2027: Let us end this presidential campaign charade

By SUNNY IKHIOYA It is not a matter of whether you love President Bola Tinubu or not. It is a question of the way forward for Nigeria. We are taught to believe that politics is a contest of ideas. The side that convinces the people that it has the best way forward wins. This is because there is no unidirectional path to governance. As economists would put it, there is always “the other hand.” That is why a strong opposition is a sine qua non in every political system, no matter the ideology in place. The government of President Goodluck Jonathan exemplified this by giving opposition parties the freedom to express themselves in any manner they chose. They called him all kinds of names and even went to the extent of carrying a coffin to signify his death. But all Jonathan said was, “No blood must be shed on my behalf.” That was real democracy at work: freedom of speech, movement and association. But all of this became an illusion immediately after a very vibrant opposition took over government. It is becoming clear that those who rode to power on the crest of populism ended up becoming dictators once they assumed power. We saw it with Kabila of the DRC. We have seen it with Yoweri Museveni of Uganda. And we are seeing it with the APC government in Nigeria. What do they have in common? Intolerance of opposition. But the opposition in Nigeria has also shot itself in the foot in the manner in which it is challenging for the ultimate political prize: the presidency. It has become s

Reporting from Vanguard news wire services. Full analysis by The Abuja Times editorial desk.