POLITICS OF 2023 AND OKENE II CONSTITUENCY.
By
Abdulazeez Asadullah Ahmed.
2023 is fast approaching and with it comes another opportunity to, as a patriotic citizen, perform one of our very important Civic responsibility by electing our next crop of leaders across board. It is therefore not surprising that, for some weeks now, much talks on who is best for a particular position have been on going and will, of course, remain a topic of discourse particularly among political analysts and gladiators till 2023 when the election proper will be contested, won and lost.
Over the years, the electoral process in Nigeria has undergone series of legislations, giving rooms for new electoral laws while some old ones are being amended all in an attempt to ensure a more seamless, credible and transparent electoral process and at the same time create an all-inclusive political environment such that every Nigerian, regardless of their physical, social or economic status, will have equal right to vote and be voted for. The not too young to run bill which was signed into law by the Nigerian president on the 31st of May 2018 coupled with the law prohibiting discrimination against persons with disabilities that was assented to by PMB on the 23rd of January 2019 marks a turn of a new page in the Nigerian political space as to a great extent, age and disability no longer poses a barrier to one’s political aspiration. These aforementioned bills which have been commendable assented to by the President of Nigeria got my interest as a patriotic Nigerian and as someone who is very much young and with a visual disability. Nigeria is hours and the task of Nation-building is the general one. As such, leaving no one behind in our search for the right leaders becomes very imperative as the task of leadership is the one of intellect and wisdom, not necessarily of grey hair, it is the one of foresight and Vision, not necessarily of the physical eyesight. The task of leadership involves knowing your mission and having the willpower as well as mindset to accomplish them even if you are on a wheelchair like Franklin Roosevelt of the United States as my comrade will always say “it is brain not leg”.
It is noteworthy to state however that in spite of the existence of these laws aimed at creating an inclusive political system, myself and of course, many Nigerians were sceptic about the readiness of all the relevant stakeholders towards the implementation of these laws. The reasons for our scepticism cannot be said to be far-fetched as available records on the effective implementation of policies and laws in Nigeria, without meaning to be offensive, is nothing to be proud of. The political terrain in Nigeria has for a very long time been saturated mostly by self-seeking individuals who thinks that they own the Monopoly of political power, acting like it is their right to determine who gets what, when and how. These, on its own, wouldn’t have been much of a problem if only they had taken the Business of governance beyond satisfying there particularistic interest to serving the interest of the generality of Nigerian population and to make matters worse, the various existing institutions have not been able to do much in sanitizing the system.
Amidst all of these, the good thing is that there are still some few individuals who are very much conscious about doing the right thing and ensuring that everyone gets equal treatment and equal access to the political space regardless of their physical as well as socioeconomic status. This few individuals may be regarded as the heroes of democracy and are deserving of commendations. Also worthy of commendation is the All Progressive Congress (APC) who in their leadership structure, has room for persons with disabilities across all level of leadership within the party. This has in no small measure encouraged political participation among persons with disabilities in Nigeria. What is left, however, is for us to see to what extent this leaders of persons with disabilities will be allowed to operate within the party and as well, the quantum of impact they will have within the community of persons with disabilities in general as regarding political inclusiveness i.e, whether their presence in the party leadership structure will amount to creating a fairground for persons with disabilities who are card-carrying members of the political party to contest in the party’s primary election and fly the party flag in any general election.
What particularly gladdens my heart is that the level of political consciousness among persons with disabilities in Nigeria is fast rising and some persons with disabilities are already preparing themselves to take the bull by the horn as they are already expressing their interest to contest various elective positions come 2023. Notable among these few individuals is my own very Comrade Yakubu Nazir AbdulHakkeem from Kogi State who has recently expressed his interest to contest for the legislative seat of Okene II Constituency. Comrade Yakubu is a man who despite being on a wheelchair has never seen himself as someone with a disability. I have known him, for quite some years now, as an advocate for Justice and equity and in all of our dealings, I have known him to think first of others before himself. He is a man of impeccable character and a man whose integrity cannot be put to question. -Bill Taylor stated in an article that “The true mark of a leader is the willingness to stick with a bold course of action — an unconventional business strategy, a unique product-development roadmap, a controversial marketing campaign — even as the rest of the world wonders why you’re not marching in step with the status quo. In other words, real leaders are happy to zig while others zag. They understand that in an era of hyper-competition and non-stop disruption, the only way to stand out from the crowd is to stand for something special.”and everyone who have known Comr. Yakubu for as long as I have, will agree with me that he is highly exceptional when it comes to standing for something special, standing for what is right and standing for anything that will be beneficial to the generality of the masses. Are these not the qualities we are all looking for in our leaders?
Yakubu Nazir AbdulHakkeem has decided to take his service to humanity further into the State Legislative House where he can join other legislators to deliberate over issues that are of concern to his constituents and as well join in making laws that will not only protect the right of his people but as well guarantee them of a greater and better tomorrow. The question now is; are we willing to support his Vision by voting him in or are we one of those who wouldn’t hesitate to vote him out on the basis of his disability? Will you allow his antecedents, spirit of resilience and his genuine service to humanity be the judge of his ability to deliver if given the mandate or will you overlook him on the basis that he is on a wheelchair and allow yourself to be again won over by those self-seeking politicians who will always come around with their colourful speeches and deceptive techniques? Will the All Progressive Congress APC as a political party provide him along with other aspirants a level playing field based on their pre-existing policy of political inclusiveness or will day renege when it matters most? I am waiting! The community of persons with disabilities is waiting and Nigerians are watching! Whatever choice we make and whichever roles we decided to play will definitely have a space in the records for posterity.
Before I end this piece, let me quickly but most importantly commend my Principal, His Excellency, Alhaji Yahaya Adoza Bello, the Executive Governor of Kogi State for being the champion of political inclusiveness. It is no longer news that where most other leaders have failed in terms of carrying everyone along in the area of leadership, GYB has always stand tall by not only carrying women and youth along but also by creating room for persons with disabilities to serve in his administration. The support he gave to a man with dwarfism who contested for the councillorship sit of one of the wards in Okene Local Government Area during the last local government elections did not go unnoticed and I am sure that he will do the same to other persons with disabilities aspiring for any political position.
To you my very comrade yakubu Nazir AbdulHakkeem, you are an inspiration to many and we believe in your abilities. Just keep the flag flying for we are with you and God Almighty is solidly behind you.