Militarization of Democracy in Nigeria: the Portents are Terrifying

By
Aliyu M. Katsina

Just when did I realise that democracy has been successfully militarised in Nigeria? Definitely not in 1999,
when the Soja-boys contrived the fraud that produced an ex-convict, hurriedly granted presidential
pardon, by unelected military dictator, as Nigerian president. Definitely, not when late Aro of Mopa was
rigged-out of PDP Chairmanship contest. Forcefully, they stopped late Oyi of Oyi from becoming the
Senate President the first time he gave it a shot. What do we had then? A Senate President who did not
even quite got his name right. They came in different shapes and shades in 2003 and duped us in to
believing everything was all right. Gullibly, we accepted. And look at democracy today. Poor, poor, poor
democracy: emasculated, starved, and suffocated and then killed. Survived by whom? Buhari is one,
Balarabe Musa is also there, and of course my humble self, and all those millions who thronged to the
streets daily to feed their insatiable hunger.

Speaking about militarization of democracy, those were not the transformations, they were the signs, and
we were heedless. Those were our Ides of March that went unheeded. History has a way of using indelible
and yet undecipherable ink on the largest wall around. The discerning sees the writing and can always
read it. A blind Soothsayer in Rome warned Gaius Julius Caesar of the Ides of March, he paid no heed and
paid the price with his life, e’tu Nigeria. They came in the shapes of Brutus, Casca, Danjuma, IBB, people
who naively felt they were doing something great for the country. In the end, they were bloodied in
Philippi, Eagle square, and the hollowed chambers of the NASS and our venerated courts. They had
unleashed a monster and their last stand? Well it benefits them not. Brutus, the republican idealist, is still
remembered a traitor. Octavian is still remembered as the avenger of Caesar and saviour of Rome (see,
history has the greatest sense of irony). We will forever remember IBB not for chasing the draconian
regime of Buhari/Idiagbon out of Dodan Barracks and not even for saving Nigerians from the doom that
would have been an Abiola Presidency, no, but for something less noble. Together with Danjuma, and
Atiku, we shall always remember him as the traitor to the Nigerian people for bringing an ex-convict in
the first place as a president. In the second instance, we don’t even need to forgive them, for they have
messed things up so much so that they were looking for ways to make it good. Their idea of making it
good, we realised later, included imposing a deranged prisoner as president.

Octavian is our baby president Umaru. Avenging Caesar, uniting and restoring the glory of Rome, fighting
corruption, reformed electoral system, due process, accountability, rule of law, and servant-leader hype,
how uncanny. Subterfuge, deception, obfuscation, all raw ingredients of militarization. We were lulled
into believing and seeing the gentleness, the innocence, the unassuming, the simplicity, the humility,
when we wake up, if ever we do, we have not Octavian in the villa, but Emperor Augustus Yar’adua or is
it Mutawalle perched atop the rock. It was said that when Octavian was told that he had been declared a

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god, he said if some one come with his sickness what would he do. Mutawalle, the honest and
accountable, has been declared just, yet he could no do a simple task: acknowledge that he is enjoying a
stolen mandate (Barawon zaune) and thus should surrender it to its rightful owners – Nigerians.

I can see the future, and I can tell you exactly, with a precision of the watch, what the moves of our
servant-leader would be in these coming months. You wondered how I come by such powers. Look I come
from Katsina, where the servant-leader had rule in the most dictatorial manner that would make Abacha
and Obasanjo squirmed. I do not want you to believe me, I want you to believe the facts, and I am not
supplying them. I want you to go out there and find out how our last local government polls were
conducted. How many local government Chairmen were returned unopposed, while the servant-leader is
busy trying to reform the un-reformable electoral system. There is nothing wrong with it; it is the PDP,
Yar’adua, Turai, and all the POWER ELITE that need reforming. While you are at it, try to remember that
Baba Buhari hails from Katsina state. You may also while in Katsina, like to ask some few questions on the
political pedigree of our current governor. And how he was divinely imposed on us by orders up above.

Look, do not let us waste time discussing things that we all know are considered as given.
During the infamous Abacha regime, many in this country, some recognized, while many the voiceless and
unrecognised millions fought what they believed to be the militarization of politics in Nigeria by the
military cabal. They were right just as they were heroic. They fought against what they perceived to be
arbitrariness in the process of governance. The idea of governance presupposes reaching out and
consultation. In modern parlance, we called this democracy. This has come full cycle. Democracy is now
officially militarised. The signs are not good. When our servant President was campaigning in Katsina he
came down with a slogan: “Kowa ya bi, in bakabi ba an bima”, meaning all people have accepted the
supremacy of PDP and even if you do not, it does not matter. This is the height of crass indifference and
arrogance to the ethics of democracy. Today, we don’t talk of popular votes, we only talk about
endorsement and anointing.

It is therefore plain, in fact, pretty plain that we have a success story in our hands. BREAKING NEWS:
Democracy has been militarised. Not a single PDP governor, senator, or house member in 2007 was
scrupulously selected at the primaries. They were traded by Obj and his COHORTS. Iwu only finished what
was started at the party boardrooms. One thing before I forget: Rome eventually caught fire and
collapsed.