There’s hope for better elections if…Bakondare
Alh Adamu Rabiu -Bakondare was the 2023 senatorial candidate for Kaduna North on the SDP platform. He is also the convener of the platform, Bakondare Speaks. He explains the challenges opposition parties face during elections. You witnessed the last by-election that held on Saturday. What is your impression about the conduct of INEC and […]
Alh Adamu Rabiu -Bakondare was the 2023 senatorial candidate for Kaduna North on the SDP platform. He is also the convener of the platform, Bakondare Speaks. He explains the challenges opposition parties face during elections.
You witnessed the last by-election that held on Saturday. What is your impression about the conduct of INEC and politicians?
For INEC, well, they are the umpire, so basically, there isn’t much they can do. Even at the last minute, they had to go by the order of the court agreeing to include candidates of the SDP, you know, my party. I’m of the SDP and the party is having this leadership crisis. There wasn’t anything they could do but to agree to what the court says for them to include candidates, which they have done.
But the major challenge is on the part of the politicians. Yes, for the ruling party, as far as I can see, and I’m sure that as far as Nigerians can see, they are trying to turn Nigeria into a one-party state. And that’s not healthy for democracy. That’s not healthy for Nigeria. That’s not healthy for us and the future generations of Nigerians.
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On the part of the other parties, they are so engrossed in their urge to wrest power but they don’t have the ideology to change Nigeria. What they have is the urge to rule Nigeria, so basically, that is wrong, because urge can come and go, but ideology stays. That is who you are. That is your flesh and blood.
Were you on ground during the by-elections?
Yes.
Did you notice any kind of irregularities?
I have been involved with politics right from being a polling agent, collation agent.
I have represented my party, I have represented candidates, I even finally decided to contest under the SDP in the 2023 election. So, basically what the members of some parties do is go close to the polling units and then give signals. If you are willing, either you raise a thumb, or a finger.
Did this happen during the election?
These are normal and this goes into the night anything can happen. So, it is something that only the political parties themselves can actually handle.
If we are to leave everything to the voting public, nothing much can change, from my own perspective.
The opposition parties normally blame the ruling parties when they lose the election.
But can you say that the SDP has done its homework very well before the election?
I’m afraid I’ll say no. My party, we didn’t do our best. We haven’t done our homework right from day one, you understand.
As a new breed politician, do you still have faith in the electoral system in Nigeria?
Yes, I have faith in the electoral system. But what I don’t have faith in is in the politicians and the political parties. I don’t have faith in the politicians and in a lot of the political parties.
Because these are a group of individuals that, like I said initially, have the urge to rule and not the ideology to rule Nigeria and take Nigeria to the promised land. So, that is where my issue lies. Not on the system. The system is perfect, you understand. But those that are key players, stakeholders, and those that run the affairs within the system, they are the major challenge that Nigeria is facing now.
We have the general election in 2027. What do you think should be done for us to get it right?
I have been trying to engage IPAC. That is the umbrella body of all political parties in Nigeria. We have not actually reached a conclusion. I have been trying to engage them so that we can come up with a platform that each party will feel it belongs to. Secondly, what is needed now, is not coalition. What is needed is alliance. Stay where you are. Don’t cross carpet. Stay where you are. And then gradually fight for Nigeria.