NCP AND THE 2007 GENERAL ELECTIONS

By Demola Yaya

Against the background of constant and severe attacks on the living condition of the poor working masses by the governments at levels through the neo-liberal policies of privatisation and commercialisation of public property and social services like education, healthcare, etc, mass retrenchment, hike in the pump price of locally consumed fuel like kerosene, petrol and diesel coupled with massive corruption and mismanagement of our collective wealth by the capitalist politicians and their agents, the stage would have been ordinarily set for a radical party like National Conscience Party (NCP) to launch campaigns against these killer policies and reposition itself to wrest power from these self-serving capitalist politicians especially as we move towards the 2007 general elections.

Compared with the resources at its disposal between 1994 when it was formed and 2003 general elections, NCP is better placed for 2007 general elections if Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) financial subsidy being paid to political parties is strategically and wisely used.

Between 1999 and 2003, there were some sections of the poor masses who had illusion that given more time, perhaps, the Obasanjo government and the capitalist politicians could perform. However, it has become clearer, on a daily basis, that given everlasting time, they will continue to wreck economic and political havoc to milk-dry the poor people with their central neo-liberal economic plank notwithstanding huge resources being generated on a daily basis. On crude oil sales alone, for instance, Nigerian government rakes in $900m every day as a result of rise in the prices of the product at the international market. This is apart from other sources of income.

But, what has the government got to show for these enormous resources? Mass poverty and misery for the vast majority of the populace, social infrastructure in primitive state, abandoning of social obligations, etc while the parasitic ruling politicians who rode to power via massively manipulated and rigged elections continue to live in ill-gotten affluence having converted public owned assets to themselves and their imperialist masters and looted treasury to acquire multimillion naira property abroad.

Counter allegations of corruption between President Obasanjo and his Vice, Atiku, are clear pointers to the extent of corruption by the thieving elite and cracks within their ranks vis-Å•-vis who actually controls and distributes the largess.

The masses have not folded their hands. They have demonstrated their hatred to the regime and its policies through seven general strikes and mass protests that have shaken the regime to its very foundation. If the labour leadership had been focused and prepared to chase away the regime, by now, Obasanjo’s government would have been in the dustbin of history.

From the foregoing, therefore, there are objective factors, which have placed NCP on a better position to be built as a formidable masses oriented political party that can successfully drive out capitalist exploiters from power.

Instead of converting these objective factors to a political strength, the right wing national leadership of NCP led by Dr. Osagie Obayuawana has perfected the strategy to subsume the party’s central electoral activities within the framework of an alliance with sections of capitalist parties like AD, ANPP, AC and similar formations ostensibly under the canopy of presenting a formidable political alternative to Obasanjo and his cronies come 2007 general elections.

Segun Sango, the General Secretary of the Democratic Socialist Movement (DSM) and the Chairperson of NCP in Lagos state and other key party leaders from south-west who are stoutly opposed to this opportunistic and destructive approach have been, unsurprisingly, purportedly expelled and suspended respectively by the Obayuwana right wing gang “for a disdainful and scornful walk out on the NCC” amongst other baseless allegations.

Because it was in a hurry to foist its unprincipled romance and rapprochement with some sections of the hated bourgeois class and their parties, Obayuwana right wing gang led NCP threw every decorum, constitutional and due process into the thin air just to kick out its socialists and left opponents from the party. The manner and processes used to effect its attacks against these committed leaders who have built the party to the present enviable state in the Southwest in general and Lagos state in particular run counter to the party’s constitution and 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.