By Favour Adéwọyin
The kind of politics that we are playing in Nigeria, in which money plays the supreme position and takes the highest rank or priority, without any regard to morality, can be best explained with the English proverb which says, ‘He who sups with the Devil should have a long spoon.’ One elderly friend even said that having a long spoon as a condition to dine with the devil is an understatement. In his own opinion, ‘He who wants to eat with the devil must have a big shovel.’
Politics and politicians have turned out to become another thing. We are in the age of the ‘new normal’ in which wrong doings have suddenly become right doings, as right doings have suddenly become wrong doings in the manner in which a chameleon would take after its immediate environment to change its colour.
In his article in The Nations newspaper, which was published on 9 September, 2022, Prof. Sẹ́gun Gbádégẹsin, a regular Columnist, wrote an article which he entitled, *‘Of Politics and Politicians,’* in which he examined two kinds of politics. His standpoint in that article will form the basis of my discussion here.
The first kind of politics that Prof. Sẹ́gun Gbádégẹsin mentioned and thoroughly discussed is the one that he called ‘politics in its original sense’ which is the type of politics that political players were playing in the days of Chief Ọbáfẹ́mi Awólọ́wọ̀ when they, that is politicians, were in politics to serve the people selflessly. That was the time the town from which you came and the religions you were practising didn’t matter or count before you were considered for anything.
Chief Ọbáfẹ́mi Awólọ́wọ̀ was an Ìjẹ̀bú man from Ìkẹ́nnẹ́, while Chief ’Ládòkè Akíntọ́lá was an Ọ̀yọ́ man from Ògbómọ̀ṣọ́. They were both Premiers in the Western Region and used the resources that belonged to the people to build Television stations, Stadiums, Universities, Government Houses, the Cocoa House and all the big companies under Oòduà Investment respectively. They didn’t influence the establishment of those companies and / institutions in either Ìkẹ́nnẹ́ or Ògbómọ̀ṣọ́.
Ìbàdàn, the capital of the Old Western Region, was taken care of as the Capital by the people whom were not indigenous people of Ìbàdàn. Those were the days when one, who became Governor, would not necessarily be a native of Ìbàdàn before one could take care of Ìbàdàn, the Capital. For the most part, up until now, it is the constitutional right of the capital city to enjoy more attention than any other towns in a State. This should allay the fears if we play politics in the original sense as the people played it in the Twentieth Century, in that a non-indigenous native of Ìbàdàn occupying the Government House would do everything within his power to keep protecting the interest of Ìbàdàn, the capital city.
However, the problem and the fear lie in the kind of skewed politics that we are playing today. This is the second category of politics that Prof. Sẹ́gun Gbádégẹsin mentioned in his article; he called it ‘politics in its debased sense’.
With regard to Prof. Sẹ́gun Gbádégẹsin’s description, the verbal adjective ‘debased’ means ‘being reduced in quality, in value or in dignity’. Judging from the meaning of ‘debased’, it baffles me that the kind of politics that we are playing in the Twenty-first Century is not the progressive one. What we have is the abnormal politics that the people in this Genzee Age have called the ‘new normal’ as I have earlier described it.
For instance, money politics that Asiwaju Hammed Tunde talked about in his article which he entitled *‘Oke Ogun Are Not Qualified To Become Governor In Oyo State’* belongs to the ‘new normal’ which is highly ‘debased’.
Today’s politics accommodates every Tom, Dick and Harry unlike in those days when it was as though people were anointed and ordained into politics. Modern-day politics is characterised by covetousness, selfishness, greediness and materialism. Money is everything and that is why Asiwaju Hammed Tunde could write that an Òkè-Ògùn person cannot become Governor of Oyo State because, in his assessment and judgment, nothing good can come from Òkè-Ògùn. In his own perspective, Òkè-Ògùn is a poor enclave and there are no people who can burn two millions and feel nothing in the name of politics.
However, his analysis is truly correct because there are no people who are rich enough to spend their money lavishly in Òkè-Ògùn. So, considering the fact that there are no such people whose mothers did not warn not to eat anything stronger than banana, nothing good can come from all the marginalised regions in Ọ̀yọ́ State.
