IS POLITICS A DIRTY GAME OR IS IT HOW WE PRACTICE IT?

Top of Form

Everybody knows waste products smells, but the way it is handle can also differs the smell.

Politics is one of most important and essential factors which determine the prosperity and the development of a particular nation. These days it is being defined as "a very dirty game". But, telling the fact, there is no such thing in the world which is bad by itself. Only the use and comments given by its users and viewers are bad.

In the same way, politics is not a bad thing. It is a vital factor for a country because it helps to run the country effectively. Politics is mostly disliked and hated by some people. It is not because politics is bad. In fact, it was never bad, but the rulers and leaders used politics for themselves in such a way that it seemed to be worst. Thus, it is clear that politics is not a dirty game but the people who are engaged in politics are using it in a bad and dirty way.

Indeed everyone wants to be the most powerful man; they have to use all sorts of tactics to achieve their aims. Humans are greedy and can never be contented. To be honest, it would be a surprising statement to say politics is a clean game. Politicians nowadays place themselves more important than their countries or the people. Many are simply selfish people who wants the power and money only, but don't want to do anything else to benefit the country/people.

Politics has purposely been turned into a rat-race of who can bend over the most for who pays them the most. Politicians no longer represent their countries or people. Politician are making the country like the football ground and playing the game with each other.

When it comes to issue of power, people don't talk much about whether it should exist or not but about who should have it. The feeling of being powerless is the worst feeling that can happen to a man. In the politics of today, the tactics you use to gain power does not matter much like the one you use to keep it. 

However, it is more or less dirty depending on what country you live in. In the US, it is dirty to some degree (depending on what you mean by dirty). Taking a look at Nigeria’s way of practicing democracy, the word dirty is inevitable in a democracy. In democracy, we are always going to have politicians who need to pander to the special interests so that they can get money to run their reelection campaigns.

Imagine a case where Reps gives President Goodluck Jonathan till September 2^nd to implement the 2012 budget or risk impeachment. This issue of the delay of budget can be likened to a case of a father telling the child he will send his/her pocket money immediately examination commences.

Whoever is ruling over the affairs of your country determine what your situation will look like. There are those who are called to lead and who lead serve while some rule by force. Some are all out to protect their business empires and enrich themselves at the expense of the electorates while some consistently have the interest of the people at heart. 

There is a great difference between ruling, leading and serving. Are our politicians ruling, leading or serving? The surprising thing is that some in the position of authority may think they are serving the people well like the king mentioned above but may not be doing it with loyal heart. Even though environment in which one lives has a large influence on one, one has the inherent power to stand out and refuse to join the bandwagon.

What is the difference between these two players - ruler and leader?

Ruler: A ruler as the name implies imposes his idea on the people by force regardless of their needs and conveniences. He believes anyone that is not happy can go to hell and he will also perpetrate himself in office for more than necessary. Every opposing voice is suppressed and often kept in detention or killed. The case of Zimbabwe is a good example even in this present time and age. Imagine a man of about 85 years who prefers to die in office doing nothing irrespective of what the people, international communities, press, opposition etc. feel, say or do. It is a big shame and abuse of power. Robert Mugabe is supposed to bury his head in big shame. Has he no children, or are they birds of the same feathers?

However, all these rulers are like Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe, Hosni Mubarak of Egypt, Muammar al-Qaddafi of Libya; do not care about the true A B C of politics. They have worse alternatives to learn. They want to be the ultimate source of authority. They want to stay in their positions, and never leave it except in their way to the grave, as if they were stuck to it by powerful super glue.

A leader: On the other hand, a leader carries the people along and is accountable to those who put him in office. He does things that are pleasing to the people and seek their opinion from time to time. He allows separation of power among the executive, legislative and judiciary. He allows his name to be written in gold irrespective of the other players. 

Let me bring it home to African leaders in general and Nigeria in particular. Ours is a country endowed with so many resources, hardly is there a particular mineral resource not found in Nigeria except if undiscovered. Coupled with this, we have a very fertile land for agriculture but we abandon agriculture for oil. Is there anything wrong if we have multiple stream of revenue generation? The weather in Nigeria is near perfect; water resources and everything in it can produces unlimited revenue; what about human resources, highly intelligent, skilled and professional; in every area of endeavour. 

Nigerians are doing well all over the world. It seems something is wrong somewhere. It’s like the right person is never allowed to be in the right place. For the first time, university educated person is allowed into the office of the presidency since independent and even that person is turned into a puppet by many unseen rulers.

It seems that many will only contest for position after it has been established beyond every reasonable doubt that they are not fit for such positions. How? Due to the process in place for selection, not on merit but connection. It is not about what you know or what you have to offer but who you know. It won’t be a thing of surprise that Barack Obama may not have succeeded in local government chairmanship not to talk of higher position if he did in any part of Africa, be it Nigeria or Kenya as a citizen. 

It is almost like a rule that you have to belong to a “caucus” which is usually made of members of various secret societies to prove the eligibility of candidates. The righteous man with good intention to serve will have been edged out in the process. Something is wrong somewhere, I believe.

Quintus Cicero advising his brother Marcus Tullius Cicero during his campaign for the Roman consulship to be a successful politician of this dirty game, “Make sure that your election campaign is one long parade, magnificent and splendid, appealing to popular taste, presenting a grand and dignified spectacle. If at all possible, you should also arrange for some scandal to be stirred up against your competitors, involving either criminal behavior or sex or bribery, depending on their character.”

Sometimes some of these “opportunist” - politicians, big time contractors (that will be awarded contracts without executing them) and their agents are richer than these nations. The situation now is that the rich becomes richer at the expense of the nation while the poor become poorer. And the wealth gathered illegimately is used to oppress the poor.

Based on this argument, we can claim that 99% of today’s leaders are politically illiterate if we can oppress illiteracy by adhering that concept to it. Any political system depends on three main factors; its legitimacy, its authority, and finally its sovereignty. In case any factor of these three fails, the system becomes no longer capable of surviving, and it collapses.

Today’s leaders are different; they believe that the position is the origin of authority. They run for elections because they desire the position to achieve an individual’s victory. Their ultimate objective is the seek for absolute power, and in their way to achieve this they can ruin all the gorgeous means and values that the humanity has been struggling to protect them since the time of Adam.

Some leaders conceive the damned book of Machiavelli "lo prince" their credo, and they commit to memory every line in that cursed book. That book gave the politician advice about what he should do to persevere and to promote in his position. However, it did not give him an advice about what he should do for his people. The book teaches the politician how to be a liar, pragmatic, utilitarian, hypocrite, opportunist, or even a killer to achieve the position, and nothing but the position.

A good example for us is Macbeth. It is the famous Shakespearean play about the fighter who was told by three witches that he was going to be a king. In his way to be the king, he killed all the figures that stood in his way. Had Macbeth waited, he might have reached the position of the king without all that bloodshed. Finally, Macbeth was killed.

By all means, politics is a dirty game. It is not a game of definite rules. Politics is exactly like a free-wrestling game; you can use everything; you can kick, punch, slap, or even kill. And if you killed, your lawyers can free you safely because it is a game. And once the game has started, you can never change the rules.

The two right things, to do in this dirty game are either you leave the dirty game for the dirty players who can never change their filthy style, or for the stubborn players who are ready to kill or to martyrize so that cleanliness may prevail. The second one is if you chose to play, never leave the battlefield, NEVER!!!