By Dr Austin Orette
We have reasons to celebrate this year's Democracy Day and reasons to be downcast. We are survivors and this darkness shall also pass. June 12 is a day that the Lord made for us. It was fought for and bled for by our forebears. We should take time to reflect on this day and ask basic questions. Do we owe any allegiance to those who died in this quest? The answer is yes. What is democracy to us? Are we ready to fight and bleed for our democracy? Are we ready to fight for justice, freedom and rule of law?
If we are, we must define our democracy in Nigeria. We must shout from the rooftops to let anyone know that this struggle for democracy and the rule of law is what will define us as free people.
Are we really free? The answer is no. For democracy to be solidly planted, we must remove all vestiges of any limitations to our collective aspirations. We can only say we are free when the people governing us have the consent of the governed, under the rule of law. The present leaders behave like coup plotters. The military bequeathed this to us.
We have a chance and duty to vote them out of power. They should leave the government and enjoy the economy and the security they created. This is democracy. Incumbents should never be allowed to feel entitled to any position, when their performance is zero.
We are not free when we are chained down by ignorance. We are not free when we are handcuffed by poverty and diseases that the leaders use as a weapon to keep us gullible. We are not free when we are afraid to protect our stake in this commonwealth called Nigeria.
Of all the different types of government that exist, democracy is the most difficult to practice. This is because it requires citizens’ participation. We are here today because of the intellectual laziness of a majority of our citizens. They either refuse to vote or they sold their votes.
Unenlightened citizens cannot participate in this process. The vote of ignorant people is a danger to democracy. Their votes are mined to keep in place oppressive policies that have destroyed our ability to dream as a collective people, who want to move forward.
One is amazed by how much a lot of people don’t know about our system of governance. Majority of people shouting themselves hoarse don’t even know how their local government operate and they have never attempted to attend such meetings because they don’t know and they have no curiosity in this respect. They don’t know their members in the House of Assemblies. A lot of people don’t even know they can go to the House of Assembly and watch proceedings of those they elected to represent them.
At this moment, some people still think the governors are appointed by the President. I wouldn’t blame them considering the behavior of Governor Sheriff Oborevwori. He is always running to Abuja for photo up with the president.
We should also attempt to learn more about the Judiciary by going to observe proceedings at the courts.
Unless we do these things to educate ourselves and our people, we will always see democracy as an abstract concept. When things go awry, we will not reflexively call President Bola Tinubu and unknowingly give cover to non-performing state legislators. We should hold the state assemblies, senators and House of Representatives members accountable.
Our continuous bellowing Tinubu shows we don’t know the kind of government we are practicing. This lacuna could have been filled if we have responsible people in power, individuals who will teach the people their civic responsibility in a democracy.
As democrats, we must engage the voters and make them participate in their governance. They cannot do this without knowledge, and they will become willing tools in the hands of tyrants and criminals who want to perpetuate themselves in power. This is the only process that will weed out autocratic and tyrannical leaders in a democratic society.
Knowledge of how we run our affairs is the antidote to the abuse of power that is personified by the NDC leadership.
The journey to freedom, Justice and the rule of law must be embarked on with knowledge and sincerity of purpose. Nigerian politicians are allergic to knowledge and are willing to spend any amount to perpetuate ignorance. It is our responsibility to stop them from using us as fertilizer for their greed and corruption.
We have collectively failed our nation by helping to elect imposters. We must use our knowledge as a weapon to dispel ignorance, instead of using it for sycophancy.
We must stop them. The journey of democracy is perpetual vigilance.
Austin Orette, A Senatorial Candidate, Writes From Owhelogbo In Isoko North Local Government Area
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