The hordes of young Nigerians who stormed the political playing field in the lead-up to the 2023 general elections got from the public a blah response.
It would hardly surprise them.
But a second long, hard look at the growing crowd of newbies reveals more: political privilege doesn’t end with former presidents and governors building dynasties that last forever. Smart kids with reams of certificates and cutting salesmanship can wing their way up, rub shoulders with others from the dynasties, and launch their political career.
Nigerians might not have observed this yet in the 75 percent of youths and women INEC says will determine the 2023 elections: there are two tribes of the privileged lot.
There’s not much to choose between the two, though.
Both just have some kind of advantage, one way or the other, over millions of other Nigerian youth.
These lucky ones are many and growing in number. And they looked determined the way they poured out for their party primaries in May.
One tribe trooped out of the corridor of power. They have served as special advisers and commissioners to President Muhammadu Buhari, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, and governors across the nation. They have seen the cocoon the servant-leaders live in.
The other group comprised scions of party stalwarts, wheelers-dealers in politics, former governors, ministers, and state captors. These kids spend old monies, work old boys’ networks, give and old favours. No fewer than 15 upstarts that participated in the last primaries came out of the loins of at least 13 governors, including former and out-going ones. Two from the immediate past President Goodluck Jonathan and his vice president.
In all, 25 of scions and arrowhead of budding political dynasties—from both parties—had a go at the primary election; eight flunked it; others, including the holdovers among them, especially in the state assemblies, carried the contest.
Their names ring a bell: Bello El-Rufai; Mohammed Abacha; Ahmadu Muazu; Yahaya Audu and his brother Mona; Sadi Ango Abdullahi; Lamido Mustapha; Pam Jang; Joju Fayose; Idris Ajimobi; Olumide Osoba; Dapo Adesina; and Kashamu Rasheed.
Others are Erhiatake Ibori-Suenu; Marylyn Okowa-Daramola; Uduaghan Orode; and Chinedum Orji. A bunch of others—the Ogunlewes, the Obanikoros, the Lai Mohammeds—also took a stab at it again in Lagos. They failed this time.
What makes the 2023 venture more like a family enterprise is that some of the newbies are going ahead to the National Assembly to meet their dads—mostly former governors cooling off in their retirement in the Senate.
Abia Speaker Chinedum, for instance, is gunning for the House of Reps. His father Theo Orji has been in the Senate. Likewise Pam Jang whose father and Plateau former governor has been hibernating in the upper chamber.
Analysts say political ambition in democracy is open and free. And building political dynasties is not peculiar to Nigeria. It’s true. After all, the other privileged lot—the specials—answer their fathers’ names bereft of political rhythm. And their family trees have no tap roots reaching down as far back as the first or second republic.
But they have CVs. Intimidating all the way. Their profiles have helped them piggyback on the politicos—the ones with clout—to power.
There were 16 of them who made a splash in the run-up to the APC primaries: Ismaeel Ahmed, Ahmad Rufai Zakari, Muhammad Sani Adullahi, Muhammed Brimah, Abisoye Fagade, , Maryam Musa Muhammad, Centia Jihad Aridi, Adenike Afolabo-Oshatimehi, Buffa Saleh Hadejia, Muhammad Auwal Sarari, Patience Charles Kwache, Sani Ahmad Kaitafi, Biola Oladapo, Olawumi Fayemi, Damilola Otubanjo, Isola Olateju.
Others abound in the PDP, too.
Many of them are Gen-Z, with a number of them a little shy of 40, mostly preppy Ivy Leaguers, trained in programmes to save humanity. They have seen the working of governance while serving as CoS, special advisers, commissioners in Lagos, Kaduna, Ogun, and others. Now they want to save Nigeria after acquiring experience, and some measure of wealth that comes with the terrain.
While the APC named its nomination price in the region of millions, the mass of the less-privileged who have ambition like their well-heeled counterparts roared. Like it or not, that decision became the first step in funnelling aspirants. Adam, the son of former Vice President Namadi Sambo, shelled out over N75 million to 37 delegates that failed him in his attempt to clinch the PDP National Assembly ticket in Kaduna last week.
Young aspirants who can’t put their shirt on their ambition are doing post mortem now.
And it is the reason why the 2023 primary elections in the leading parties have been criticized.
Jonathan particularly bemoaned the bazaars.
“The whole primaries going on across the nation are a mess,” he said at book launch in Abuja on Friday, adding the process has failed.
“We cannot use the process to elect president, governors, senators, House of Reps members, and others.”
The general election in 2023 will determine that.