By Kunle Jenrola
Somehow, democracy always debuts in specific contexts as a paradoxical induction to civility but peaks as a parodic allusion to crudity.
Even from its Athenian cradle, in Greece, 5BCE, democracy was anything but civil as it excluded women and slaves from its processes and made a ridicule of the tenets of freedom of choice and rule of law.
And, when President Abraham Lincoln rebranded it as “the government of the people, by the people, for the people “in the United States, its ilk of machiavelianism and parochialism hardly disappeared.
Today, it is, at best, an art of benign discrimination, which creates and aerates a privileged political class by pedigree, reputation or nuisance within its own rank and file.
So you could have an “anointed”, opportunistic, or outrightly exploitative candidate swept into the office only to spend his/her term fighting real and perceived enemies instead of providing good governance.
This whole scenario explicates the Popperian philosophical theory that people might use their democratic right or influence to choose a leader who could strip away public confidence irrespective of the popular votes garnered in a “free and fair” election.
Indeed, the renowned philosopher, Karl Popper argues in his book: “The Open Society and Its Enemies”, that “a democratic majority could legally vote to establish a tyrant” or elect someone who could mortgage a mandate -freely given.
Surely, this conflict of interests amount to a mockery of participatory democracy that is self-destruct!
In other words, a convergence of paradox of democracy and parody of politics may find validation in Plato’s assertion that “democracy never selects the best leader, it selects the best liar.”
Sadly, this tawdry picture begins to hold out as a banner of the bizzare going by the trappings of the recently- held governorship election in Osun State, Southwestern Nigeria .
What with incidents of vote buying/ electoral clientelism, hooliganism, executive armtwisting/intimidation death threats and deaths.
Fancy the subtle deployment of “Federal Might” typified by Economic and Financial Crime Commission ‘s (EFCC) withholding of the statutory allocation to the state government preceded by seizure of Local government allocation, a beseige of Oshogbo, the state capital by sabre- ratling APC governors/bigwigs on the eve of the election.
How about the quixotic bragadocio of Federal Capital Territory (FTC )Minister Nyesom Wike, albeit after the fact, that he could have taken the state for the APC if President Tinubu really wanted to unleash federal supremacy.
Perhaps, the stage was set for an overcast of the vagaries of democracy when, at the height of the travails of the People’s Democratic Party(PDP) last year, Governor Ademola Adeleke began to seek a political haven to ventilate his reelection bid .
His first paradoxical port of call was to President Bola Tinubu who was quite receptive and then, to the All Progressives Congress(APC) which was apparently still smarting from its defeat by Governor Adeleke in 2022. The APC in Osun State, unaware of a boomerang effect of its unrelenting onslaught against Adeleke, gave him a cold reception in the mistaken belief that the state was theirs for the taking.
The portrayal of Governor Adeleke, by APC Chieftains in Osun as an unserious governor who danced more than he governed Osun State, seemed like a winning card. The Osun electorate interpreted these assaults as crass victimisation of a Governor who, unlike his APC predecessors made the clearance of a backlog of pensions/gratuities and prompt payment of workers salaries a cardinal responsibility of his administration.
Yet, Governor Adeleke, like a spirited foot-worker, was neither fazed by the derision of his art nor foot- lumbered by his physique. He continued his search for a better admirer and found one in former Governor Rauf Aregbesola’s African Democratic Congress (ADC), which was always available to call APC’s bluff. But this move yeilded little or no assurances.
Instantly, he became the butt of a joke in political circles for his failed overtures to defect to the parties that might be popular in his state due to their connections with two of his predecessors in office Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola(ADC) and Minister Gboyega Oyetola(APC).
An APC Chieftain said mockinly;” he’s now begging to join the ADC after his
overtures to join our party were turned down on account of his fantastic failure in office, as his poor public rating which could generate reproach and erode public confidence in the progressive brand” .
But trust the quick-footed Governor to find a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) in the Accord Party which gained political relevance in the South West of Nigeria in 2010 when the current Olubadan of Ibadan, Oba Rashidi Ladoja joined to run as its governorship candidate for Oyo State in 2011.
The shifting ground called politics could be cited in a classic case of how electioneering parody could overlap a relationship paradox occurred during a gubernatorial race in Lagos State in 1991. At that time, General Ibrahim Babangida’s democratic experiment of a Two- Party structure was in swing with the imposition of two parties: Social Democratic Party (SDP) and National Republican Convention(NRC). Due to the progressive tendencies of voters in Lagos, SDP that paraded such “little-to- the-left” credentials was tipped to occupy the seat of government at Alausa by a wide margin in an election.
It was not to be!
An acrimonious struggle between two top contenders within the SDP: Prof Femi Agbalajobi and Chief Dapo Sarumi muddled the waters and led to their disqualification. A less popular Chief Yomi Edu was selected as replacement but suffered a predictable protest vote that handed the keys to the Governor’s Office, Alausa to Sir Michael Otedola of the Lesson favoured NRC.
Perhaps Governor Adeleke’s foray into the Accord Party is more like a spin of the wheel of history, reminiscent of the political forage in 1991 of his charismatic elder brother, late Senator Isiaka Adeleke, aka “Serubawon”.
Revered as a referent leader with an impressive record of selfless service to his people, late Governor Adeleke was first voted into office on the platform of Babangida’s SDP during the third Republic. But became a senator for Osun West in 2007- 2011 under the banner of PDP. Between 2015 and 2017, however, he was reelected as an APC standard bearer.
Since then, the “Adeleke Factor” had become a recurring decimal in Osun politics. With the active support of the affluent scion of the Adeleke family, Dr Adedeji Adeleke and his megastar musician son “Davido”, a larger than life profile of their heritage is being sustained.
A close associate of President Tinubu, the billionaire businessman Dr. Adeleke ,founder of Pacific Holdings Limited and father of music star Davido has invested over $2 billion ( ₦3.4 trillion) into a massive 1,250-megawatt (MW) gas-fired thermal power plant located at Ajebamidele in Ondo State.
During this concluding part of his first term of office, Governor Adeleke also parades a performance score card that included key infrastructure and governance projects such as a ₦100 billion multi-sector development plan featuring five major flyover bridges, the rehabilitation of over 250 kilometers of roads, upgrade of health centers, and broad digital and agricultural .
Planned construction of five flyovers across Osogbo (two), Ikirun, Ife, and Owode-Ede and dualisation road projects like the Ila-Orangun dual carriageway were great selling points for him.
Indeed, “Imole” a yoruba word for “light” which became a rallying campaign slogan was rooted in the governor’s free medical/ surgical programme for seniors and pensioner
The jury is now out on the policies that produced the winners’ edge but exposed the losers’ sludge in the election.
Governor Adeleke pre and post election deference to President Tinubu has almost turned a presumption of subtle alliance into a confirmation of a memorandum of understanding between the two politicians.
With his open and spontaneous declaration of support for the president’s reelection bid in 2027 and the presentation of his certificate of return to Aso Rock and Minister Wike, it is obvious that not even an acerbic criticism or malicious labelling by Social Critic and Presidential candidate of African Action Congress (AAC)Omoyele Sowore could deter a parodic pragmatist from his chosen, perhaps choreographed path.
Some political pundits have even submitted that Governor Adeleke may be on his way to the APC to drive home the yoruba proverb: “ibi ti won ba ni ki gbegbe ma gbe, ibe ni gbegbe n gbe” translates literally to: “The very place they warn the aerial yam (gbegbe) not to grow/settle is where it chooses to settle/grow.”
*Kunle Jenrola, a communication consultant writes from Lagos.