Loyalty to Who?

All Africa is reporting that the PDP (Peoples Democratic Party) of Nigeria is requireing Loyalty to Obasanjo as a prerequisite for receiving it's backing for succeeding Obasanjo.

PEOPLES Democratic Party (PDP)'s Governor Ayodele Fayose-led special committee shopping for President Olusegun Obasanjo's successor yesterday said loyalty to the president is a precondition that aspirants eyeing the plum office must meet before getting its backing.

It also resolved to screen non-governors for the Presidency in 2007.

These were part of decisions reached by the committee which met for several hours at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. It was presided over by Governor Fayose of Ekiti State.

Jigawa State governor, Alhaji Saminu Turaki who recently joined the PDP from All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and attended the meeting told newsmen that "apart from being in the PDP, loyalty to the president is the first and important issue".

"This thing is part of the President also. Like I said the most important thing is loyalty to the President," he said.

This is no doubt in response to the Split that occurred in the party:

The division occurred as prominent party members opposed efforts to amend the constitution to allow the president a third term in office.

Vice-president Atiku Abubakar, who was against the change, says he will run for president in next year's elections.

Nigeria's Senate last month threw out the amendment.

Sadly the "Peoples" party should be renamed the "Obasanjo Democratic Party". Why would loyalty to the president be a prerequitite for anything. Rather, it would be loyalty to the Nigerian people that should be the "most important". Or perhaps abilty, leadership and things like that would be "most important". Much like the Republican party in the United States, politics of loyalty to a transient figure rather than to the people seems to be the rage. It would even be more understandable if they said something like loyalty to the political party, even though that would be far less than ideal but it would put less power in the hands of charismatic and potentially deeply flawed individuals.

In the end, the problem that Fanon described, the inability to create a national consciousness, is in plain view in Nigeria.

Technorati Tags: Africa, critique, Leadership, Pan-Africanism