The newly-elected National Chairman of the Inter-Party Advisory Council, the umbrella body of political parties in the country, Dr. Yusuf Dantalle, has described political operations in Nigeria as that of running a business and not service to people.
According to him, political offices determine the economic status of politicians immediately they are elected into positions.
“The moment you are elected, your economic status is transformed,” Dantalle stated.
The IPAC Chairman made this known at a “Multi-Stakeholders Dialogue on Rebuilding Trust in the Electoral Process, Institutions and Elections” held on Monday in Lagos.
The event was co-hosted by the International Press Centre, Centre for Media and Society and funded by the European Union as part of European Union Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria Programme, Phase 2.
Dantalle stated further that democracy has been limited to the national and state levels, adding that the people at the grassroots who are supposed to be the major beneficiaries and participants of democratic processes have been neglected.
“Democracy is no longer in the hands of the people and that gave birth to the various social vices we are now experiencing in the nation such as terrorism, kidnapping, cultism, banditry and so on,” he opined.
Additionally, the IPAC National Chairman alleged that State Governors, due to joint accounts shared by the states and local governments, determine the candidates that emerge as the chairman at the local level.
He added: “The people do not vote for who they want to represent them at the local level because it has been decided by the governor due to a joint account shared by the state and local government.
“All governors are guilty of it.”
Dantalle advocated that democracy should be given back to the people, adding: “We must build a spirit of economic and political nationalism to portray that this Nation is ours.”
In his intervention, Adeola Soetan, also observed: “Politics in Nigeria is the highest growing investment industry that yields highest profits, which has broken the trust of the voters who are looking for people to be of service.”
Also Read
Soetan called for a change in the perception and conception of political elites, the media as well as the public in order to rebuild trust in the various electoral and democratic processes, institutions and offices.
Follow The Eagle Online Channel on WhatsApp
