Editor’s note: Nigeria Democratic Congress – NDC, a Nigerian opposition political party with performative and puritan posturing, has come under scrutiny following the outcome of its primary elections last week. In this piece, Albert Ifejika scrutinizes the NDC by its own set of self-imposed standards.
By Albert Ifejika
By now, the stories are familiar and aspirants are protesting. Allegations are flying. Supporters are defending. Party officials are explaining. Social media is awash with competing narratives about what transpired during the recent NDC primaries. In many ways, it is the kind of political drama Nigerians have witnessed countless times before. Yet there is one aspect of this controversy that makes it different. The NDC did not emerge as just another political party. It presented itself as a movement. A revolution of sorts. A gathering of Nigerians tired of the old ways and determined to chart a new course.
For some Nigerians, including young people, the party represented something larger than politics. It represented hope. Which is precisely why the events surrounding its primaries deserve more scrutiny, not less. The question is not whether irregularities occurred. That determination is for the party and relevant authorities to make. The more important question is this: Why are so many people surprised? Politics, after all, is not conducted by party logos.
It is conducted by human beings. And herein lies the uncomfortable truth that many supporters may not wish to confront. A significant number of politicians today flying the NDC flag were not born politically in the NDC. Many spent years, and in some cases decades, in the very political parties and structures that the NDC now condemns. Some occupied strategic positions. Some benefited from the system. Some defended the system. Some actively participated in the political culture that some Nigerians now criticize. The obvious question therefore arises: What exactly happened between leaving one party and joining another that suddenly transformed these politicians into apostles of a new political order?
Can a politician spend years practicing one brand of politics on Monday and become the embodiment of political virtue on Tuesday simply because he acquired a new party card?
That is not a criticism. It is a legitimate question. Indeed, it may be the most important question facing Nigerian politics today. Because, if the same actors remain on the stage, employing the same methods, pursuing the same ambitions and operating within the same political culture, should anyone be shocked when familiar outcomes emerge? Perhaps the disappointment expressed by some NDC faithful following the primaries is rooted in an assumption that changing platforms automatically changes behaviour. History suggests otherwise. Political culture is stubborn. It travels with people. It follows politicians from one party to another. It survives defections, alliances, mergers and rebranding exercises. A politician does not become transparent because he joins a party that campaigns on transparency. A politician does not become democratic because he joins a party that preaches democracy.
A politician does not become accountable because he begins speaking the language of accountability. Character is demonstrated through conduct, not slogans. This is not an indictment of the NDC alone. It is a challenge confronting virtually every political party in Nigeria. The difference, however, is that the NDC has asked Nigerians to hold it to a higher standard.
It has asked to be judged not merely as an alternative political platform but as a departure from the established norm. That is a noble ambition.
But noble ambitions attract rigorous scrutiny. If the party wishes to be viewed differently, then Nigerians are entitled to ask whether its internal processes are different. If it seeks moral distinction, Nigerians are entitled to ask whether its conduct reflects that distinction. And if it claims to be the future, Nigerians are entitled to ask whether the future can truly be built by politicians who have carried yesterday’s habits into today’s movement.
These are not questions of malice. They are questions of accountability. Indeed, genuine supporters of the party should be the first to ask them.
For no political movement is strengthened by blind devotion. Movements become stronger when their followers insist that lofty promises be matched by equally lofty conduct. The NDC primaries may eventually fade from the headlines. But the larger question will remain. Can Nigeria’s politics change if the politicians themselves do not?
Until that question is honestly answered, every promise of political rebirth will continue to face the same test: Is this truly a new movement; or merely familiar actors performing on a different stage?
