By Damian Ugwutikiri Opata (709 Ukuta Close, UNN)
One of the most important aspects of governance in any polity is for peace and security to reign for the overall wellbeing of the citizens, the government and the governed. It is the duty of all citizens to work together towards the actualization of this goal. The absence of peace and security does no person good. In a democratic setting, both the ruling party and the opposition parties cooperate to ensure that peace reigns. Peace is for everybody in a polity.Regardless, there are those who seek to derive short term benefits from the absence of peace and security in a polity.
The leadership of His Excellency, Barr. Dr. Peter Mbah, began on 29th May, 2023, in Enugu State. The legitimacy of his leadership is still being challenged by aggrieved parties. This is part of the democratic process. It is the democratic right of individuals and parties to challenge the outcome of elections. It is, indeed, part of the electoral act and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. This is the beauty of democracy. It is why opposition is part of any democratic system.
When parties are not satisfied with the outcome of elections, they take recourse to tribunals and the courts. It is unfortunate that in Nigeria, some interested groups and individuals take to the social media to disseminate all manner of disinformation about tribunals and courts, thereby attempting to delegitimize the outcomes of such legitimate processes even before they are pronounced. In my opinion, the tribunals and the courts should be allowed to do their job without threats from citizens. In the same vein, opposition parties should, while playing the role of a watchdog, support policies that they find beneficial to the society, and oppose those that they rightly think are inimical to the citizens of the state. Being in opposition does not mean opposing anything the ruling party does. In the same vein, being in the ruling party does not mean giving a deaf ear to whatever the opposition says, or even to agreeing with everything the ruling party does.
A greater burden of the peacebuilding process in a polity lies with the ruling party. Once a party is sworn into office, it becomes mandatory that the wellbeing of all citizens, irrespective of party affiliation, is its focus and concern. It is easier to destroy than to build. It is also easier to demonize a government than to offer constructive criticisms that enhance governance. It is important that supporters of a ruling party bear this in mind. The victorious, whether the facticity of it is contested or not, must cultivate a greater sense of discipline and responsibility than losers. The burden of success lies squarely on the ruling party, a fact that requires it to be very patient and accommodative of all manner of negative and ‘bring-it-down’ comments.
Having said this, it must be noted that no ruling party remains silent, in action or in words, when it notices brazen attempts to demonize and bring down its government. Survival is, perhaps, the greatest priority of a sitting government. It has a mandatory duty of creating pathways of navigating through various forms of oppositions and interests in very diplomatic and effective ways. All the organs and sectors of a ruling party must bear this in mind. Reasonable negotiations, and if very necessary, the subtle application of legal force, should always be employed.
It is true that the political party system in Nigeria has not taken solid roots. The ethics of rule and opposition in a democratic system are yet to be deeply imbibed by both the political leaders and their followers. This notwithstanding, I am deeply convinced that His Excellency, Barr, Dr, Peter Mbah, the Executive Governor of Enugu State, is passionately committed to delivering good governance to Enugu state. In this context, it must also be understood that no person is perfect. Moreover, the beginning of any administration is always riddled with many problems that need time to address. This is especially so when a visionary leadership is very passionate at delivering good governance very quickly to the citizens.
No matter how passionate a leader is eager to deliver good governance very quickly, there are always intervening variables which many a time make projections impossible to be actualized. Who would have thought that fuel subsidy was to be removed so soon? Who would have forecast the very positive attempt to unify the dollar-naira exchange rate so soon? Sudden developments like this slow down the pace of any government. It is important, therefore, that people, winners and losers in the electoral process, should be patient to see how a sitting government actualizes its vision and programme for the people.
It will not take too long a time for all the litigation processes arising from the 2023 elections to come to an end. I pray that the outcome in Enugu state should favour Barr. Dr. Peter Ndubisii Mbah. My impression of Governor Peter Mbah is that he is a loyal citizen who will cooperate with Government where possible, but will politely disagree with any perceived obnoxious policies that are not for the interest of the citizens. Meanwhile, let us all respect the status quo in Enugu State, and cooperate with the Governor to secure peace, security, and the overall wellbeing of the citizens and residents of Enugu State.
Damian Opata is a Professor of English and Literary Studies at UNN.
