Victor Ezeja
Leader of the National Consultative Front (NCFront) and Convener of the BIG TENT, Prof. Pat Utomi, says the manner in which the Deputy National Organising Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Nze Chidi, Duru responded to his proposal for merger of opposition political parties shows that having a rational public conversation may be possible in the Nigerian public sphere.
Utomi expressed his delight that rather than the abusive and combative response that the APC is known for, Nze Duru, whom he described as “a cultured person” responded rationally and constructively.
He made this remark while reacting to Nze Duru’s comment on his proposal to form a coalition of major opposition political parties ahead of the 2027 general election.
Utomi, a professor of Political Economy and Entrepreneurship, and founder of the Centre for Values in Leadership (CVL), had in an interview revealed that three presidential candidates in the last general election – Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Peter Obi of Labour Party, and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) – have agreed to form a formidable party that would win elections in 2027.
He said that after having conversations with the three main opposition candidates, he agreed to form a mega party to take over leadership from the APC.
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In his statement released Tuesday, the renowned economist said: “I read with interest the response by Nze Chidi Duru to speculations about what has been called a merger of opposition parties. That response itself is much evidence of progress. That a cultured person like Duru reacted rather than the typical Joseph Goebbels propaganda abusiveness the APC is known for shows rational public conversation may become possible in the Nigerian public sphere. Juergen Habermas, the great philosopher of the public sphere in modernity and Democracy would have smiled at that.”
Utomi expressed optimism that the mega party being proposed, would successfully sack APC from office in the next presidential election.
He explained that the mega party being proposed not the assemblage of people with selfish political interest but a “real political party” that has a clear ideology informed by the quest to cater to the general good of the ordinary Nigerians.
“To clarify, what I have been speaking to is not the hurried coupling together of interests to create a platform for machine politics like the Daley machine in Chicago, to obtain desired elections outcomes and foist state capture on a wearied people. That is what came out of the 2014 effort that birthed the APC. I was witness to it and have written the first book of a trilogy on that national tragedy,” Utomi stated.
“What I have been speaking to is the founding of a real political party. This is something that has eluded this fourth republic. Our efforts begin with ideation that will birth a world view of this party. Some call it ideology. To join you have to subscribe to those ideas about the socio-political economic systems that cherish freedom, the dignity of the human person and that line from our first National anthem that though tribe and tongue may differ in brotherhood we stand. Then we will develop shared values around the approach to a people centered political party.
“Next will be a structure for community-based solutions to the personal troubles of people and flow of what the people want into the public policy process. When an agreement is reached on National Strategy which from my agenda-setting position will be moving the country away from elite rent-seeking and mindless corruption to production on value chains erected on our regional factor endowments in which we have latent comparative advantage.
“The major issues we adopt such as constitutional reforms and the emphasizing of the principle of subsidiarity and bottom-up people’s entrepreneurial capitalism will be agreed to before people sign up for leadership roles.
“Can old gladiators I have called out previously have a role. If they do a mea culpa and accept that this is about Nigeria and not themselves there will be room for embrace.
“I like to point to the Malaysia feuds between Dr Mahathir Mohammed and Anwar Ibrahim who was his Deputy Prime Minister in 1997. This led to imprisonment and much bad blood. But when a very bad and corrupt government came up decades later Mahathir Mohammed as a Nonagenarian came out of retirement, founded a new party and in partnership with Anwar Ibrahim won the election against the incumbent Najib Razak.
“We are confident that through our efforts in this initiative, Nigeria will rise up again. It is about time. The people do not deserve what they have suffered through. This should not be the poverty capital of the world.”
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with six years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Masters degree in Mass Communication.
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