Evil Of Tribal Politics

In Nigeria despite the myriad of problems plaguing us nobody can say what ideologies any of the main political parties stand for. We all know the personalities that make up the parties but not a single one of them pursues any ideology.

Which of the parties lean to the left of the political spectrum and which ones lean to the right? Scratch that! 

How many Nigerian politicians can explain what the left and right sides of the political spectra mean? But, boy, are they rich? That’s all that matters to them.

They all have manifestoes as this is one of the conditions that have to be fulfilled before registration but the manifestoes would be gathering dust somewhere now.

Nigerian political parties are tribal based, at best. If you come from a particular tribe you are expected to affiliate yourself with a certain party. That is the myopic nature of politics in Nigeria.

Like racism, tribal politics is simply a tool in the hands of the ruling class to keep the ruled permanently divided. Why we still fall for that trick after over almost a hundred years of nationhood I cannot understand.

As Nigerians we all want the same things: constant electricity, jobs, reduction of poverty, proper health care delivery service, good schools, good roads, security, an efficient crime fighting outfit just to name a few. 

These are the things the average Nigerian wants regardless of gender, class or tribe yet we continue to fall into the trap of tribal politics, which as stated above keep us divided and perpetuate the same people in power pretty much for the past fifty years.

We need to learn to stand up and make a demand for these things from whatever government is in power. The local government area a politician hails from is completely irrelevant. The question we need to ask ourselves is this, “Can he provide responsible leadership”?