Even with the potpourri of hard-hitting policies and the difficulties being encountered in steering the ship of state by our present political leaders, the desire for and the road to consolidation or enthronement (depending on the divide) by both active and roaming politicians come 2027, is already fraught with bodyguards of animated interests.
Just recently, there was a gathering of “disfavored” and opposition politicians who seemed to be drawing the attention of the rest of us to the 2027 Presidential race by sheer musings, innuendos and tantruming.
The composition of the “confab” this time around, reflects the jettisoning of old blocs of animosities previously held in high esteem, just to be able to throw a collective stone at a common enemy.
It was Mosca and Pareto, the two renowned elite theorists from the “Italian School Of Elitism” , who once posited that the Elites have obvious characteristics, one of which is the ability to reinvent and replacing itself while moving in a cyclical manner.
No matter the fragmentation within the political elites and the disenchantment within her ranks, they still do realign within the circle to produce someone amongst them, either new or old, being made possible by a type of social mobility, nonetheless.
Of course, the Nigerian political elites are just the same: the inherent competition for power is often noisy and capable of distracting the present for the future.
As of today, so many assumptions about intentions of some political blocs and the many kites they fly around concerning 2027 is amazing and amusing. There are those who think that the Present leadership is failing the North who voted ” overwhelmingly” for it and that a consensus must be reached to change the narrative come 2027.
Others also think that the crisis and disarray found in other opposition parties are orchestrated by the ruling party, to keep them at bay from the corridors of power at the centre. They fear that this may, in the long run, turn the nation into a one-party state and shrink the much needed political space for democratic expression.
Yet, there are those who believe in the possibility of the key figures of the opposition, to lay aside their age-long differences and ego to form a formidable front against the status quo, in order to wrestle power from the centre, to rescue the economy from the debilitating effect of strident neoliberal policies and unfriendly market forces that is driving the local currency crazily towards the precipice.
To the political leaders, there’s nothing wrong in having an eye to the future, nay 2027. But there’s everything wrong when there’s no good turn being done to deserve another and yet, living in the now while bellyaching for 2027.
There’s no telling that there’ll be heavy political fireworks in 2027. The only factor that will guarantee success for any actor across the divide, is the legacy of performance and the antecedents of truthfulness and fairness in dealing with the Nigerian people going forward. Any other strategy outside this known cookbook will be resisted by the people.