Nevertheless, no statement, assessment or analysis can be as unfair as that. What informed the conclusion that there are no rich people in a region with ten Local Governments? If there is no man who can solely do the funding, can’t we crowd-fund? Who said that those whom had been spending money in political arenas in other regions were solo-funding their ambitions?
However, my succour lies in the fact that Jesus came from Nazareth and Mohammed came from Mecca. According to history, Nazareth, at that time, was one street and eleven houses. Then, in the past, I’m sure that Mecca, in which Mohammed was rejected, was also a very small town.
What I’m trying to say is that it is God who has the prerogative to enthrone and dethrone a king, a Local Government Chairman, a Governor, a President and the like. Whoever God enthrones is enthroned and whoever He dethrones is dethroned.
Sometime ago, I read about a man who bragged that, even if God came down on the earth, nothing could stop him from becoming the President of a particular country. This was a true-life story, but I have forgotten the country in which it happened. I read that the man won the election, but he died on the day of his swearing-in. Who can fathom or comprehend God’s way?
Incomprehensibility is the way of God! His ways are not our ways and His thoughts are not our thoughts. As heaven is far from the earth, so are His ways far from our ways!
Ọlọ́run òun tani? A ṣ’èyí ó wù ú! Ọba tí ò l’áfiwé; Ọba tí ò l’áfijọ. Kábíyèsí, Ọba àwọn Òba, Ọlọ́run àwọn Ọlọ́run! Ọba tó ń f’ọba á jẹ; Ọba tó ń gbà’dọ̀bálẹ̀ Ọba … Gbìn-ìn-gbin-nìkìn, Awúwo-má-ṣe-é-gbé, Atóbi-máṣe-é-báwí, Alágbára gíga, Ọ̀gá-ògo jùlọ … Whom can we compare with God? Again, incomprehensibility is the work of God!
Furthermore, He is God who can take somebody from Ìwó-àtẹ and make him or her the head of account in our country. Before our very eyes, He was the one who took a boy without shoes from Otuoke and made him the President of our nation. If you look at the size of Ìwó-àtẹ and Òtuoke, it is not up to one area in Ṣakí, Ìsẹ́yìn, Òkehò, Tedé or any of the towns in Òkè-Ògùn.
So, I fault the x-ray of Asiwaju Hammed Tunde that he made in his article to overrate money politics in our polity. And, further, to fault his position in this article claiming that there are rich wealthy and prosperous people from Òkè-Ògùn and every region who are capable of spending money to get whatever position in politics, the question is: should we continue with our ‘debased’ politics? Why should someone spend money in the reckless dimension as canvassed by Asiwaju Hammed Tunde before he or she can declare his or her aspiration to become Governor of Oyo State State or of any State in Nigeria?
In other words, why should we throw a merit that borders on capacity, competence and character into the wind and substitute everything for money? No wonder that it is said that we can’t worship God, the Almighty, and Mammon, the God of money together! It is either we allow the fear of the Lord to take pre-eminence in our hearts and do the right thing to promote fairness, justice and equity, or we continue doing the wrong things and be ready to face the consequences.
Furthermore, still on money politics, let me tell you a little of my father. I was born by two politicians and what I experienced at home taught me how to have contentment. In retrospect, when I was young, someone sent a huge amount of money to my father to change his mind on a political matter. My father returned the money to him and retorted, ‘To hell with his money.’ Please fact-check me. My father didn’t change his mind and people began to blame him, but he stood strong. Today, I can frankly say that my father did well. My counsel is: let everyone of us uphold the principle of righteousness because it is righteousness, not money, that exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people.
Do you want Nigeria to be a great country? Let me respond by saying that until we do it right, we can’t get it right; and, until we get it right, things won’t be right for us. If we continue to do it wrongly, we are going to be getting the same results; this means that when we throw a hand fan up two hundred times, it’ll always fall flat on the ground.
Pastor Favour Adewoyin, Public Analyst, Youth Manager, Community Leader and Farmer writes from Ibadan.
