When Will Anti-Party Culture Disappear or Be Sanctioned in All Political Parties in Nigeria? | Waheed Lawal

It appears anti-party has been removed from our political lexicon, or at least has acquired a new meaning in the political discourse in Nigeria.

What happens when disobedience is glorified but obedience is punished? 

Those who cheat in the exams appear to be getting good results and getting admissions or, upon graduation, getting good jobs, but the bookworms are frustrated.

Those who pulled their party down, or at least exited from the political parties, or simply showed a showed a siddon look are being rewarded after the elections. Is that fair? 

You can imagine what happens when there is heavy traffic and one person just comes from the far rear and overtakes you or drives against the traffic. By the time you burnt your fuel, you had probably missed a very important appointment, but when you see traffic offenders getting away with it, there is always a tendency to join them. So it is with defectors and anti-party offenders. 

Imagine a politician who wined and dined with outgoing executives of a state or federal government, jumping over to the incoming government, and before you could say Jack Robinson, the political harlot has been compensated with a powerful and juicy portfolio while you, the lover, faithful, and consistent party member, got nothing. 

Generally, what is happening in all political parties is not encouraging loyalty, commitment, and principled consistency in any political party. 

How do you feel when your friend who announced to you that your party is dead suddenly becomes the first beneficiary of your party when your party made it to the election where he had dismissed you? There is God oooo.

Each time we campaigned and worked for presidential or gubernatorial aspirants to emerge as candidates who would win elections , may we always be guided to elect party men. He may not necessarily be the type that would say, “This election is a do-or-die affairs like the old man, but at least one who would wish his party retains power and that his party men who worked hard for his victory benefit from the government they helped to put in place. There is no hope for a party man whose government patronises opponents to the detriment of his party men and women. 

Party members should also undergo attitudinal change. An aspirant might have been spending immediately after the conduct of one election up until the time of another primaries; one money bag would just surface and spend at the primaries and win more votes than the one a great number of party members know and he knows them. If, after the victory of such candidates, he dumped you, you have caused it. 

Party members deserve the kind of treatment they get from these cash and carry politicians. 

There is no commitment to a political party any more. Cross-carpeting, defection, and anti-partying have become the new normal. I wonder who has the moral authority to discipline anybody for anti-party activities today. The one who worked for the opposition to defeat his party as well as the one who bulldozed his ways to get a ticket and those who support the one who violated all the rules of internal democracy to the one who simply defended all known anti-democratic attitudes of candidates are all guilty.