an Obama presidency. This is the way a functioning democracy works - an option to vote out of office a discredited party/president. But from the way things are going in Nigeria, it appears more likely than not that Nigeria is headed in that one-party state direction with the ruling PDP not allowing any other dog in the fight! How can the PDP muscle themselves in, in every elections in Nigeria including the home State Adamawa turf of former vice president, Abubarkar Atiku? At least they would have left him that state to cushion his fall from power like in Lagos State with Tinubu and Abia State with Orji-Kalu. But PDP should put some brakes and not allow this to happen as that will be the end of democracy as we know it in Nigeria.

To protect against this, PDP should stop persuading the "runaway-brides" of the party to come back to their fold but instead, encourage their forming a strong opposition by making it easier for them to thrive, despite being out of power, through contracts, appointments etc. PDP should not forcibly "frog-match" otherwise unwilling parties back to their fold on the penalty of losing everything juicy! PDP's attitude of winner takes it all; you are either in with us or out there in the cold is not enviable and should be discouraged. Oppositions makes democracy to thrive and should therefore be encouraged by all including the ruling PDP. Let Nigerians be allowed to have the option to make a choice and the ability to change parties at Aso Rock should the need arise. In summation therefore, Icheoku says that it is free elections through open primaries, viable political parties (at least two) system and staggered elections as echoed by Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida, that is the key to the democracy attempt being made in Nigeria. This is Nigeria's road-map to a thriving sustainable democracy! It must be free and it must be open! Posterity will forever sing the praises of the courage employed to see these indicators come through! Once again IBB is right on the money and Nigerians should heed his call for staggered elections!